Chapter 9 Summary

Chapter 9 introduces globalization as a process which involves increased movement of people across the globe, of the increased influence of financial institutions and multinational corporations, and of trade of culture and goods. Globalization has not eliminated global inequality, the disparity of wealth and political power between countries. Global inequalities include disparities between the Global North and the Global South which can be observed through measures like Gross Domestic Product and the Human Development Index.

Structural functionalists explain global inequality in terms of the uneven access societies have to opportunities for technological and economic opportunities. Conflict theorists explain this inequality in terms of powerful states and organizations being able to exercise control over less powerful states. Feminist theory examines inequality as it manifests in unequal outcomes for women, particular ethnic groups, and the poor. Symbolic interactionists look at the cooperation between nation states and other powerful entities and how there is some cultural homogenization which occurs.

The ideology which animates much of globalization is neoliberalism, which emphasizes free markets and open trade as important contributors to economic development, with the assumption that this will produce optimal outcomes for citizens. The role of the neoliberal state is to govern through the market, by ensuring that economic systems run smoothly and without undue interference so that people's needs will be efficiently met. The state occupies a contradictory position in this environment, insofar that it is the state which regulates and smooths markets to enable globalization, which then undercuts the importance or authority of the state.

These circumstances have elicited criticism from various places on the political spectrum. Antiglobalization movements fault neoliberalism for its economic disruption and reproduction of inequality. Critics of antiglobalization criticize these movements for a perceived lack of coherency, a lack of definite goals and for unclear effectiveness. Regardless, states play a role in global equality and inequality by their power to regulate within-state activities, to control borders, to invest in innovation, and to redistribute revenue.