PRELIMS

The Contemporary

MONICA G. AGOT, LPT

Instructor
Objectives:

At the end of the discussions, the students are expected to:

a) Share a personal definition of globalization;
b) Describe the nature of globalization;
c) Differntiate competing conception of globalization; and
d) Synthesize and agree on a working definition of
globalization for the course.

Chapter
1
DEFINING GLOBALIZATION

INTRODUCTION
Much has changed since time immemorial. Human beings have
encountered many changes over the last century especially in their
social relationships and social structures. Of these changes, one can say
that globalization is a very important change, if not, the” most
important” (bauman,2003). The reality and omnipresence of
globalization makes us see ourselves as part of what we refer to as the
“global age” (albrow, 1996). The internet, for example, allows a person
from the Philippines to know what is happening to the rest of the world
simply by browsing Google. The mass media also allows for connections
among people, communities, and countries all over the globe.
So, what is globalization? This question is probably an easy one to
answer. However, many scholars gave and tried to formulate its
definitions. This resulted in different, sometimes contradicting views
about the concept. It cannot be contained within a specific time frame,
all people, and all situations (Al-Rhodan, 2006). Aside from this,
globalization encompasses a multitude of processes that involves the
economy, political system, and culture. Social structures, therefore, are
directly affected by globalization.
Over the year, globalization has gained many connotations
pertaining to progress, development, and integration. On the one hand,
some views globalization as a positive phenomenon. For instance,
Swedish journalist Thomas Larsson (2001) saw globalization as “the
process of world shrinkage, of distances getting shorter, things moving
closer. It pertains to the increasing ease with which somebody on one
side of the world can interact, to mutual benefit with somebody on the
other side of the world”. On the other hand, some see it as occurring
through and with regression, colonialism, and destabilization. In the
mid-1990’s, Martin Khor, the former president of Third World network
(TWN) in Malaysia, once regarded globalization as colonization.
In this chapter, different definitions of globalization will be
discussed. The task of conceptualizing it reveals a variety of
perspective. To understand further the concept, different metaphor will
be used. These metaphors will also allow an appreciation of earlier
epochs before globalization and the present globalization world. The
final lesson in this chapter will be devoted to a general discussion of
globalization theories. The following section will highlight the different
views scholars have toward globalization.

The Task of Defining Globalization

Since its first appearance in the Webster’s Dictionary in 1961,
many opinions about globalization have flourished. The literature on the
definitions of globalization revealed that definitions could be classified
as either (1) broad and inclusive or (2) narrow and exclusive. The one
offered by Ohmae in 1992 stated, “…globalization means the onset of
the borderless world…”. This is an example of a broad and inclusive type
of definition. If one uses such, it can include a variety of issues that deal
with overcoming traditional boundaries. However, it does not shed light
on the implications of globalization due to its vagueness.
Narrow and exclusive definitions are better justified but can be
limiting, in the sense that their application is adhere to only particular
definitions. Robert Cox’s definition suits best in this type: “the
characteristics of the globalization trend include the internationalizing
of production, the new international division of labor, new migratory
movements from South to North, the new competitive state … making
into agencies of the globalizing world” (as cited in RAWOO Netherlands
Development Assistance Research Council, 2000). Other definitions of
globalization are shown in chronological order in the Appendix. Each
could fall to either one of the two types of definitions.
No matter how one classifies a definition of globalization, the
concept is complex and multifaceted as the definition deal with either
economic, political, or social dimensions. In fact, in a comprehensive
study of 114 definitions by the Geneva Center for Security Policy (GCSP)
in 2006, 67 of them refer to economic dimension. These definitions
include political and social dimensions as well. The sheer number and
complexity of definitions do not mean that there is a remarkable
improvement in every definition given by scholars. Kumar (2003) took on
a different argument about the issue. To him, the debate about what can
be done about globalization and what it is are similar. This is in relation
to what some academics have claimed about defining globalization – it is
a useless task.
A more recent definition was given by Ritzer (20150, “globalization
is a trans planetary process or a set of processes involving increasing
liquidity and the growing multidirectional flows of people, objects,
places, and information as well as the structures they encounter and
create that are barriers to, or expedite, those flows….”. Generally, this
definition assume that globalization could bring either or both
integration and/or fragmentation. Although things flow easily in global
word, hindrances or structural blocks are also present. These blocks
could slow down one’s activity in another country or could even limit the
places a person can visit.
If so, why are we going to spend time studying this concept? How
can we appreciate these definitions? How can these help us understand
globalization?
First, the perspective of the person who defines globalization
shapes its definition. The overview of definitions implies that
globalization is many things to many different people. In 1996, Arjun
Appadurai said, “globalization is a ‘word of things’ that have ‘different
speeds, axes, points of origin and termination, and varied relationships
to institutional structures in different regions, nations, or societies’” (as
cited in Chowdhury, 2006). In a more recent study, Al-Rhodan (2006)
wrote that definitions suggest the perspective of the author on the
origins and the geopolitical implications of globalization. It is a starting
point that will guide the rest of any discussions. In effect, one’s
definition and perspective could determine concrete steps in addressing
the issues of globalization. Foe example, if one sees globalization as
positive, the person can say that it is unifying force. On the other hand,
if it is deemed as creating greater inequalities among nations,
globalization is negatively treated.
Second, to paraphrase the sociologist Cesare Poppi: Globalization
is the debate and the debate is globalization. One become part and
parcel of the other. As Poppi (1997) wrote: “The Literature stemming
from the debate on globalization has grown in the last decade beyond
any individual’s capability of extracting a workable definition of the
concept. In a sense, the meaning of the concept it self-evident, in
another, it is vague and obscure as its reaches are wide and constantly
shifting. Perhaps, more than any other concept, globalization is the
debate about it” (as cited in Kumar, 2003).
 Third, globalization is a reality. It is changing as human society
develops. It has happened before and is still happening today. We
should expect it to continue to happen in the future. The future of
globalization is more difficult to predict. What we could expect in the
coming years is what has happened over the past 50 years and that is
the fluidity and complexity of globalization as a concept, which made
more debates, discussion, and definitions than agreement on it.
Overall, globalization is a concept that is not easy to define
because in reality, globalization has a shifting nature. It is complex,
multifaceted, and can be influenced by the people who define it.
Moreover, the issues and concerns involving globalization have a wide
range – from the individual to society, from small communities to nations
and states, and from the benefit we can gain from it to the costs it could
carry. In his article, “The Globalization of Nothing,” Ritzer (2003) said,
“attitudes to globalization depend, among other things, on whether one
gains or losses from it”. Nevertheless, the task of defining globalization
should stimulate more discussions about it. More importantly, the fact
that we experience globalization should give one the interest of
engaging in the study of it.

Metaphors of Globalization
In order for us to better understand the concept of globalization,
we will utilize metaphors. Metaphors make use of one term to help us
better understand another term. In our case, the states of matter – solid
and liquid – will be used. In addition, other related concepts that are
included in the definition such as structures and flows will be
elaborated.

Solid and Liquid

The epochs that preceded today’s globalization paved way for
people, things, information, and places to harden over time.
Consequently, they have limited mobility (Ritzer, 2015). The social
relationships and objects remained where they were created. Solidity
also refers to barriers that prevent or make difficult the movement of
things. Furthermore, solids can either be natural or man-made.
Examples of natural solid are landforms and bodies of water. Man-made
barriers include the Great Wall of China and the Berlin Wall. An
imaginary line such as the nine-dash line used by the People’s Republic
of China in their claim to the South China Sea is an example of modern
man-made solid. This creates limited access of Filipino fishers to the
South China Sea. Obviously, these examples still exist. However, they
have the tendency to melt. This should not be taken literally, like an
iceberg melting. Instead, this process involves how we can describe
what is happening in today’s global world. It is becoming increasingly
liquid.
Liquid, as a state of matter, takes the shape of its container.
Moreover, liquids are not fixed. Liquidity, therefore, refers to the
increasing ease of movement of people, things, information, and places
in the contemporary world. Zygmunt Bauman’s ideas were the ones that
have much to say about the characteristics of liquidity. First, today’s
liquid phenomena change quickly and their aspects, spatial and
temporal, are in continuous fluctuation. This means that space and time
are crucial elements of globalization. In finance, for instance changes in
the stock market are a matter of seconds. Another characteristic of
liquid phenomena is that their movements are difficult to stop. For
example, videos uploaded on You Tube or Facebook are unstoppable
once they become viral. The so-called Internet sensations become
famous not only in their homeland but also to the entire world. Finally,
the forces (the liquid ones) made political boundaries more permeable to
the flow of people and things (Cartier, 2001). This brings us to what
Ritzer (2015) regarded as the most important characteristics of liquid: it
“tends to melt whatever stands in its path (especially solids).” The
clearest example in the decline, if not death, of the nation-state.
Liquidity and Solidity are a constant interaction. However, liquidity
is the one increasing and proliferating today. Therefore, the metaphor
that could best describe globalization is liquidity. Liquids do flow and
this idea of flow (Appadurai, 1996; Rey and Ritzer, 2010) will be the
focus of the next discussion. Also, it should be expected that this
concept will appear in the succeeding lessons. The literature on
globalization makes use of the concept of flows.

Flows
The previous section described the melting process of solid
phenomena followed by the increase in liquidity. It is only logical to
discuss the flows of liquid phenomena. Flows are the movement of
people, things, places, and information brought by the growing
“porosity” of global limitations (Ritzer, 2005). Think of the different
foreign cuisines being patronized and consume by the Filipinos. Aside
from local dishes, many of us are fond of eating sushi, ramen,
hamburger, and French fries – foods introduce to us by foreign cultures.
Clearly, foods are being globalized. Another example of flows is global
financial crises. As Landler (2008) put it: “In global financial system,
national boarders are porous.” This means that a financial crisis in a
given country can bring ramifications to other regions of the world. An
example of which is the spread of the of the effects of American financial
crisis om Europe in 2008. The following are other kinds of flows that can
be observed today: poor illegal migrants flooding many parts of the
world (Moses, 2006), the virtual flow of legal and illegal information
such as blogs and child pornography, respectively, and immigrants
recreating ethnic enclaves in host countries. A concrete example is the
Filipino communities abroad and the Chinese communities in the
Philippines.

Process Question
Direction: Over all description. Write it on yellow paper, be honest with your answer.
Answers from the internet will not be tolerated.
1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using (a) broad and
inclusive definitions and (b) narrow and exclusive definitions of
globalization?
2. What do you think is the importance of defining globalization?
3. Do you agree with the idea that the cotemporary world
characterized by high liquidity? Why or why not?

Activity: The World Made Closer

We discussed the different definitions of globalization. In this
global age that we live in, globalization gained various views from many
authors and scholars. In turn, these diverse definitions can affect how
can appreciate globalization as a process. Furthermore, we analyzed
globalization through conceptual metaphors such as solids, liquid, and
flows.
In this activity, you are to see the actual application of
globalization on the different aspects of daily life such as politics, music,
sports, film, celebrity, and disaster.
1. Answer the following question:
a. Enumerate at least three of the most recent songs you have
listened. Where did they originate? Identify the nationality of the
writer and/or artist for each music.
b. What gadgets or devices do you usually use to listen to music?
c. Where were these gadgets or devices made? Where is the
company based?
d. How did you access this music? Did you purchase them online or
listen to them through YouTube, Spotify, and other music
channels?

2. Using a visual representation, create your generalization and discuss:

what is globalization? How would you define globalization?

3. What metaphors are you going to use in order to improve your own
definition of globalization? Enumerate at least three and explain one
of them.
Globalization Theories
We have established the many definitions of and issues in defining
globalization and the metaphors that we can use to understand easily
the concept. We have also look into its origins and story. this section will
give you a glimpse of the important theories on globalization. We will
analyze globalization culturally, economically, and politically in this book
as reflected in the succeeding chapters. In the meantime, it would be
helpful to assert that the theories see globalization as a process that
increases either homogeneity or heterogeneity.
Homogeneity refers to the increasing sameness in the world as
cultural inputs, economic factors, and political orientations of societies
expand to create common practices, same economies, and similar forms
of government. Homogeneity in culture is often linked to cultural
imperialism. This means, a given culture influences other cultures. For
examples, the dominant religion in our country is Christianity, which was
brought to us by the Spaniards. Another example is Americanization,
which was defined by Kuisel (1993) as “the import by non-Americans of
products, images, technologies, practices, and behavior that are closely
associated with America/Americans”. In terms of the economy, there is
recognition of the spread of neoliberalism, capitalism, and the market
economy in the world (Antonio, 2007). Global economic crises are also
products of homogeneity in economic globalization. Stiglitz (2002), for
instance, blamed the international Monetary Fund (IMF) for its “one-
size-fits all” approach which treats every country in the world as the
same. In the end, rich countries become advantageous in the world
economy at the expense of poor countries, which leads to increased
inequality among nations. The political realm also suffers
homogenization if one takes into account the emerging similar models of
governance in the world. Barber (1995) said that “McWorld” is existing.
It means only one political orientation is growing in today’s societies.
The global flows of media is often characterized as media
imperialism. TV, music, books, and movies are perceived as imposed on
developing countries by the West (Cowen, 2002). Media imperialism
undermines the existence of alternative global media originating from
developing countries, such as the AI Jazeera (Bielsa, 2008) and the
Bollywood (Larkin, 2003), as well as the influence of the local and
regional media. The internet can be seen as an arena for alternative
media. Cultural imperialism denies the agency of viewers, but people
around the world often interpret the same medium (e.g., a movie) in
significantly different ways. Global media are dominated by a small
number of large corporations. As McChesney (1999) put it, this is being
“extended from old media to new media, such as Microsoft, Facebook,
Twitter, Google, and Apple’s iTunes. As a result, in the long run, the
internet could end up being less diverse and competitive. Independent
Media Center, associated with the alter globalization movement, helps
to encounter this trend. It disseminates information to facilitate global
participation of activists. Hacktivists extend activism to the Internet by
hacking into computer programs to promote a particular cause (Juris,
2005).
Ritzer (2008) claimed that, in general, the contemporary world is
undergoing the process of McDonaldization. It is the process by which
Western societies are dominated by the principles of fast-food
restaurants. McDonaldization involves the global spread of rational
systems, such as efficiency, calculability, predictability, and control.
Ritzer (2008) pointed out that this process is "extended to other
businesses, sectors, and geographic areas". Globalization, in contrast to
glocalization, is a process wherein nations, corporations, etc. impose
themselves on geographic areas in order to gain profits, power, and so
on (Ryan, 2007). Ritzer (2007) also espoused the idea that globalization
can also be seen as a flow of "nothing" as opposed to "something,"
involving the spread of non-places, non- things, non-people, and non-
services.
On the other hand, heterogeneity pertains to the creation of
various cultural practices, new economies, and political groups because
of the interaction of elements from different societies in the world.
Heterogeneity refers to the differences because of either lasting
differences or of the hybrids or combinations of cultures that can be
produced through the different trans planetary processes. Contrary to
cultural imperialism, heterogeneity in culture is associated with cultural
hybridization. A more specific concept is "glocalization" coined by Roland
Robertson in 1992. To him, as global forces interact with local factors or
a specific geographic area, the "glocal" is being produced. Economic
issues are not exempted from heterogeneity. The commodification of
cultures and "glocal" markets are examples of differentiation happening
in many economies around the world. The same goes with political
institutions. Barber (1995) also provided the alternate of "McWorld"-the
"Jihad." As Ritzer (2008) mentioned, it refers to the political groups that
are engaged in an "intensification of nationalism and that leads to
greater political heterogeneity throughout the world" (p. 576). Although
homogeneity and heterogeneity give us idea about the effects of
globalization, the picture is not yet complete. The theories about
globalization will be clarified as we look closer at each of them in the
succeeding chapters.

Dynamics of Local and Global Culture

Global flows of culture tend to move more easily around the globe
than ever before, especially through non-material digital forms. There
are three perspectives on global cultural flows. These are
differentialism, hybridization, and convergence. Cultural differentialism
emphasizes the fact that cultures are essentially different and are only
superficially affected by global flows. The interaction of cultures is
deemed to contain the potential for "catastrophic collision." Samuel
Huntington's theory on the clash of the civilizations proposed in 1996
best exemplifies this approach. According to Huntington, after the Cold
War, political- economic differences were overshadowed by new fault
lines, which were primarily cultural in nature. Increasing interaction
among different "civilizations" (such as the Sinic, Islamic, Orthodox, and
Western) would lead to intense clashes, especially the economic conflict
between the Western and Sinic civilizations and bloody political conflict
between the Western and Islamic civilizations (Huntington, 2004). This
theory has been critiqued for a number of reasons, especially on its
portrayal of Muslims as being "prone to violence" (Huntington, 1996).
The cultural hybridization approach emphasizes the integration of
local and global cultures (Cvetkovich and Kellner, 1997). Globalization is
considered to be a creative process which gives rise to hybrid entities
that are not reducible to either the global or the local. A key concept is
"glocalization" or the interpenetration of the global and local resulting in
unique outcomes in different geographic areas (Giulianotti and
Robertson, 2007). Another key concept is Arjun Appadurai's "scapes" in
1996, where global flows involve people, technology, finance, political
images, and media and the disjunctures between them, which lead to
the creation of cultural hybrids.
The cultural convergence approach stresses homogeneity
introduced by globalization. Cultures are deemed to be radically altered
by strong flows, while cultural imperialism happens when one culture
imposes itself on and tends to destroy at least parts of another culture.
One important critique of cultural imperialism is John Tomlinson's idea of
"deterritorialization" of culture. Deterritorialization means that it is
much more difficult to tie culture to a specific geographic point of origin.

The Globalization of Religion

 Globalization has played a tremendous role in providing a context
for the current revival and the resurgence of religion. Today, most
religions are not relegated to the countries where they began. Religions
have, in fact, spread and scattered on a global scale. Globalization
provided religions a fertile milieu to spread and thrive. As Scholte (2005)
made clear: "Accelerated globalization of recent times has enabled co-
religionists across the planet to have greater direct contact with one
another. Global communications, global organizations, global finance,
and the like have allowed ideas of the Muslims and the universal
Christian church to be given concrete shape as never before".
Information technologies, transportation means, and the media are
deemed important means on which religionists rely on the dissemination
of their religious ideas. For instance, countless websites that provide
information about religions have been created. This makes pieces of
information and explanations about different religions ready at the
disposal of any person regardless of his or her geographical location. In
addition, the Internet allows people to contact each other worldwide and
therefore hold forums and debates that allow religious ideas to spread.
Furthermore, media also play an important role in the
dissemination of religious ideas. In this respect, a lot of television
channels, radio stations, and print media are founded solely for
advocating religions. Modern transportation has also contributed
considerably to the emergence, revivalism, and fortification of religion.
In this respect, Turner (2007) cited the case of Islamic revivalism in Asia
which "is related to the improvement in transportation that has allowed
many Muslims to travel to Mecca, and return with reformist ideas".
Modern technology, therefore, has helped religions of different forms,
such as fundamentalist, orthodox, or modernist to cross geographical
boundaries and be present everywhere. Globalization has also allowed
religion or faith to gain considerable significance and importance as a
non-territorial touchstone of identity. Being a source of identity and
pride, religion has always been promoted by its practitioners so that it
could reach the level of globality and be embraced by as many people as
possible. Muslims, for instance, aspire to establish the Islamic Ummah, a
community of believers. By paving the way for religions to come in
contact with each other and providing a context for their flourishing and
thriving, globalization has brought such religions to a circle of
competition and conflicts.
As Turner (2007) explained:
Globalization transforms the generic "religion" into a world-system
of competing and conflicting religions. This process of institutional
specialization has transformed local, diverse and fragmented cultural
practices into recognizable systems of religion. Globalization has,
therefore, had the paradoxical effect of making religions more self-
conscious of themselves as being "world religions.".
Such conflicts among the world religions exhibit a solid proof
confirming the erosion and the failure of hybridization. Globalization, as
stated in the above excerpt, makes religions more conscious of
themselves as being "world religions" reinforcing their respective
specific identities. These identities are strengthened by globalization
and cannot, in any way, intermingle or hybridize. Since religions have
distinct internal structures, their connections to different cultures and
their rituals and beliefs contradict. For instance, Islam and Christianity
are mostly incompatible with each other. These religions cannot be
hybridized or homogenized even if they often come in contact.
Though religion is strengthened and fortified by globalization, it
represents a challenge to globalization's hybridizing effects. Religion
seeks to assert its identity in the light of globalization. As a result,
different religious identities come to the fore and assert themselves.
Such assertions of religious identities constitute a defensive reaction to
globalization. Scholte (2005), in this respect, maintained, "At the same
time as being pursued through global channels, assertions of religious
identity have, like nationalist strivings, often also been partly a
defensive reaction to globalization".
It has been difficult for religion to cope with values that accompany
globalization like liberalism, consumerism, and rationalism. Such
phenomena advocate scientism and secularism. This, in fact, pushed
Scholte to speak of the anti-rationalist faiths. Since he equated
rationalism with globalization and considered religion anti-rationalist, it
can be deduced that religion is anti- globalization. To quote Scholte
(2005):
Transplanetary relations have helped to stimulate and sustain
some renewals of anti-rationalist faith, but global networks have more
usually promoted activities involving rationalist knowledge.
Contemporary revivalist movements have largely replayed a long-term
tendency-one that well predates contemporary accelerated
globalization--whereby certain religious circles have from time to time
revolted against modern secularism and scientism.
On the other hand, it can be said that the anti-rationalist qualities
ascribed to religion can be the characteristics of fundamentalist and
extremist forms of religion. We cannot consider religion as purely anti-
rationalist since many religious people reconcile reason and faith and
make moderate trends within their religions. Nevertheless,
globalization's strict rationalism manifested in such phenomena as
liberalism and secularism can be incompatible with the norms and the
values of certain religions.
Globalization is also associated with Westernization and
Americanization. The dominance exerted by these two processes,
particularly on the less developed countries, makes religion-related
cultures and identities take defensive measures to protect themselves.
Sometimes, extreme forms of resisting other cultural influence are being
done, such as that of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). As
Ehteshami (2007) pointed out, "Globalization is not only seen as a rival
of Islamic ways, but also as an alien force divorced from Muslim
realities. Stressing the negative impact of the loose morals of Western
life is a daily feature of airwaves in the Middle East". The imperialist
aspirations of globalization and its incompatibility with Islam make
globalization completely alien to the Muslim realities. Since globalization
is cultural construct at its core and its meaning is the Western
discourse, "promoting and engaging with it on the part of Muslims is like
accepting and promoting Western cultural values and their dominance".
The challenges of globalization to religion link automatically to the
challenges of religion to globalization. In other words, while religion
takes caution against the norms and the values related to globalization,
it challenges the latter since religion does not approve its hybridizing
effects. The idea of de-hybridizing effects of religion is approved also by
Samuel Huntington's clash of civilizations, which maintains that such
dehybridizing upshots spring also from the religious partitioning and
clashes.

Globalization and Regionalization

The processes of globalization and regionalization reemerged
during the 1980s and heightened after the end of the Cold War in the
1990s. At first, it seems that these two processes are contradicting-the
very nature of globalization is, by definition, global while regionalization
is naturally regional.
The regionalization of the world system and economic activity
undermines the potential benefits coming out from a liberalized global
economy. This is because regional organizations prefer regional partners
over the rest. Regional organizations respond to the states' attempt to
reduce the perceived negative effects of globalization. Therefore,
regionalism is a sort of counter-globalization.
 In a 2007 survey, the Financial Times revealed that majority of
Europeans consider that globalization brings negative effects to their
societies (as cited in Jacoby and Meunier, 2010). Many policy makers and
scholars think that globalization must be regulated and managed. The
threats of an "ungoverned globalization" can be countered what Jacoby
and Meunier called managed globalization; it refers to "all attempts to
make globalization more palatable to citizens".
It is important, however, to consider the gradual development of
inter- regional relations such as the Association of South East Asian
Nations (ASEAN), the European Union (EU), or the South American trade
bloc, Mercosur. In fact, a sort of "contagion effect" (Held et al., 2005,)
has spread during the past years. Regionalization in one part of the
world encourages regionalization elsewhere-whether by imitation, like
the success of the European Single Market, or by "defensive" reaction,
such as Mercosur's establishment as response to the creation of NAFTA.
According to this, regionalization and the development of
interregionalism would indeed be global in nature. As Held et al. (2005)
claimed, "the new regionalism is not a barrier to political globalization
but, on the contrary, entirely compatible with it-if not an indirect
encouragement".
Hurrell (2007) captured this debate in his "one (global) world/many
(regional) worlds relationship" (p. 1). Regional developments in one part
of the world have affected and fueled regionalization everywhere else in
a sort of contagion or domino effect. This fact, along with increasing
developments in interregional cooperation, shows that the
regionalization process is global in nature. Therefore, regionalization is
intimately linked to globalization since it is part of it and it builds on it.
The argument concerning the relationship between regionalization
and globalization is perfectly summarized in this claim:
The age of economic globalization has also been the age of
regionalization, and much of the analysis of the new regionalism has
been devoted to the links between the two tendencies. Thus,
regionalism is seen as critical part of the political economy of
globalization and the strategies that states (and other actors) have
adopted in the face of globalization... The emergence of regionalism
needs to be understood within the global restructuring of power and
production. The many worlds are very closely intertwined with the
character and fate of the one. The core driving force is global even if the
manifestation is regional (Hurell, 2007).
Globalization "goes back to when humans first put a boat into the
sea" (Sweeney, 2005,). We can understand globalization as "the
increased flows of goods, services, capita, people, and information
across borders" (Jacoby and Meunier, 2010,). But as we have learned
from the previous discussions, there are many controversies about and
varying definitions of the term. Defining region and regionalization is
complicated. Nevertheless, region, according to Mansfield and Milner
(1999) is "a group of countries in the same geographically specified
area". Hurrell (2007) defined regionalization as the "societal integration
and the often-undirected process of social and economic interaction". In
addition, regionalization is different from regionalism, which is "the
formal process of intergovernmental collaboration between two or more
states" (Ravenhill, 2008,).
The motivations for the recent regionalization in Asia, as well as
other regions in the world, cannot be isolated from one another. It is a
complex mixture of factors. One of the reasons behind regionalism is the
concern for security, which is to ensure peace and stability. Confidence
building can be enhanced through economic cooperation within a region.
The ASEAN and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) are
regional organizations that seek strong security in Asia through
cooperation. Huntington (1996), on the contrary, believed that culture
and identity guide regionalization. As he put it, "In the post-Cold War
world, states increasingly define their interests in civilizational terms".
For him, culture and identity are civilizations. He identified nine major
civilizations: Western, Latin American, African, Islamic, Sinic, Hindu,
Orthodox, Buddhist, and Japanese. He argued that international
organizations like the EU or Mercosur share a common culture and
identity and are far more successful than NAFTA, whose member states
belong to different civilizations. If we follow Huntington's idea of the
"clash of civilizations," one could argue that the potential for such clash
can be strong in Asia because many of those civilizations are, at the
least, can be found in the region.
Nevertheless, economic motivations are arguably the main
motivation behind contemporary regionalization. By entering in regional
organizations, Asian states may regain some control over flows of
capital and enhance their bargaining power against transnational
economic factors such as investment groups or transnational
corporations (TNCS) (De Martino and Grabel, 2003). Aside from this,
domestic companies may benefit from belonging to a regional market
big enough to allow them scale economies while still being protected
from global competition. In other words, regional organizations allow
national companies the opportunity to succeed in a protected but big
enough market in a way that they would otherwise fail if exposed to
global competition.
 Finally, non-state actors, such as the TNCs, act as a driving force
toward regionalism. These TNCs, whose host countries are not part of a
given regional trade agreement, find themselves in a disadvantaged
commercial situation with respect to competing companies belonging to
the regional organization in question. Given this situation, Ravenhill
(2008) said that disadvantaged TNCs will lobby their national
governments to sign similar trade agreements in order to end their
disadvantaged commercial situation.

Process Questions
1. Are societies in the world becoming more similar (homogenous) or
more different (heterogeneous)?
[Link] do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of
homogenization of culture? How about heterogenization?
[Link] of the aforementioned views on the history of globalization you
find most appealing? Why?

Activity: What Do Writers Think about Globalization?

In this activity, look for and read three newspaper opinion
editorials (op- eds) discussing globalization. You may use local or
international op-eds. Write a 50-word summary for each op-ed. Identify
whether they subscribe to a particular definition discussed in class or
they have a new definition. Also, identify whether they are broad and
inclusive or narrow and exclusive.

Origins and History of Globalization

The previous discussions answered the question "What is
globalization?" The next question "Where did it start?" is not easy to
answer as well because there are different views about this. This book
generally adheres to the perspective that the major points of the
beginnings of globalization started after the Second World War.
Nevertheless, it would mean no harm to look at the five different
perspectives regarding the origins of globalization.

Hardwired
 According to Nayan Chanda (2007), it is because of our basic
human need to make our lives better that made globalization possible.
Therefore, one can trace the beginning of globalization from our
ancestors in Africa who walked out from the said continent in the late
Ice Age. This long journey finally led them to all- known continents
today, roughly after 50,000 years.
Chanda (2007) mentioned that commerce, religion, politics, and
warfare are the "urges" of people toward a better life. These are
respectively connected to four aspects of globalization and they can be
traced all throughout history: trade, missionary work, adventures, and
conquest.

Cycles
For some, globalization is a long-term cyclical process and thus,
finding its origin will be a daunting task. What is important is the cycles
that globalization has gone through (Scholte, 2005). Subscribing to this
view will suggest adherence to the idea that other global ages have
appeared. There is also the notion to suspect that this point of
globalization will soon disappear and reappear.

Epoch
Ritzer (2015) cited Therborn's (2000) six great epochs of
globalization. These are also called "waves" and each has its own origin.
Today's globalization is not unique if this is the case. The difference of
this view from the second view (cycles) is that it does not treat epochs
as returning. The following are the sequential occurrence of the epochs:
1. Globalization of religion (fourth to seventh centuries)
2. European colonial conquests (late fifteenth century) Post-World
War II period
3. Intra-European wars (late eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries)
4. Heyday of European imperialism (mid-nineteenth century to 1918)
5. Post-World War II period
6. Post-Cold War period

Events
Specific events are also considered as part of the fourth view in
explaining the origin of globalization. If this is the case, then several
points can be treated as the start of globalization. Gibbon (1998), for
example, argued that Roman conquests centuries before Christ were its
origin. In an issue of the magazine the Economist (2006, January 12), it
considered the rampage of the armies of Genghis Khan into Eastern
Europe in the thirteenth century. Rosenthal (2007) gave premium to
voyages of discovery-Christopher Columbus's discovery of America in
1942, Vasco da Gama in Cape of Good Hope in 1498, and Ferdinand
Magellan's completed circumnavigation of the globe in 1522.
The recent years could also be regarded as the beginnings of
globalization with reference to specific technological advances in
transportation and communication. Some examples include the first
transatlantic telephone cable (1056), the first transatlantic television
broadcasts (1962), the founding of the modern Internet in 1988, and the
terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers In New York (2001). Certainly, with
this view, more and more specific events will characterize not just the
origins of globalization but also more of its history.

Broader, More Recent Changes

Recent changes comprised the fifth view. These broad changes
happened in the last half of the twentieth century. Scholars today point
to these three notable changes as the origin of globalization that we
know today. They are as follows:
1. The emergence of the United States as the global power (post-
World War II)
2. The emergence of multinational corporations (MNCs)
[Link] demise of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War
Through its dominant military and economic power after WWII, the
United States was able to outrun Germany and Japan in terms of
industry. Both Axis powers and Allies fall behind economically as
compared to the new global power. Because of this, the United States
soon began to progress in different aspects like in diplomacy, media,
film (as in the Hollywood), and many more.
Before MNCs came into being, their roots were from their countries
of origin during the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries. The United
States, Germany, and Great Britain had in their homeland great
corporations which the world knows today. However, they did not
remain there as far as their production and market are concerned. For
example, Ford and General Motors originated in the United States but in
the twentieth century, they exported more automobiles and opened
factories to other countries.
 More recent than the first two would be the fall of the Soviet Union
in 1991. This event led to the opening of the major parts of the world for
the first time since the early twentieth century. Many global processes-
immigration, tourism, media, diplomacy, and MNCS-spread throughout
the planet. This paved way for the so-called "free" world. China, even
though the government remains communist, is on its way to becoming a
major force in global capitalism (Fishman, 2006). Moreover, China is also
globalizing in terms of other aspects such as their hosting of the
Olympics in 2008
Global Demography
Demographic transition is a singular historical period during which
mortality and fertility rates decline from high to low levels in a particular
country or region. The broad outlines of the transition are similar in
countries around the world, but the pace and timing of the transition
have varied considerably.
The transition started in mid- or late 1700s in Europe. During that
time, death rates and fertility began to decline. High to low fertility
happened 200 years in France and 100 years in the United States. In
other parts of the world, the transition began later. It was only in the
twentieth century that mortality decline in Africa and Asia, with the
exemption of Japan. According to Maddison (2001), life expectancy in
India was only 24 years in the early twentieth century while the same
life expectancy occurred in China in 1929 until 1931. Fertility declines in
Asia did not begin until the 1950s and so on. In the case of Japan, it was
until the 1930s that "total fertility rate did not drop below five births per
woman" (Shigeyuki et al., 2002,). This resulted in rapid population
growth after the Second World War, affecting the age structure of Asia
and the developing world. Specifically, the baby boom in the developing
world was caused by the decline of infant and child mortality rates.
The West, on the other hand, experienced baby boom that resulted
from rising birth rates. A remarkable effect of the demographic
transition, as Shigeyuki et al. (2002) stated, is "the enormous gap in life
expectancy that emerged between Japan and the West on the one hand
and the rest of the world on the other". By 1820, the life expectancy at
birth of Japan and the West was 12 years greater than that of other
countries. It increased by 20 years by 1900. Although there was an
improvement in life expectancy all throughout the world in 1900-1950,
the gap had reached 22 years. In 1999, the gap declined to 14 years.
These differences in time of transition affected the global population.
During the nineteenth century, Europe and the West had an increased in
share in the world's population, from 22.0 percent to 33.0 percent, while
Asia and Oceania's contribution dropped from 69.0 percent to 56.7. India
and China suffered from economic stagnation and decline during that
time.
There was a reverse in global population shares during the
twentieth century as Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Oceania had high
levels of population growth rates. According to Shigeyuki et al. (2002),
population growth shows a more remarkable shift: "Between 1820 and
1980, 69.3 percent of the world's population growth occurred in Europe
and Western offshoots. Between 1950 and 2000, however, only 11.7
percent occurred in that region".
The United Nations projected that population growth will be shifted
toward Africa. It is estimated that by 2150, the regions' share to the
world population will be almost 20 percent, relatively much greater than
its share in 1820 (seven percent) and in 1900 (six percent). Also in 2150,
there will be a projected increase of two billion if we combine the
populations of Asia, Latin America, and Oceania.
In terms of the age structure, the overall trend in Japan and the
West was downward until 1950. Their dependency ratio was close to 0.5.
It only increased, although temporary, when the baby boom after the
Second World War occurred. Japan's dependency ratio, however,
increased between 1888 and 1920. Its dependency ratio was higher than
the West between 1920 and the early 1950s. It dropped in 1970 and
later since its precipitous decline in childbearing during the 1950s and
low fertility rates in recent years.
The developing countries like India and the Philippines had higher
dependency ratios than the West in 1900. A great increase in
dependency ratio was caused by the decline in infant and child mortality
and high levels of fertility, with its peak around 1970. Dependency ratios
started to disappear because there is a decline in global birth rate.
Furthermore, the gap in fertility between the West and the less
developed countries became smaller by the twenty-first century. Over
the next 50 years, the cases of dependency ratios of these two areas in
the world will be reversed (Shigeyuki et al., 2002). The aging of
populations will cause a rise in dependency ratio, starting in the West.

Global Migration
The nuances of the movements of people around the world can be
seen through the categories of migrants-"vagabonds" and "tourists"
(Bauman, 1998). Vagabonds are on the move "because they have to be"
(Ritzer, 2015, p.) they are not faring well in their home countries and are
forced to move in the hope that their circumstances will improve.
Tourists, on the other hand, are on the move because they want to be
and because they can afford it.
Refugees are vagabonds forced to flee their home countries due to
safety concerns (Haddad, 2003). Asylum seekers are refugees who seek
to remain in the country to which they flee. According to Kritz (2008),
those who migrate to find work are involved in labor migration. Labor
migration is driven by "push" factors (e.g., lack of employment
opportunities in home countries), as well as "pull" factors (work
available elsewhere). Labor migration mainly involves the flow of less-
skilled and unskilled workers, as well as illegal immigrants who live on
the margins of the host society (Landler, 2007).
Unlike other global flows, labor migration still faces many
restrictions. Many of these barriers are related to the Westphalian
conception of the nation-state and are intimately associated with it.
Shamir (2005) discussed that the state may seek to control migration
because it involves the loss of part of the workforce. An influx of
migrants can lead to conflicts with local residents. Concerns about
terrorism also affect the desire of the state to restrict population flows
(Moses, 2006).
Migration is traditionally governed either by "push" factors such as
political persecution, economic depression, war, and famine in the home
country or by "pull" factors such as a favorable immigration policy, a
labor shortage, and a similarity of language and culture in the country of
destination (Ritzer, 2015). Global factors, which facilitate easy access to
information about the country of destination, also exert a significant
influence.
Many countries face issues of illegal migration. The United States
faces a major influx of illegal immigrants from Mexico and other Central
American states (Thompson, 2008). A fence is being constructed on the
US-Mexico border to control this flow of people (Fletcher and Weisman,
2006). However, its efficacy is questioned and it is thought that it will
only lead illegal immigrants to adopt more dangerous methods to gain
entry. In addition, tighter borders have also had the effect of "locking in"
people who might otherwise have left the country (Fears, 2006). Other
countries with similar concerns about illegal immigration include Great
Britain, Switzerland, and Greece as well as countries in Asia.
A strong case can be made on the backlash against illegal
immigrants (Economist, 2008, January 3, "Keep the Borders Open"). In
the North, such immigrants constitute a younger workforce that does
work which locals may not perform, and they are consumers who
contribute to growth. They also send remittances back to family
members in the country of origin, which improves the lives of the
recipients, reduces poverty rates, and increases the level of education
as well as the foreign reserves of the home country (Economist 2007,
November 1). Banks are often unwilling or unable to handle the type
(small amounts of money) and volume of remittances. As a result,
specialized organizations play a major role in the transmission of
remittances. According to Malkin (2007), the Philippines is one of the
leaders when it comes to the flow of remittances ($14.7 billion), next to
India ($24.5 billion) and China ($21.1 billion).
The term "diaspora" has been increasingly used to describe
migrant communities. Of particular interest is Paul Gilroy's (1993)
conceptualization of the diaspora as a transnational process, which
involves dialogue to both imagined and real locales. Diasporization and
globalization are closely interconnected and the in the former (Dufoix,
2007). Today, there exists "virtual diasporas" (Laguerre, 2002) which
utilize technology such as the Internet to maintain the community
network.

Process Questions
1. What do you think is the effect of a high dependency ratio in
developed countries? In developing countries?
2. Is the heightened flow of people a unique feature of the current
global era?
3. Has globalization facilitated or obstructed greater labor migration?

Activity: Ang Mundo sa Mata ng Isang OFW

Although globalization is an overwhelming concept, it is experienced by
people in number of ways in real terms. For instance, globalization of
technology improved modern transportation and communication. As a
result, people become more mobile and are able to reach different
places around the globe. There are various reasons why people leave
their country of origin. Through this activity, you should be able to gain
a first-hand knowledge of the experiences of Overseas Filipino Workers
(OFWs), people who obviously reached other countries. Their stories
could provide a concrete understanding of how globalization affects
themselves, their families, and the country.
1. Find a former or a current OFW to be interviewed. Your respondent's
name should not be revealed in class to protect the person's identity and
ensure anonymity.
2. Use the following guide questions (you may add additional questions):
How long have you stayed abroad? What are the purposes for your stay
there? What were your most unforgettable experiences there? How will
you describe them, good or bad? How will you compare the Philippines
with other countries? Do you want to go back abroad or to other
countries in the future? Why or why not?
3. Share to the class the results of your interview and your personal
insights about your respondent's experience.