globalization benefits the rich and harms the poor

Does globalization benefit the wealthy and harm the poor?

The social, political and economic effects of globalisation have been hotly debated since the term’s emergence. Globalisation is defined as “a process of change which affects all regions of the world in a variety of sectors including the economy, technology, politics, the media, culture and the environment.” (Castles, 2001, p7.) It is characterised by the organisation of business on a global scale, the exchange of huge capital across national borders, a continued improvement in communications, a less exclusive relationship between domestic and foreign policy, (Firth, 1999, p272) and the emergence of a global consumer culture. There are several opinions on whether or not globalisation is unprecedented, how much it undermines the power of the nation state, how governments should respond, and how it effects world living standards and the distribution of wealth. I shall consider these opinions in exploring the notion that g...