modernization
n. the complex set of processes by which a largely rural and traditional society becomes a developed industrial society. Modernized societies are typically conceived as those societies that tend toward the secular and urbanized and that place a high value on science and technology, education, social mobility, acquired wealth, democratic government, and the rule of law. Modernization is anchored to notions of social and economic progress. It is often contrasted with the traditionalism of undeveloped or underdeveloped societies, which are often identified as religious and rural, with limited technology, low social mobility, weak political structures, and so forth. Other conceptualizations of this dichotomy are currently in debate, however, pointing to the highly variable social and psychological adjustments that occur in different societies as they respond to development. —modernize
vb.