Globalization can be defined as increased unification of economic order at the international level through reduction of the several of blockades to international trade such as exportation cost, import rations and levy. Globalization is mainly intended at to raising goods, services and material wealth through division of labour in the world.
The attainment of this important component of trade is accelerated by specialization, good international relations and competition. Globalization generally describes the procedure by which local society’s customs and economies amalgamate through trade, communication and transportation.
Globalization can be determined by a mishmash of political, technological, economic, biological and socio-cultural factors. It entails multinational exchange of ideas, trendy cultures and languages through assimilation.
Factors that led to globalization include increased mass movement and migration, technologies in transportation, increased economic movement, combinations of industries and international concords.A world or state that has undergone the process can be alleged to have been globalized.
Globalization has greatly impacted the world today, its effect can be felt everywhere in politics, economics, finance, language, ecology, culture, religion, technology, industry and information.
Contemporary Globalization
Contemporary analysts correlate globalization with deterritorialization. This is whereby social activities continue to grow irrespective of geographical position of the participants. To draw this conclusion, these analysts used computers and other telecommunication technologies and examined global events.
These kinds of events occur almost everywhere and anywhere in the world. They therefore defined contemporary globalization as increased possible actions among people living in different longitudinal and latitudinal location. The distance does not affect social activities that take place in the location.
Deterritorialization exists or manifests itself in businesses that people do in different continents with the help of electronic commerce. For example, television enables people in different parts of the world to observe how terrible wars waged far away from their homes impact the world.
Moreover increased technology inventions enable people to hold seminars by use of video conferencing apparatus whereby those involved are located in different geographical positions. The internet also enables people to instantaneously communicate with each other despite the long distance that separates the two.
By examining the current interconnectedness of social growth which has surpassed the political and geographical limits recent theorists have able been to put globalization into a clear perspective. According to their views, globalization majorly concerns the way in which distant forces and events impact regional and local endeavours (Vallas, Finlay & Wharton, 188).
An encyclopaedia is an example of detteritorialized social space given that it permits exchange of ideas. The book can be used by other students in different geographical areas to access the same knowledge and ideas in a particular topic.
Therefore, contemporary globalization can be defined as processes which have an impact on life in local institution as a result of environmental events and decisions. This means that any social activity can influence more or less events in different geographical location.
The impact and the degree of activities taking place may also vary; environmental events can either have a huge impact or less impact on different events in particular areas. This means that the degree of interconnectedness across different frontiers can be easily predicted and regulated (Vallas, Finlay, & Wharton, 190).
Contemporary globalization involves social acceleration. Interconnectedness and deterritorialization is directly tied to social acceleration. For social activities in different areas to develop and reach other frontiers, the ideas must move swiftly.
This will also be aided by the flow of information, capital and goods and migration of people. Without swift flow, it will be difficult to view how people are influenced by different distant affairs. High-speed technology has greatly contributed in increasing the velocity of different human events and affairs. This means that globalization is mainly a matter of extent.
Most analysts conceive globalization as a long term process. This is because it is composed of present history and present world. Globalization has led to innovations in information technology, communication and transportation. Many problems experienced in globalization are directly associated with the surfacing of technologies that are of high-speed.
They lessen the magnitude of distance and boost social interconnectedness and deterritorialization. Lastly, contemporary globalization can be conceived also as a multi-pronged process. This is because social interconnectedness, social acceleration and deterritorialization can be visualized through diverse economical, cultural and political grounds of social actions.
How Globalization has affected Americans
Many Americans feel that globalization has both positive and negative impacts on them. Even majority of Americans view globalization as a result of positive economy, they are less positive when it comes to American jobs, business environment and living standards in general.
Americans began feeling the pain of globalization as early as 1980. Many people lost their jobs when most companies decided to outsource to other foreign countries. This is why most American families and communities do not embrace global market. They see it as a threat to their lives.
Many American workers were greatly hit when American steel industry went global. All the steel mills in small towns were shut done which destroyed both the American economy and the living standards of those living in the regions (Vallas, Finlay, & Wharton, 198). This shows that there is no benefit felt by the Americans when many companies decide to go global. Most Americans believe that outsourcing is a way in which corporations take advantage of under developed countries and the people living in the regions in order to gain profit.
Most of these under developed countries greatly depend on American market. However the American economy is now under a great risk of collapse due to globalization. This is because America has lost its manufacturers to the global world and in case of economic crisis; the country will have nothing to rely on.
Without manufacturers, America is not capable of producing goods hence American workers lose their jobs due shutdown of these manufacturing companies. Moreover globalization has a negative impact on United State’s wages for workers.
This is due to job losses in the country which lead to trade deficits in most goods and services. Globalization leads to shifting of jobs which induce negative effects on trade and on average wages of the American workers.
This is because importation of goods reduces jobs and it requires less education to do export. This cannot be compared to exports which increase job opportunities for the Americans and also requires high education for one to be employed.
Moreover globalization leads to foreign investment which negatively affects the average wages of workers in America and American families at large. Foreign investment deteriorates the supremacy of United States workers which lowers the price of the wages they are being paid as they are considered worthless.
High level of education and highly skilled labour are required to carry out foreign investment. More workforces are directed towards foreign affiliates leaving United States with fewer jobs making more people jobless. Globalization also impacts government policies which in-turn affects United States families and communities.
The government of America was forced to adopt economic policies that are contractionary to protect its global capital market. (Vallas, Finlay & Wharton, 200). The government cannot inflict corporate taxes because it wants to preserve competition and inflate investments in commerce.
The government is forced to decrease the amount spent on social welfare due to limitations of taxation and spending leading to poor welfare benefits to many families. Global market pressure can also force the government to control United State’s products and labour bazaar leading to job cuts and consequently poor living standards.
However, globalization can have some positive impacts in America to some extent. McKinsey which is a global institute believes that globalization has positive impacts on the lives of Americans. Globalization renders United States industries to high competition in the global world which promote productivity. Many countries believe that United States products are of high quality.
They therefore purchase those products through online trading especially those who cannot reach the shops in America due to long distance. This increases sales for American companies and hence more employment opportunities for many Americans. Moreover many American families and communities gain by getting high quality goods and services.
In conclusion, globalization has positively and negatively affected Americans. Many American workers have lost their jobs and have experienced a reduction in wages.
However many jobs have also been created in the process in other sectors of the economy. The government has come up with policies aimed at protecting the Americans from the effects of globalization at the same time promoting it.
Works Cited
Vallas, Steven, Finlay, William, & Wharton Amy. Sociology of work: Structures and Inequalities. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.