Globalization: A Very Short Introduction

This book offers a stimulating introduction to globalization and its varying impacts across, between, and within societies. It is a highly listenable text that contributes to a better understanding of the crucial aspects and dimensions of the developments and transformations that go by the name of globalization.

Globalization has become one of the defining buzzwords of our time–a term that describes a variety of complex economic, political, cultural, ideological, and environmental forces that are rapidly altering our experience of the world. In the years since World War II, we have seen national boundaries fade as financial markets, manufacturing concerns, information services, and cultural products (including movies, music, and television shows) have spread around the earth. Immigration and tourism have exploded, Japanese cars are assembled in the United States and American hamburgers are sold in Toyko. And the Internet connects virtually everyone on the planet who owns a computer. We are indeed now living in a borderless world.
In clear, accessible language, Manfred B. Steger goes beyond a narrow economic focus to cover all the major causes and consequences of globalization as well as the hotly contested question of whether globalization is, ultimately, a good or a bad thing. This new edition has been fully updated for 2009 to include recent developments in global politics and the impact of terrorism and it expands the discussion of environmental issues, devoting an entirely new chapter to this key topic. The book also examines political movements both for and against globalization, from WTO protests to the recent rise in global jihadism; considers such concepts as "Americanization" and "McDonaldization"; and explores the role of the media and communication technologies in the process of cultural globalization. Finally, Steger explains in accessible language the connection between economic globalization and multinational corporations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and the World Trade Organization.
Including maps, diagrams, figures, textboxes, and a timeline, this compact book provides a wealth of information on one of the key new forces in the modern world.
Features

* Completely revised and updated to include the latest developments and ideas from the field of global studies
* Unlike many other introductions to the subject, this short book looks beyond simple explanations of globalization as a purely an economic phenomenon
* Shows how the transformative powers of globalization reach deeply into the political, cultural, technological, and ecological dimensions of contemporary social life.
* Explores the ideological aspects of globalization - looking at political movements both for and against globalization, from WTO protests to the recent rise in global jihadism
* Examines concepts such as 'Americanization' and 'McDonaldization'
* Discusses the role of the media and communication technologies in the process of cultural globalization
* Part of the best-selling Very Short Introductions series - over two million copies sold