Today's people live under the great influence of the phenomenon of globalization almost everyday. It is not too much to say that globalization is a phenomenon of the 21st century. Maybe there is no one who have never heard of this word, 'Globalization,' Then, what is Globalization? I'll answer this question based on lecture, reading and some articles.
Globalization signifies increasing connectivity and international exchange. In other words, this means that interchange between nations, governments, individuals, and organizations increase in many aspects. The object which is exchanged in globalization includes not only material things like product, food but also non-material things like idea, information and symbol. Meanwhile, increasing connectivity also means increasing interdependency in economic and social areas. We can call it a 'super-connected society.' Each country and each individual influence each other, and they can't disregard existence and influence of other country and other person. They go with the same direction, a larger flow of globalization.
The level of connectivity between different regions has been increased by improvements in infrastructure like electronic communication and transportation. These days, thanks to development of the Internet and mobile phones, people in many other countries can communicate with each other and share their thought and culture such as ideas, styles, religions etc. Facebook is a typical example. |
Image1 from Google(<-link)
|
Meanwhile, we can classify globalization in four dimensions. It is the cultural, the social, the political and the economic. But these dimensions are not totally distinct and independent. They are not mutually exclusive. The cultural globalization can have attributes of the political or the economic globalization.
The interesting thing which I want to talk about more deeply is the concept 'Mcdonaldization.' I think it is a good instance which explains globalization phenomenon well. I first learned about this concept in another major class but I learned more about it in detail this time. From now on, through this concept, I'll think over the implication of globalization and double-sidedness of it.
McDonaldization is a term used by sociologist George Ritzer in his book. He said that our society and its organizations are adapted to have the same characteristics that are found in fast food chains. These elements include efficiency, calculability, predictability and standardization, and control.
 |
| Image2 from Wikimedia Commons(<-link) |
However, the McDonaldization could have many negative side effects. Excessive productivity efficiency hampers the creativity development. It does not promote inquiry or creativity. Particularly the bureaucracy like this can be a dehumanizing place.
As you can see, Globalization has two sides. It isn't always a good thing. Then what should we do? We know that globalization is going on all around us. The pace and scope of the current globalization wave is unprecedented. I think to reject globalization wave just is not the right solution. Then how could we minimize side effects of globalization? What is the solution to this? Indeed, is there a realistic solution? I want to debate this with other friends.
Hornsby_McDonalds.jpg){kind=link}
No comments:
Post a Comment