Introduction to Globalization

• Introduction to Globalization

Dimensions of Globalization

• Globalization as an economic process involves increasing linkage of national economies.
• Globalization as a political process is a subset of issues of state sovereignty, growing impact of intergovernmental organizations, and prospects for global governance.
• Globalization as a cultural process is a growing network of complex cultural interconnections and interdependencies that characterize modern social life.

Definitions of Globalization Based on Economics

• Globalization means fast speed of trade.
• It also means global economic organizations.
• It includes multinational and transnational corporations.
• Trade blocs are part of globalization.
• Free trade and privatization are aspects of it.
• Less tariffs are also associated with globalization.

Political Science Perspective

• Globalization challenges the nation-state.
• Strength of regional blocs is observed.
• There's an emergence of global political norms.
• Multilateral and bilateral relations among nation-states.
• Emergence of corporations is noted.
• International laws are relevant.
• World governance is part of it.

Cultural View

• Globalization means the establishment of a "global village".
• It signifies a "shrinking world".
• Cultural imperialism can be an aspect.
• Borderless world is a concept related to globalization.
• Adoption of other cultures is part of the process.

Attributes of Globalization

• Various forms of connectivity are a key attribute.
• It includes expansion and stretching of social relations.
• Intensification and acceleration of social exchanges and activities.
• Occurs objectively.

Various Forms of Connectivity

• These are diverse, including economic, political, and cultural aspects.
• They are enabled by various factors, pressures, media, etc.
• They are uneven, with differing degrees of interconnections.

Expansion & Stretching of Social Relations

• Regional and international NGOs are involved.
• Sister-cities mechanisms play a role.
• Government associations are relevant.
• MNCs (Multinational Corporations) and TNCs (Transnational Corporations) participate.

Intensification & Acceleration of Social Exchanges and Activities

• Includes shift from door-to-door mail to FB messages, IG, Snap Chat, and Twitter.
• Encompasses live TV telecasts.
• Travel capacities due to low airfares are significant.

Occurs Objectively

• Involves thinking about the world as a whole.
• Associating with global trends is common.
• Being aware of a sense of responsibility.

Six Core Claims of Globalization

• It is about the liberalization and global integration of Markets.
• It is considered inevitable and irreversible.
• Nobody is in charge of globalization.
• It benefits everyone in the long run.
• It furthers the spread of democracy in the world.
• It requires a global war on terror.

Globalization as Globaloney

• Globaloney contradicts globalization.
• Claims about globalization are incorrect, imprecise, or exaggerated.
• Everything that can be linked to transnational processes is cited as evidence.

Three Categories for the Arguments of Globaloney

• Rejectionist arguments
• Sceptics arguments
• Modifiers arguments

Rejectionist Arguments

• Disputes the usefulness of globalization as a sufficiently precise analytical concept.
• Considers globalization a vacuous term used in academic discourse to refer to anything.

Rejectionist Arguments (cont.)

• Provide additional examples of how the term globalization obscures more than it enlightens.
• Complement the social scientific enterprise of exploring globalization as an objective process.

Sceptics Arguments

• Emphasizes the limited nature of current globalizing processes.
• The world economy is not global but centered on Europe, eastern Asia, and North America.
• Majority of economic activity remains primarily on financial flows.

Sceptics Arguments (cont.)

• Warns against drawing global conclusions from limited arguments against the existence of economic globalization.
• Assumes that globalization is primarily an economic phenomenon.
• Considers all other dimensions of globalization as reflections of deeper economic processes.

Modifiers Arguments

• Disputes the novelty of the process and proofs.
• Acknowledges the existence of moderate globalizing tendencies.
• It implies that globalization has often been applied in a historically imprecise manner.

Modifiers Arguments (cont.)

• Argue that the modern capitalist economy has been global since its inception five centuries ago.
• Globalizing tendencies have been proceeding along a continuum of modernization for a long time.

Renowned Definitions of Globalization

• Immanuel Wallerstein: Triumph of a capitalist world economy tied by a global division of labor.
• David Harvey: The compression of time and space.
• Martin Albrow: Processes by which the peoples of the world are incorporated into a single world society.
• Anthony Giddens: Intensification of worldwide social relations that link distant localities.
• Arjun Appadurai: Global cultural process and a product of the infinitely varied mutual contest of sameness and difference.
• Peter Dicken: Form of internalization that implies integration between internationally dispersed economic activities.
• Paul Bairoch and Richard Kozul-Wright: Interlinking financial structures through an increasing number of cross-border transactions to create an international division of labor.
• Robert Cox: Internationalizing of production, division of labor, new migratory movements, and the competitive environment that accelerates these processes.
• James H. Mittleman: A rubric for a varied phenomena.
• Charles Oman: Accelerated growth of economic activity across national and regional political boundaries.

Summary

• The discussion highlighted the definitions of globalization through different processes.
• There were debates on globalization.
• It presents the continuous changing process of society.