Globalization: 

Definitions, Driving Forces, Debates

 

 

á     What is globalization?  What forces drive it? 

á     When did globalization begin and what are its key phases? 

á     What makes globalization since 1945 and especially the 1980s qualitatively and quantitatively new?

á     What arguments define the debate on globalization?

 

Key Terms

1) Globalization

2) Interdependence

3) MNCs

4) Bretton Woods

5) GATT & WTO

6) Neo-Liberalism

7) McDonald/Dell Theory of Conflict Prevention

8) Race to the Bottom

 

I.  Globalization:  Definitions, Origins, and Driving Forces

 

á  Global Interaction, Integration, Interdependence and ÒInterconnectednessÓ (Economic, Political, Cultural)

 

á Capitalism, Imperialism, Technology, International Institutions

                Container Ships

                Air Travel Growth, 1973-2004   (Tourist Arrivals)

                 Increase in Trade & GDP since 1960

 

Key Phases

 

1500-1800:  Development of a Global Commercial System

 

1800-1945:  Industrialization, Imperialism, Capitalism, Trade

 

1945-1975:  The American System and Regulated Global Capitalism

                    ÒBretton WoodsÓ

 

1975-1990s:  Neo-Liberalism, International Finance, Electronic Revolution

                      and Global Competition: Thomas FriedmanÕs ÒFlatteningÓ Thesis

 

1990-present:  The End of the Cold War and the Triumph of Global Capitalism

 

 

II.  The Languages of Globalization:  Advocates, Critics, and Middle Roaders

 

Advocates


á Economic Growth, Wealth Creation, and Prosperity

á Interdependence and Conflict Prevention

á Globalization as a Force for Individual and Political Freedom

á Globalization, Capitalism, and Human Nature

 

Critics

 

á A New Justification/Language for Capitalist Exploitation/Imperialism

á  ÒRacing to the BottomÓ:  Globalization and Economic Inequality

á  Globalization as anti-Democratic Force and Destroyer Culture/Identity

á  Globalization as Promoter of International and Domestic Conflict 

          ÒJihad vs. McWorldÓ (Barber)

á Environmental Consequences of Global Economic Growth

 

A Middle Ground?

 

á Regulating Inevitable Globalization

á Protecting the ÒLosersÓ, Restraining the ÒWinnersÓ

á Democratizing and Empowering International Institutions

á Fostering Regionalization and Organization from Below

 

ÒWinnersÓ and ÒLosersÓ:  Who are they?  What are you (in terms of globalizationÕs impact on your life, that is)?