Globalization and Its Impact on Families, Appunti di Sociologia

Scarica Globalization and Its Impact on Families e più Appunti in PDF di Sociologia solo su Docsity! SOCIOLOGY OF GLOBALIZATION Sociological Perspectives on Globalization What's in a cup of coffee? Coffee as a social ritual: - Personal daily routine  it symbolizes the beginning of the day because it is embedded in a personal daily routine  - Group activity  - Occasion for social interaction (ex: meet friends for coffee) Coffee as a drug: - Caffeine is a stimulant - Habit-forming substance (society has said that caffeine is an accepted drug) - Socially accepted in some places  Coffee as a social and economic relationship: - Links wealthy with impoverished (the trade connects very wealthy countries with very poor countries) - Consumed in rich countries  - Produced in relatively poor countries  - Traded commodity on foreign exchange  Coffee as a historical legacy: - It originated in Middle East - Colonial expansion brought mass consumption in 1800s - Coffee producers today are former colonies  Coffee as a consumer choice: - Branded and politicized  different brands of coffees that are politicized - Fair trade, human rights, environmental damage - Consumption as a lifestyle choice (it is a consumer choice) - Corporate chains vs. independent coffee shop  this choice says something on the consumer choice and has an impact on the global economy  CASE OF STARBUCKS: - There are no bubbles in big parts of the world - The triad is made up by north America, Europe and far East - What makes coffee global isn't the consumption, but the production - In the late 90s there was a boom of Starbucks coffee  1 What is globalization? A global ’buzzword’  people had to give a word to the idea of globalization Common myths about globalization: - It’s new: our world has had periods of being very global, today's globalization rests itself on the previous periods - It’s mostly about free trade: it's about very different aspects such as science - It produces (and is equal to) homogenization - It is equal to Americanization: it is often seen as a unidirectional influence from the USA; however also USA is subject to change and has a power imbalance is the system of globalization (the power of the USA cannot be negated) - It’s inevitable Globalization is a contested, complex concept. Martell’s defines it as process moving to these criteria: 1. Compression of space 2. Global inputs 3. Interdependence  4. Stable and regular 5. Global consciousness  CRITERIA 1: compression of space  Geographical distances do not have the same meaning that they used to have in the past  Spatial distances matter less  things that are distant seem to matter the most to us   Communicating globally  we can witness things that are afar   Moving globally   Giddens: local happenings are shaped by far-away events...and vice versa!  CRITERIA 2: global inputs  Not a one-way process  the production and consumption of the good is already global (not two countries trading between each other as in the past)  Production of goods and services globally dispersed/fragmented   Global reach (ex: consumption) CRITERIA 3: interdependence  Interconnected movement of:   Goods and money   Technology and information  2 - As crisis: processes are not linear or uniform, change comes at a social cost, often to some more than others, there can be unintended consequences - As ambivalent: collective trauma, disorientation, shared experience Sources of Social Change A lot of social change comes from: - Invention: creation of new patterns of interaction (socials, WhatsApp etc.) - Discovery: of a new people, a new territory, a new material resource (ex: natural gas in the US, that changed their energy dependence), a new frontier - Diffusion: a spread of modes of living by interaction with other cultures  mixing of practices and cultures, not just copying, but also creating a whole new way of doing. Agents of Social Change - Technology: e.g. communication, transportation, medical, agricultural - Population: fertility, migration, epidemics - Social institutions: e.g. the family, multinational corporations, educational (universities etc.) - The environment: natural disasters Factors that Affect the Direction and Rate of Social Change - Biological: ecology, population, geography can bring about sudden changes or limit the changes (e.g. pollution). - Technology (typically an accelerator): e.g. transport and communication have altered leisure activities, helped in maintaining social networks, and stimulated new social relationships - Values and Beliefs: clash can bring conflict but also change - Influential People: charismatic leaders can bring out latent desire for change Change Requires Social Readjustment Three levels where readjustments proceed: 1. Individual readjustment: for instance a person undergoing spatial mobility through migration or travel (capacity of adjusting changes from person to person). 2. Interactive readjustment: who are the core groups and the peripheral groups 3. Cultural lag: such as lifestyle or ideas that does not keep the pace with technological changes  ideas remain from the past but life has changed a lot (ex: notion of being a “good mother” and the economic necessity) Ambivalent Responses to Social Change - People desire stability and change brings fear and uncertainty  that’s where a lot of social anxious comes - People desire the familiar, through habit and tradition - People do not appreciate incurring economic costs to adapt to change (e.g. health insurance) - Groups with vested interests (e.g. privileged groups) Debating Globalization What is theorizing? When we theorize we abstract something, because otherwise we cannot see “the forest through the trees” 5 Theorizing: constructing abstract interpretation of events using a series of logically related statements that explain a wide variety of facts  facts do not ”speak” for themselves Theories explain complexity  they help us interpreting data Why do we need theory?  even ”practical” people rely on theories Theorizing Globalization Competing Theories: There is no dominant theory about globalization, but many rival theories (this is the sign that it is a dynamic scholarship)  intellectual vitality  diversity impedes dogma and stagnation, you have instead room for challenges and skepticism. Adjudicating between Theories: Use empirical not normative approach: - Normative statements: value judgements (e.g. “should”) - Empirical statements: describe social world without evaluating it, only empirical measurements. Normative vs. Empirical Statements Example: Canada has one of the best science programs in the world. In 2015, Canada ranked 4 th overall in science education performance of 15-year-old high school students in a study conducted by the Organization for Education Cooperation and Development (OECD, 2015). Four Waves of Globalization Theories: These schools of thought emerged over time (they are ordered based on their chronological discovery) 1. Wave 1: Globalists 2. Wave 2: Sceptics 3. Wave 3: Transformationalists 4. Wave 4: Discourse FIRST WAVE: Globalists (middle 1990s) They gave shape to globalization, naming it, saying it was happening etc.… Their first and main claim  Globalization is REAL and NEW, a big, massive radical shift. They wanted to describe a kind of borderless world (money, jobs, people and goods were flowing at a scale that had not been seen before). The idea is that this was not only about goods, stuff but also culture (for instance)  economic change leads to cultural homogenization  the globalist perspective is indeed sometimes seen as economistic, with economic changes having political and cultural effects. They started to say that nations were losing power to market forces  nations were a thing of the past, almost irrelevant. Individual countries no longer oversee their economies because of the vast growth in world trade, while govts are increasingly unable to exercise authorities over volatile world financial markets, increasing migration, environmental dangers or terrorist network. Therefore, national differences become less marked as people consume culture from around the world rather than exclusively from their own nation. Globalists supported this thesis with the argument of the crisis of citizen confidence in national government, who are recognized to be having limited ability to solve these problems 6  national govts are challenged both from above (ex: the EU, WTO) and below (protests…). New age: global consciousness to develop  people would start to feel as a part of one world rather than nations/countries SECOND WAVE: Skeptics (1990s-today) Globalization is NOT new, something that the world has always done but simply something extremely overstated and to which a fancy new word was simply assigned  current processes not that global, also unequal and not inclusive (not equal in all parts of the world  not a mass word phenomenon). National identities have a history and a hold on popular imagination that global identities cannot replace, evolving rather than being swept away. Skeptics believed it would lead to tension, conflict, culture clash ( not homogenization). Contemporary globalization differs from the past only in the intensity of nation-states interactions  preservation of the strength of nation-states  they are still relevant  nations decide when delegate to supernational organs and still have a lot of control over aspects of domestic life. However there is insufficient integration to constitute a single, global economy (bulk of trade is unequal, occurring within just three regional groups: Europe, Japan/East Asia, North America). THIRD WAVE: Transformationalists (2005-today) It’s a kind of middle way between the previous two, more moderate, not going as far in either direction.  Globalization is not new but has reached an unprecedented level  globalization already existed, but its new speed makes it particular, and different It transforms most people, most things, but not everywhere  global system not global society (the way the globalist had predicted); national identities are still very strong, people don’t really feel fully part of a global society. + Economies are global but not equal/inclusive + Nations’ power has been reconstituted but not diminished  ex: role of welfare state, family childcare etc. are all still very national. + Territories important due to localization  the places where globalization goes changes globalization itself (places and people where globalization arrives are not passive, they have an impact on companies; ex: McDonalds in different countries)  bidirectional influence  globalization is always changing Globalists have had less relevance  when transformationalists arrived globalists had lost a lot their importance (that is why there is no arrow back between the 2) + third way reinforces skepticism The third wave defends the idea of globalization while including qualifications that unwittingly reaffirm skeptical arguments. 7 Martell argues contrarily  he believes it was more regional than global, that there were limits in terms of the proportion of the population involved, that consciousness was not global (at least beyond the élites) and that it did not create an entire system of independent structures (not full-scale). However, it made it possible for modern globalization to emerge [he is a bit of a transformationalist]. MODERN GLOBALIZATION (1800-1920) This is where skeptics started to say that globalization was really emerging. Capitalistic and imperialistic  2 powerful forces that mixed together; primarily economic, propelled by technology (mainly innovation in transportation, having the effect of compressing time and space). o Main innovation: steam engine technology (ex: steamboats, you could navigate even internal waters)  it made it much easier to transport goods and people. All of this was sustained by nation state (mainly European powers) with military force  Western-led but global reach. o This built an interdependent, regular and stable global system Is Modern Globalization a consequence of capitalism? Marx/Engels in Communist Manifesto (1848): “The need of a constantly expanding market for its products chases the bourgeoisie over the entire surface of the globe. It must nestle everywhere, settle everywhere, establish connections everywhere. (. . . ) In place of old local and national seclusion and self-sufficiency, we have intercourse in every direction, universal interdependence of nations”. Feature of capitalism  aim: constantly develop new profits  you need markets Giddens: Modernity as the engine of globalization because it ‘tears space away from place’  it is modernity that gives globalization this idea  he roots globalization in capitalist expansionism - Modernity: capitalism, industrialism, surveillance (you can track people), and military power - Systematic trade, it has to be uniform (you need to have a way of exchanging money system)  standardization of the trading process - Long-range economic exchanges - International political agreements  delegates of the international meridian conference in Washington deciding about time zones. - Global tourism and mass migration - Communications technology The bourgeoisie has, through its exploitation of the world market, given a cosmopolitan character to production and consumption in every country. Mass Migrations of People: Global scale of mass migration  European colonists, slave trade, indentured workers (people who due to difficult circumstances, prisoners, without family etc. were in debt and were shipped and required to work to solve their debt)  not people who are necessarily moving freely. Mass migration of people is possible through globalization of trade, travel and transport  Europeans and Chinese migration to Americas. 10 The Crucial Role Of Communication Technology  the telegraph system (there had to be cables under the sea), the morse code (uses a combination of short and long pulses – dots and dashes – that correspond to letters). The ’Golden Age’ of Globalization Intensification of global flows of goods  a global market not just for goods but also for capital emerged (spread of gold standard, which required international cooperation). The world was truly “on the move”: migration and travel but globalization was capitalistic and imperialistic. It is in the modern era that globalization has become more global rather than regional and with more systemic and regularized structures and relations  more worldwide and interdependent rather than just interconnected. Late 20th Century Globalization THE GOLDEN AGE OF GLOBALIZATION (1870-1914):  Unprecedented spatial economic integration  people could get to places faster  Empires expanded  Global financial intermediaries flourished   International migration flows  Economic and political stability the norm  PERIOD OF DEGLOBALIZATION (1914-1945): WWI and WWII paused development of world economy (they also retracted what had happened). The Great Depression brought protectionism/regionalism the global system took a step back; national interests were prioritized + protectionist measures.  "Race to the bottom": when one countries engages in protectionism and other countries do the same in a self-interested way = the whole system collapses  Nations states in conflict, world bipolar in 1945  AFTERMATH OF WWII: Globalization began to spread gradually after WWII. The US emerge as the hegemonic power to reestablish global interdependence  it wasn't the case before WWI (it was isolationist). Guiding principle after WWII: if the world is economically interdependent, there will be peace (liberal hegemony) + Marshall plan gives economic stimulus  12 billion USD aid to W. Europe (130 billion USD today) o It was intended for economic reconstruction o Economic stability = political stability  o It was in the USA's interest to create economic stability in Europe in order to drive wealth from it  Bretton Woods Conference (1944) 11 A new monetary system designed by powers with the aim of creating a system to facilitate international trade but also protect national autonomy (balance of facilitating trade but allowing states to maintain power). The member states pegged currencies to USD, and the United States pegged dollars to gold and several institutions came out of the Bretton Woods Conference: IMF, World Bank, GATT (precursor of WTO) POST WAR 1945-1973: Key developments: 1. Former Empires Decolonize 2. Rise of Cold War Imperialism  3. Proliferation of International/Supranational Institutions  4. Oil Shocks and Stagflation shift global power  European Empires Decolonize The British empire was dismantled after 1945, and many others followed  it was the break with western domination. Most of decolonization happened in the 1960s, some in the 1970s   Political agency of south/east grew after 1945  more power in those places which had been colonized  More global players = more global inputs (it changes the balance of the world) Rise Of Cold War Imperialism USSR/US exported values and ideology  export of material culture is an excellent strategy for propaganda (ex: the American dream) o Example: the cultural product of Disney was very powerful and it played in the exportation of ideology Use of direct military force/proxy wars. US influence through exporting economic liberalism and mass consumerism  Proliferation of international governmental organizations   - North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO): military protection system  - United Nations: peacekeeping  - World Bank, IMF, GATT: developing an economic ideology of prosperous growth  - Regional Economic Organizations: EU, ASEAN Oil shocks and the shift of global economic growth   Egypt and Syria attacked Israel in the Yom Kippur War and OPEC instituted an oil embargo in 1973  Oil prices triple, leading to an energy crisis. The economic system in a global system of interdependence doesn't sustain the shock  collapse of economic infrastructure:  Collapse of Bretton Woods System  US suffers from stagflation through 1970s   Trilateral economic system emerges  USA must share its dominating power  12 1) Vertical = global cities grow up (usually referred to the buildings). They are characterized by strong vertical downtown, high-rise business district (economic and financial district, in the city centre)  Power and money are concentrated in the centre of global cities, while in the outskirts there are fewer resources. 2) Horizontal = great sprawl urban region with great diversity. There is a growing share of world population that lives in cities. Middle income countries have changed a lot through time in terms of urbanization  all cities grow differently because they are nested in particular ecological landscape. International Cities are not new. Some examples from history: - From Antiquity: Athens, Rome, Byzantium  they were big international cities (for their era) - Italian City States: Venice, Genova, Naples (they traded, they imported etc.)  Venice was an example of a maritime city-state, characterized by a great deal of political autonomy. - Hanseatic League  crucial for creating standardization of measurement for trade. World Cities and the Rothschild Banking Dynasty Mayer Amshel Rothschild was a successful businessman who lived in Frankfurt (1744–1812). He sent his five sons to the most important and future oriented cities around world, in order to expand his empire  Vienna, Berlin, London, Paris and Naples. This choice reflects the lead business and financial at the time  the world of global important cities is changing.  Which cities would you send your five children to grow a family business globally? What are Global Cities? A global city is not necessarily a big or glamorous city + it is not the same as a world city o Ex: Rome is a very big city, it is a world city  it has many tourists, attractions, an extremely important history; but these factors do not make it a global city Global cities are: - Local sites for global relations, processes and mobilities - Places where the global economy is managed (the decision-making, the actual organization) and served (the services needed to actually implement globalization take place in a global city) - Strategic territorial units (denationalized)  mayors have power that go beyond national politics Sassen’s Concept Of “Global Cities”: She tries to explain the way in which the relation between global city and globalization works. Globalization makes global cities function in four ways: a) “Command points” in the organization of the world economy  places that input commands which execute the process of globalization b) Key locations for finance and specialized service firms  proliferation of high sector works c) Sites of production (hubs start to emerge) and innovation (technological, mainly) d) Markets for the products and innovations produced What these global cities make is services. SOCIAL INEQUALITY 15 There are wide social divisions in global cities (all the power and resources concentrated in the centre, and people spread in the hinterland)  huge amount of inequality both within a single city, and between different areas of the world: - Office towers built for MNCs managers and services - Urban restructured around corporate towers and luxury residences  city centre changes and starts to be characterized for a particular type of people. - Lower income move to outskirts, elites monopolize city centres - Gap between high income corporate elites and low-paid casual workers The urban man becomes desensitized to certain daily experiences (ex: seeing homeless people in the streets) CULTURE Global cities are home to creative and cultural industries: - Production of culture and cultural innovation - Competition between cities fuels investment in cultural infrastructure  cities want to attract, to be dynamic places… - Visual culture: architecture, film, photography, urban planning and design - Spectacularization of architectural ”mega-projects Global Cities And The Global South E.g. Sao Paolo, Buenos Aires, Bangkok, Manila, Mexico City, Mumbai - There are power inequalities with global cities in north and within the cities themselves (even just visually to see) - Social problems related to economic growth and rural-urban migration: unemployment, poverty, housing shortages, environmental hazards CONCLUSION: - Globalization is not just about the national and the global - Global cities are main circuits through which globalization occurs - Global cities compete with one another - Global cities are places of coordination but also production - Services and goods are the things made in global cities Finance, Trade, and Global Markets The Global Economy - Global finance: the ease of capital mobility  invisible, but fundamental part of the system - Global governance: the rise of Multinational Corporations (MNCs) - Global production: global commodity chains - Global trade: the exchange of goods and services CAPITAL MOBILITY Why does money now move easily across borders? Technological change: electronic transactions and computer networks  global transactions are much easier thanks to technological advancements. 16 Political change: financial deregulation  tax regulations are lower for capital investments than for salary Different Types of ”money” flows across borders:  Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)  a foreign company goes and invests money in a different place; it’s called an investment because there are infrastructures, technologies that have to be built, people that have to be trained…  International Bank lending  ex: getting a loan was historically something you did “nationally, or regionally”, not anymore  the flow of money is international nowadays  International Bonds  investments in governments  Portfolio Investments  investing in mutual (international) funds  Developmental Assistance  a part of the govt’s budget gives aid money to other countries  often a huge part of the poor country’s GDP  International Monetary Flows  they can range from big sums of money to small sums  ex: migrants sending money back to their families.  New financial instruments (derivatives, swaps, options)  banks can bet against something working out in the stock market (a sort of secondary market). The “Invisible Hand of the Powerful” (by Pierre Bourdieu) The invisible hand is finance and money, and we do not see it. Financiers are the powerful behind ‘invisible hand’. - Critical of increased financialization - Financialization: increasing role of financial motives, financial markets, financial actors, and financial operation of the domestic and international economies - Cautions against pursuit of short term profit The Political Consequences Nations have to compete to make money stay in their countries, national governments cannot rely on money to stay  Capital moves globally to find best investment, cheapest workers and the most relaxed environmental regulations (money will find the best return). If governments want to compete, they have to attract capital and this creates a ‘race to the bottom’(deregulation)  states have to countermove in order to be more competitive. The Cultural Consequences Big businesses that originally had more of a domestic focus are becoming increasingly involved globally (e.g. offshoring practices) + also consumers are less domestic. A capitalist, Westernized or even Americanized culture, which reflects the dominant origins of many of these businesses, becomes globalized. This leads to a homogenization of world culture that irons out national differences and diversity  homogenization of products THE RISE OF MULTINATIONAL CORPORATIONS (MNCs) A MNCs is multinational in different aspects  What makes a corporation multinational? - Ownership  it is usually owned by people in different countries (often also continents) - Investments and assets multinational  also its investors and assets (actual properties of the company) are global (not in the same country/continent)  factories or labor in different countries. - Production is global - It conducts global trade  produced in a country and then traded all over the world - Consumers 17 - Inequalities and the Digital Divide TECHNOLOGICAL GLOBALIZATION What causes it? Economic incentives drive technological change and exchange  technology allows globalization to occur (agent), but globalization also spreads technological diffusion  it is both a cause and a consequence of the phenomenon. + Favourable political and scientific institutions make it possible What kind of technology?  Transportation  Communication and Media  Computing and IT (ex: cloud servers)  Medical  the idea that medicine is a kind of global science (sharing and diffusing) is very important  Machinery and Robotics How does Technology get globally diffused? Main reason is because of people, who are the ones that diffuse ideas: they create a network of interactive and collaborative experts (also thanks to mixing trough the labour market) + global infrastructure. It is often diffused through migration, travel, collaboration, FDI. However, these are uneven so this is not an even global diffusion. Not all countries are integrated in the same way  Jeffrey Sachs categorized countries on the basis of technological innovation and found that there is a widening technological gap between poor and rich ones: a) Technological innovators b) A middle category: the “technological adopters”  they are not the ones innovating, but they borrow it (so they are using it, they benefit from it) c) Technologically disconnected Government Is Crucial To Fostering Technological Culture: There are places in the world where there is a microculture of technology (little niches) + tech hubs are often centered around universities. What can govts do? - Access to finance  fund and invest in properties, be lenient towards investors - Infrastructure  corporate infrastructure, housing, good living environment - Skilled labour - Good managerial and organizational practices - Investment  it is about attracting private sector investors (who provide money) INTERNET AND THE ”NETWORK SOCIETY” What is the internet? It is a global system of interconnected computers and devices that integrates telecommunications, computing and IT technologies; it allows (potentially) global access to information and communication + people can contribute AND receive information  it’s a bidirectional direction, for information (we can both access it and share it). 20 What is a ’Network Society’? People can communicate and organize via internet, which is an horizontal form of communication (peers by peers, everyone has access to it)  prior to the internet, information circulated vertically (circumvent bureaucracy, states, political organizations, corporations). These networks form civil society  people end up meeting because they have common causes, problems etc. it has nothing to do with the place where they live  these interactions create cyberspace and virtual communities. In these network societies people find self-employment, individual expression, collaboration, and sociability. The Role of Social Media and Smartphones in Network Society: - Social media allows for dissent and spread of counter-information - Smart phones can make for ‘citizen journalists’, they can document their experiences and share ideas - Ideas can be spread horizontally - Pressure from social media can enact political change  ex: filming of police brutality (rise of Black Lives Matter movements etc.) How much control do nation states have over the internet and network society? They are still relatively unregulated by government. But states and corporations still have unequal power over single citizens  some states ban/restrict various sources of information (China, N. Korea) + large corporations have disproportionate production and distribution. Nation states have power but they cannot really fully control and stop the information from flowing. The ‘power’ of algorithms (search engine, newsfeed) is crucial to make some part of the internet less connected to other parts. GLOBAL MEDIA AND INFORMATION Global Developments: - International news agencies started in 19th century - Shift from public service to profits/ratings/advertising - News media beyond national borders - Media can now be foreign owned - Dominance of English  Media and information are concentrated in the hands of a few INEQUALITIES AND THE ‘DIGITAL DIVIDE’ Digital Divide: the gap between those that have access to internet and those that do not  not the whole world is integrated. 21 The second order digital divide refers to internal inequality  living in a very well connected country that has however a lot of internal inequality (ex: US, more internally uneven, is not as dark as Canada). Conclusions: technology has compressed the world  It allows information to be communicated instantly  The world feels like a smaller place (time/space compression)  Technological globalization reproduces inequalities  Digital divide in internet access is economically consequential Globalization and Work THE SOCIAL SIGNIFICANCE OF WORK Work: carrying out tasks requiring the expenditure of mental and physical effort, which has as its objective the production of goods and services that cater to human needs. Recall the difference: Working vs. Being Employed. Social Characteristics: - Money  money people make determines their social status - Activity Level  mental activity, people have mental stimulus that comes from work - Variety  work introduces variety into our lives, it provides access to new contexts - Temporal Structure  temporal routine - Social Contacts - Personal Identity Brandt Model – Rich North, Poor South (generalization): TRENDS IN GLOBAL NORTH Overview: 1. High Trust Post-Fordist Work 2. Offshoring and Automation 3. Service and Knowledge-based Work 22 Conclusions:  Globalization has introduced risk and uncertainty  Divergent experiences between global north and south  Divergent experiences WITHIN societies (age, class, gender) Global Culture Culture and Globalization:  A fundamental part of globalization  Culture is highly mobile  Accelerated by technology  Reflects the world’s complex connectivity  What is Culture?   Colloquial use of word “culture” different from sociological use   Culture: symbols, language, beliefs, values, and artifacts  Two components:  a. Material (artifacts) b. Non-material (ideas and symbols)   Most of material culture has elements of non-material culture embedded in it   Every human society has culture  Sociological traditions of culture Emile Durkheim: culture are symbols and beliefs deployed through rituals:  Mutual ability to perceive reality in a certain manner   Medium through which a collective entity presents itself to itself and gains a sense of its own existence  medium for people to connect   Cultural universals: patterns or traits that are globally common to all societies (e.g. family unit, which works differently in different places)  25 Ethnocentrism:  Evaluating or judging another culture based on how it compares to one’s own cultural norms   Believing we know what is “normal”   Outsiders are seen as aliens, barbarians, morally or mentally inferior  our own culture always seems to be superior related to others' Cultural imperialism  the deliberate imposition of one’s own cultural values on another culture  Culture is only partly about tradition   Traditions are rituals, ceremonies, repetitive actions and people feel part of something bigger o Examples: national, religious, professional   Many traditions today are relatively recent (re)inventions  Preserve tradition is the basic concept of conservatism  Giddens: Tension between Tradition and Globalization   Globalization brings social change and brings “de-traditionalization” o For people who wish to maintain how things have always been, globalization is alarming  Tradition removes individual decision-making  if there is a tradition of how things have been done, people do not have to decide (very comforting).  Globalization brings autonomy/individual freedom, with decision-making  o Self-identity has to be (re)created, not inherited  Globalization can also fuel tradition (fundamentalism)  the alarming response of some people pushes traditionalism and fundamentalism (preserve traditions at all costs) o Globalization can have a boomerang effect  The Reciprocal Relationship between Globalization and Culture   Globalization lies at the heart of modern culture:  Culture no longer tied to territory: it isn't tied to a specific geographic place  Cultural proximity from the networking of social relations across time/space Cultural practices lie at the heart of globalization:  Culture is very mobile  once, cultural proximity was only possible thanks to territorial proximity; whereas now it is virtual and mobile  When people, goods, and services move, so does culture   There is a bidirectional mobility of culture among countries CULTURAL HOMOGENIZATION A global consumptive experience can be seen in material culture (streets, shops look similar around the world): Fashion – Video Gaming – Music – Film – Food   Strong similarity of products all around the world Digitization of culture as an accelerator:   Digitization of culture: weightless and instant  there is a weightlessness of digital culture because it is instantaneous  o Example: digital music revolution (people can listen to music at the same time all over the world)  It is connected to the idea of network society = connectivity, service-oriented, and amateur produced  Non-material culture is also homogenized: 26  Business practices: in order for global value chains to work, there shall be a homogenization of business practices (it makes organization smoother)  Global holidays: they are not representative of all cultures, but of the most powerful (ex: New Year)  Global travel: people can travel all around the world, not limited to a region  Language: there is lingua franca that is shared by everybody  o Language structures ideas: some languages do not have the same words for a concept, the grammar is built differently (language creates values)  Celebrity culture: they homogenize standards  Example: international tourism interactions:  Globalization has expanded and accelerated international tourism (ex: transportation, social media campaigns and the demand)  It increases face-to-face interactions between cultures (touristic gaze, people come face to face)  There is a cultural taste for exotic experience (people want to see something different)  It creates both negative and positive cultural consequences (economically beneficial but it can change the place deeply) + inherent tensions (locals vs. tourists)  Culture is in danger (Bourdieu):  Critique of globalization, Americanization and neo-liberalism: it puts in danger real culture, because globalization makes culture profitable  Culture is being marketized: the most profitable culture emerges rather than the best  It is in the “invisible hand of the powerful”   Cultural diversity is reduced and national culture is eroded  national cultures are threatened by globalization culture Hybridization And Glocalization The Three Different Perspectives on Cultural Globalization: 1. Cultural Homogenization 2. Cultural Clash 3. Cultural Hybridization 1) The Homogenization Perspective Perspective preferred by the globalists : - Globalization causes cultural convergence  things become more similar - Linked to the idea that there are these corporate conglomerates that dominate the marketplace, replicating a similar type of culture worldwide - Focused on consumer culture (food, drink, fashion, electronics): perspective with a strong economic power that sees consumers as passive receivers of culture  they passively take what is given to them Example: McDonalds in Hong Kong (200): Cultural Imperialism?  Homogenization: American food, design, norms and behaviour (ex: American sweet breakfast), birthday parties  Adaption: Chinese transliteration of name and menu (to make it sound like English, but it made no sense in Chinese)  Localized Features: snacks, norms of hospitality  Hong Kong norms: directness, competence, unflappability (handle stress, do not agitate) “McDonaldization” 27 - Intensification of labour market competition: people are waiting also to have a higher income to sustain family life (not just because they are afraid to be laid off). - Postponements in partnerships and having children - Welfare state can offset uncertainty  social security and pro-natalist policies incentivize having children B. Family Life and New Technology ICT transformed communication in family life + it is easier to stretch family across long distances; previously it was very different: physical proximity was necessary, you needed to be physically close. Also partnering is less local and more online  you can maintain relationships more easily when space and time are compressed + this produced cultural exchange:  Opportunity for social comparison beyond local  Exposure to alternative family models and behaviours (even if very far away) C. Family Life and Geographic Mobility - Weakening of geographic constraints for family  idea that families need to be close in space has been disrupted. - Propelled by AND propels global mobility and migration - Inter-generational transmission of transnational families  those families that, despite living apart, try to create a sense of “familyhood” across nation-state borders. - All of this is facilitated by online communication  cultural changes flow through transnational networks D. Family Life and Change in Values Globalization have also impacted on values and norms (non-material culture) related to family life: - Since late 1960s in Western societies there has been a weakening of traditional forms of family as an institution (such as religion) - Family decisions are no longer just conditioned on economic change TRENDS IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH Clans and kins ( = social institutions once very important in the global south) are declining in influence. These changes are due to: - Western culture (film, social media) - Government policies (ex: fertility policies, encouragement of female employment) - Urban-rural migration  shift from agricultural (typical of clans and kins) to industrial life In some of the world’s remote regions, disconnected from the global system like Papua New Guinea, there are longstanding family patterns which have been altered very little over many generations. Trend towards a free selection of spouse:  Decline in arranged marriages in some places/groups  strict relation to the level of education (in India)  Rise of self-arrangement: online dating services 30 The Feminization of Labour: Feminization of labour is the rise of female participation in all sectors and movement of women into jobs traditionally held by men (thanks to offshoring and FDIs). This leads to: - Feminization of poverty and female proletarianization - Export oriented manufacturing work - Women are considered to be easier to work with  they work for lower wages, are considered more docile, patient and dexterous Rights of women are being recognized more widely: - Inside household (decision-making) - Outside household (political, labour, health) Granting and extending childrens’ rights: - Decrease in child labour - Decrease in child marriage - Reduction in corporal punishment + Increase acceptance of same-sex partnerships  Conclusions:  Diversity of choice and uncertainty to family life (Giddens)  Greater diversity in family forms within nations but also convergence between nations  Less convergence with societies excluded from globalization processes  Family is often the shock-absorber of changes brought on by globalization The Nation State In a Global World What is the effect of globalization on power of nation states?  Globalists: declining/eroding  Sceptics: reinforced/enhanced  Transformationalists: reconstituted/restructured A Nation State has distinct features: - Circumscribed territory - Centralized political apparatus - Monopoly on legitimized use of force - Recognized authority - Sovereignty - Governed by a form in impersonal power “A named and self-defined community whose members cultivate common myths, memories, symbols and values, possess and disseminate a distinctive public culture, reside in and identify with a historic homeland, and create and disseminate common laws and shared customs” (Anthony D Smith 2005). What do Nation states pay for? In general, states use taxes to pay for services (a kind of social tacit contract between state and citizens):  Protect national security  fight corruption, terrorism, foreign enemies and threats  Health  Retirement and unemployment benefits  Education  Public utilities such as roads 31 Types of States: - Democracies = allow people opportunities to vote for leaders and policies - Socialists nations = govt controls the economy - Authoritarian state = ruled through force by a dictator or a small group of people Nations and Identity Nationally, identity is socially constructed: - Nationalism provides symbols and identity to people  flags are very important, they help people visualize this shared identities - Sense of belonging is important to self - National values, self-awareness, historical memory - Built against the backdrop against some ‘other’ How does Globalization Undermine Nation States? 1. Internal Crisis makes it more vulnerable o Subnational pressure/regional movements (ex: some minor ethnic groups would like to be independent from the nation state) o Giddens: the democracy paradox  as globalization erodes the nation state, the nation state has a harder time demonstrating its strength o A collective loss of faith in democratic systems 2. Usurping Aspects of Globalization o Power of Multinational Corporations o Power of Mobility of Capital: controlling capital mobility is very difficult in an international banking system o Globalized Culture complicates national identity (national culture + shared experience of other cultures) o Power delegated to Supranational and International Governmental Organizations  governance of the world through multipolar and horizontal as well as vertical relations. Rather than being contained, unified and centralized in sovereign bodies, power is spread about and often nonhierarchical. The Trilemma of Globalization 3. Global Problems needing Global Solution  Global problems transcend borders o Global climate change: countries that strategically do not participate (e.g. US) o Oil prices (market driven and related to political relations) o Global pandemics o Global terrorism o Organized crime o Volatile financial markets  Nation states ill-equipped (too big/too small) 32 II. The Compensation Argument - Welfare state allows national governments to set risks of globalization - Compensates individuals who “lose” to globalization - Leads to continued expansion of welfare state due to risks - Social democracy can even be good for business  makes a country more livable Ex: “latte pappa” in Stockholm, a term which has emerged to describe fathers on long paternity leaves. Scandinavian countries are examples where they have substantial welfare states but are also highly integrated in the globalized world. Race to the Bottom or Compensation Argument? It depends on... - Economic structure  how and how much is domestic economy integrated in global economy - Amount of globalization - Political and cultural institutions  ways in which social issues have been historically dealt with - Type of welfare policy  depends on type of welfare state THE INDIRECT CONSEQUENCES OF GLOBALIZATION Globalization Hollows out “Middle Class” Jobs in Global North (through automation and offshoring)  middle class has become polarized; they are faced with new challenges: - Unemployment - Job insecurity - Risk and uncertainty - Low wages/income How can Welfare State Adapt? - Protect more diversity of employment arrangements - Help middle class cope: o Rising housing costs o Rising childcare costs o Rising health care costs and needs o Accumulate wealth  savings, investing in real estates  the welfare state should help people to figure out a way to save, invest (pay back a mortgage) Conclusions:  No one-size-fits-all answer of how globalization a ects the welfare state  Depends on: type of globalization, type of welfare, part of welfare state, and level of development  Middle class have come to depend on welfare state to cope  Welfare states will need to adapt to the new global world to keep inclusive Global Governance And Social Movements Global problems ask for non-orthodox political action. We need new ways of responding to global problems: 1. Global governance 35 2. Social movements How to Govern a global society? Inadequacy of existing political structures for global challenges:  Decline of nation state  International organizations and treaties have been insufficient (ex: climate change)  Issues of social justice and inequality have been overlooked What is global governance? Buzz word, difficult to define. Government: set of institutions with executive power over given territory vs. governance: not about creating a government on a global level Global governance: framework of rules, norms, policies, institutions, and practices through which global humanity organizes its collective affairs and attempts to tackle global powers . Not only based on laws. Norms are good in global governance because they are forms of soft power, of good reputation (being a “good citizen”)  According the United Nations: “broad dynamic, complex process of interactive decision-making that is constantly evolving and responding to changing circumstances” Examples: - International Law, - The UN Security Council, - World Health Organization, - Multilateral Treaties, - Norms Of Conflict resolution NEW FORMS OF GLOBAL GOVERNANCE 1) Multi-stakeholder initiatives  Public and private actors into policy networks and partnerships  Typically service provision and standard-setting  e.g. Global Fund to Fights Aids, TB, and Malaria 2) Voluntary Regulation Systems:  Actors (such as MNCs) agree to a set of social or environmental practices that go beyond the stated or enforced set of laws in countries where they operate  no one can have a competitive advantage  Relies on consumers to purchase certified produces and punish companies that do not submit to this voluntary regulation  These are typically not monitored or enforced 3) Transnational arbitration bodies :  Governance is accorded to courts and lawyers but their authority is not based in international law.  E.g. “info courts” is based on information and persuasion but not on law. 36  (e.g. North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation, citizens can submit evidence exposing countries failure to enforce their environmental law) What are Social Movements?  Collective attempt to further common interests or goals through action outside sphere of established institutions  Some are legal, some are illegal or unauthorized  They do not just represent social change, they are agents of it not only products of it The Life Cycle of a Social Movement Social movements have a life cycle of four consecutive stages (Herbert Blumer, Chicago School of Sociology). 1. Social ferment: people are agitated about an issue but unfocused and disorganized  there is no organization; there is a collective, common frustration but there is not a way to express it 2. Popular excitement: sources of dissatisfaction are more clearly defined and understood  there is more focus, it is easier to identify the purpose 3. Formal institutions are created which bring about a higher level of coordination and campaigning structure 4. Institutionalization: movement becomes accepted and institutionalized into wider society and political life  mood changes (it becomes something more accepted) Old vs. New Social Movements Today social movements are very different: - New and different kinds of issues (post material values): based on quality of life, welfare and identity (vs. Material interests) - New organizational forms: loose organization (vs. formal) - New action repertoires: non-violent, emphasis on symbolic actions, digital communication - New social constituencies: associated with middle class constituencies and lifestyle (vs. working class)  it has become a more middle-class activity (different form of political involvement, also in young generations  not necessarily political apathy). Global Migration And Its Causes Important Definitions:  Immigrant/emigrant: someone who moves to another country for a given period of time (e.g. at least three months)  Immigration: ‘the physical entrance of immigrants,’ as defined, into a country  Emigration: ‘the physical exit of emigrants’, as defined, out of a country  Every immigrant in a new receiving society is also an emigrant from a sending society. Types of Migration: 1) Permitted vs. Not Permitted Migration is not permitted for several reasons  the legal society does not legally permit it: - Legal entrants who overstay visas - Illegal border crossers  no legal permission to cross the border - Family members of legal migrants - Refused asylum-seekers  they could not stay in the country, but the country is not permitted to send them back (for the Geneva Convention) 37 MIGRATION PUZZLES People migrate to particular places in a spatially clustered, concentrated way  but these areas have been going about rapid de-industrialization and shedding thousands of jobs  Why should job-seeking immigrants want to go there?  Why indeed should this flow continue in the absence of opportunities? The Social Causes of Migration The Perpetuation of US/Mexico Migration US/Mexico border has high prosperity gap and longest sustained flows Douglas Massey: Since 1982, studied 45 communities of 25,000 households in Mexico and US using ethno- surveys. Initiation of migration is different than perpetuation  big difference between first migrants arrived and following ones Migration Networks:  Interpersonal relationships are a key element in explaining migration patterns  you migrate where you know people or where you know people have gone to  they can give you some help, advices…  Social ties important: provide skills/knowledge specific to the receiving country  Network creating: dense web of contacts between origin and destination  Network dependent: declining costs and risks as the network grows  Pioneer migrants vs. follower migrants Cumulative Causation of Migration Cumulative causation: each act of migration alters the social context within which subsequent migration decisions are made. - Migration is a self-perpetuating phenomenon because of cumulative causation  every person that moves makes more likely that other will do the same (because of family, social networks…) - Each act creates additional social capital that promotes and sustains more migration - More migration creates more social capital which produces more movement Theories that posit causal mechanisms operating a multiple levels of aggregation are not necessarily contradictory  40 Conclusions:  Migration is intrinsic and therefore inevitable part of globalization  Structural factors interact with individual characteristics which are social embedded  Sociologists view migration in holistic perspective inclusive of economic viewpoints  The process of migration is socially conditioned/group mediated  Migration is marked by power and inequality Global Migration And Its Effects Immigrant Integration: - Different models of integration process - Guided by polity’s willingness to accept - Europe’s ‘diverse diversities’, 3 main models (approaches built over time): a. Multiculturalism (UK)  when migrants arrive, they should not leave behind the culture they come from; there is no imperative through (direct/indirect) policies that people must change their own culture. b. Republicanisme (France)  totally different approach: you are welcomed but in order to be integrated you have to adapt to the culture and the specific ways of living of the receiving country. This happens through citizenship test (language requirement are attached to all the processes) c. Auslanderpolitik (Germany)  you are welcomed, but only for a certain period of time, it is a sort of temporary agreement, a short-term thing. Immigrant Assimilation Two definitions of Assimilation: Conventional Meaning Sociological Meaning Inevitable process Uncertain, not a given, might or might not happen Linear: progression of assimilation: difference at arrival, then assimilation Full incorporation is desired, it is necessary for a peaceful coexistence. Incorporation seen as a continuum: some migrants will converge and assimilate, others won’t or will take more time Native culture is preferred, migrants should converge to it and project it Focus on socio-economic parity One-sided transformation, migrants have to sort of “merge” Two-sided transformation: impossible to imagine that the host society won’t be changed. Multiple dimensions - Economic: jobs, earnings, occupational mobility, - Spatial: residential (de)segregation, exclusion  regions, neighbours… - Cultural: language, religion  2 most discussed features, because very symbolic and easy to spot o Religion is seen as a symbol of a belief system – one that is in tension with the belief system of the host country. Therefore, there is conflict over dress, places of worship etc. - Social: educational attainment, demographic behaviour (ex: how many children?) CITIZENSHIP The Two Logics: Jus Sanguinis Jus Solis Based on blood/descent  exclusive way of Based on territory/residence  more inclusive way 41 thinking about nationality. of thinking Exclusive/ethnic Inclusive, civic Policy tool: people want ethnic resettlement to occur (migrants come back to their original country) Policy example: citizenship test (knowledge of the culture, the place, the geography…) E.g. Italy E.g. France Migration Has Expanded Dual Citizenship Dual citizenship occurs due to:  Naturalization without renunciation  once people get the host country passports they may keep also the old passport (most of the countries allow for this)  Birth to parents with non-identical citizenship  only works if one of the countries has a jus sanguinis principle  Birth in country with jus solis by parents from countries with jus sanguinis Dual citizenship used to be undesirable and considered suspicious: split loyalties, dual military service, double taxation, conflicting diplomatic protection  all of the system was based on one single “loyalty”. Changing perceptions: territorial citizenship, integration imperative, strengthen ties with emigrants, support cross-national families. Globalization shifts meaning of citizenship The Erosion of ‘traditional’ citizenship: - Movement of people erodes cultural homogeneity - Decline in territorial integrity of the sovereign state  families have become transnational - Erosion of social rights under neo-liberalism New types of citizenship challenge nation state - Transnational Citizenship: De-territorialized identity and belonging; citizenship no longer attached to territory. - Post-national citizenship: rights follow person - Supranational Citizenship: co-exists with nation state (ex: EU citizenship) - Global Citizenship: global community as primary belonging The Political Backlash  Public mis-perceptions: o Innumeracy: generally the public overestimates the numbers and the categories o Lump of labour fallacy: number of jobs are fixed and migrants steal jobs o Welfare magnets: false idea that welfare systems are the reasons why people migrate and therefore should be abolished or reduced  Fears about jobs, culture, security  Perception that government can curb migration when, actually, it cannot be stopped.  Prejudice, incorrect beliefs and facts drive anti-immigration sentiment 42  Global economic inequality: systematic differences in wealth, incomes, and working conditions that exist between countries  It is NOT the same as poverty  of course it implies patterns of discrimination etc. but if inequality rises, it is a fallacy to say that consequently poverty rises (the two things could actually even go opposite directions; e.g.: if only the rich get much more richer it’s inequality that rises, not poverty)  Inequality can rise when poverty falls: poorer are better off but rich are getting richer at a faster rate Measuring Inequality between Countries It’s tricky...  GDP/GNI measures. GDP depends on population size (bigger countries have higher GDPs)  Limited because they implicitly assume that within-country distributions of income are perfectly equal  Do not consider well-being, it includes only one facet of the problem  it’s a very narrow thinking GENDER INEQUALITY Here globalization has a huge role. - Unpaid/underpaid care work is done primarily by women and girls in most parts of the world - Unequal responsibility of care work perpetuates gender and economic inequalities - Offshoring has offered women formal work opportunities in the global south  women are preferred because of the perception that they are more docile (more cooperative, less aggressive, more inclined to accept lower wages…) - Work conditions are poor: low pay, causal, home-based, temporary, part-time poorly unionized - But women are often see as passive recipients rather than agents of globalization - Yet they are active agents too: labour participation, migration, etc. By taking the job and entering the labour market they are slowly changing the nature of globalization. Is Globalization a Solution? Can poor countries trade their way out of poverty? - Poor countries integrated into global economy on the basis of Washington Consensus, they can pull themselves out of poverty (however, not all countries are integrated into global economies) - International organizations have applied conditional to impose economic-liberalization, while powerful states are not tied to these conditionalities (World Bank, IMF, neo-liberal ideas) - Approach heavily criticized - Does it really improve inequality? It may improve it, but not solve it definitely The Elephant Curve – Milanovic  The super poor are not changing, while the poor have been growing (almost 70% growth in income)  this is due to the rise in middle-income countries (ex: China)  The upper middle class have a lower income (< 0% growth of income)  the decline of the developed world middle class  The rich have seen their income growth increase  It is not a uniform boom The Price of Inequality Joseph E. Stiglitz  very critical of global capitalism. He believes it has increased the social gap; it’s what money can buy and can give to you (status), that makes money a social thing.  The vested interests of a small part of the population have over-ruled those of the majority of the populations and makes it difficult to turn the situation around  Stifling dynamic capitalism and increasing the social gap in the population  Need to re-write the rules: less sensitive to money and more sensitive to human rights 45 Conclusions  Evidence of globalization as a solution to global inequality is mixed  Success from globalization has been selective  China and India are ‘success stories’  Many countries remain poor under globalization  Economic power between core and periphery 46