Understanding Key Concepts of Globalization

Concepts of Globalization

• This section aims to explore different conceptions of globalization, distinguish expert definitions, and adopt a working definition of globalization.

Activity

• Students are instructed to agree or disagree with statements about globalization and enter their answers in the chat.
• An example provided is of a college student named Lorenz, who interacts with global products and communications daily.

Discussion Points

• Economic Imperialism is when a nation assumes economic power or exerts influence over others.
• Globalization can lead to "Americanization" in countries like the Philippines, which is related to Westernization, the spread of worldview and culture.

Defining Globalization

• Globalization is a complex and difficult to understand phenomenon.
• Reich (1998) describes it as a term with an obscure meaning.
• Schottle (1995) defines globalization as having widespread public presence around the world and being a defining term of 20th century social consciousness.
• Rosenau (1996) distinguishes globalization from globalism, where the latter refers to aspirations for shared values and problem-solving among the world's five billion people, and universalism, which is the embodiment of values that embrace all humanity.
• McGrew (1990) describes globalization as sameness and interconnectedness exceeding nation-state boundaries, affecting individuals and organizations globally.
• Cerny (1997) views globalization as a cluster of evolving economic and political frameworks impacting the international political economy.

Globalization as a Process, Condition, and Ideology

• Globalization can be viewed as a process, a condition, and an ideology.

Globalization as a Process

• Freeden (2003) describes globalization as many processes under one term, with global flows occurring in physical and mental dimensions.
• Arjun Appadurai identifies five dimensions of global cultural flow called "scapes":
  • Ethnoscapes
  • Technoscapes
  • Mediascapes
  • Financescapes
  • Ideoscapes
• Steger (2005 & 2014) limits globalization to intricate social processes modifying social statuses based on self-dependent nation-states.
• Globalization is social procedures that build, accelerate, elaborate, and intensify worldwide interactions, nurturing consciousness of linkages.

Globalization as a Condition

• Steger (2005) refers to it as "globality" that denotes a "future social condition characterized by thick economic, political, and cultural interconnections and global flows that make currently existing political borders and economic barriers irrelevant."

Globalization as an Ideology

• Ideology, is described as dogmatic, politically sophisticated, or dominant modes of thought (Gerring, 1997).
• Steger (2014b) defines it as shared ideas, beliefs, norms, values, and ideals accepted as truth.
• It has core claims.
• Steger (2014b) identifies five core claims of globalism:
  • Globalization is about liberalization and global integration of markets.
  • Globalization is inevitable and irreversible.
  • Nobody is in charge of globalization.
  • Globalization benefits everyone.
  • Globalization furthers the spread of democracy.

Globalization for Political Scientists

• Globalization poses a challenge to nation-states.
• It strengthens regional blocks like the EU, ASEAN, and the UN.
• Global political norms are emerging, such as the entitlement of each country to exploit natural resources for its own growth (Giensen & Pijl, 2006)
• Global corporations have emerged.
  • Business entities can demand actions from nation-states that will advance interests.
  • Corporations may prefer countries that allow them to earn more with less cost. -Some corporations have bigger revenues than the GDP of some countries (Trivett, 2011)
    • For example, in 2010 Microsoft’s revenue was bigger than Croatia’s GDP.

Globalization for Economists

• Globalization increases free trade, speeds up trade, global economic organization, and regional trade blocks.
• Expansion of free trade enables governments to minimize restricts on importation and exportation.
• Importing and exporting can be achieved nearly instantaneously through technology.
• There are intense establishment of economic organization.
  • International Monetary Fund (IMF)
  • World Bank (WB)
  • World Trade Organization (WTO)
  • International Labor Organization (IOL)
  • European Free Trade Area (EFTA)
  • Mercusor
  • ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA)
  • Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Globalization For Culture And Communications Expert

• This refers to the concept of a global village.
  • Through it, the world has become borderless.
  • Communication technology shrinks the world.
    • McLuhan (1964) believed that the media has connected the world by creating a global village.
• Globalization can be referred to as cultural imperialism.
  • This involves the thought that there's a superior culture.
  • Some cultures are seen as superior which cause inferior or nondominant cultures to form.
    • Spread of popular culture (e.g., fashion, music, art, literature, lifestyle, etc.) flows from dominant to nondominant cultures.

Working Definition of Globalization

• Steger (2013) describes globalization as the expansion and intensification of social relations and consciousness across world-time and world-space

Four Attributes of Globalization

• Various forms of connectivity exists. Economic, political, and cultural drivers can affect interconnection. - These forms, enabled by various factors affect different degrees of interconnection. - A Filipino minimum wage earner may suffer from a slight price hike of basic commodities while people who earn above the minimum might not be impacted. - This price adjustment can come of national and international economic and political events.
• There is an expansion and stretching of social relations.
  • Can be seen in the existence of non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
    • For example, The Philippine National Red Cross is an affiliate of the International Committee of the Red Cross, a humanitarian institution based in Switzerland.
  • Relations occur through collaboration and presence of multinational companies (e.g. sister-city relationships)
• Social Exchanges and activities have accelerated and intensified.
  • Live telecasts are enhanced
  • Emails are instant
  • Social media builds a global community
• Globalization occurs worldwide
  • There is concern of global citizens for the issues of the world
  • Trends like K-Pop unite people

Wrap-Up

• Defining globalization requires an interdisciplinary approach
• It is consider to be a process, a condition, or an ideology by the scholars
• Steger's definition is the most unbiased and working definition of globalization.