Globalization of Culture - Literature review Example

Topic: Lecturer: Presentation: Rough Draft In recent times, the world is shrinking into a global village dueto globalization facilitated by liberalization of trade and advancements in technology. Globalization has different meanings depending on the field of study such as economics, sociology, politics and anthropology In economic terms globalization refers to expansion of trade and finance among nations due to removal of trade barriers and deregulation. Free markets and liberal ideas are the main themes in economic globalization. For sociologists, globalization is viewed in terms of how it affects human relations while for politicians it is in terms of power relations among nations. Culture is also an important aspect of globalization as it shows how human experience life and how different cultures affect one another due to globalization. There has been a great debate as to whether the world is heading towards cultural homogenization or to more differentiation. The American culture has in moden times saturated the whole world through its products, music, Hollywood movies and cinemas, media. Some have to the process as MacDonaldization whereby restaurants widespread all over the world are operated in similar ways and offer similar products. The growth of multinational companies has led to spread of western culture across nations thereby diluting other cultures. In some cases, the culture of some nations especially the developing countries is eroded or is dominated by American culture through cultural imperialism. The multinational companies sell American products all over the world thus changing the lifestyles of those nations, For example, one can always find sports people all over the world wearing Nike shoes or Cicago Bulls sweatshirts. Another aspect of cultural globalization is spread of popular culture across the world facilitated by the media and technology. Giant media corporations transmit information to all corners of the globe assisted by advanced technology hence spreading the western culture. This is through mass advertisements, Television programs such as Hollywood movies, the music they play as well as discussing the lifes of celebrities such as Britney spears among others. Those who get to listen or watch these programs are likely to adopt the American lifestyle and culture. Nowadays, it takes little time to disperse information to all parts of the world thanks to the media. For example, the September 11 terror attacks on the world trade center were televised all over the world in an instant. It also spreads consumerist ideas whereby people are encouraged to buy products which are widely advertised by the media. The media thus affects the buying behaviour of individuals who end up buying those products and in the end have health problems such as cancer and obesity. The globalization of language is also apparent in modern societies. English has become the medium of exchange in many countries thereby having dominance over local languages. According to Steger (82), globalization of language is influenced by various factors such as number of languages, migration, foreign language learning and tourism, internet and scientific publications. Research indicates that the number of languages used in international communication have been declining due to absorption by other superior languages as a result of homogenizing cultural forces. As people migrate from one place to another, they spread their language as well as become assimilated into those communities and change their language. Language is also spread through tourism and teaching of foreign languages in schools. Most schools use English as a medium of communication and ignore the local languages which fade into oblivion. The language used in internet communication also affects other languages since those who want to access the internet must be able to understand using internet language. Professional who publish scientific information also spread language to those who read them. Language is used to spread culture and hence western ideals are more widespread than other cultures whose languages cannot be understood by a large population. Cultural globalization also affects the environment. Traditional cultures emphasize the conservation of environment and encourage coexistence of human beings and animals. However, in modern societies, consumerism is gaining popularity and people no longer are concersned with environmental issues The growth in industries to produce items that are massively consumed leads to gas emissions and consequently global warming. The change in cultural attitudes towards consumerism is leading to environmental degradation and therefore there is need to revise cultural structures towards those that discourage unlimited accumulation of material things. Though the world seems to be heading towards homogenization of culture, it is apparent that globalization of culture also leads to culture hybridization rather than homogenization. As trade increases between countries offering a variety of products to consumers and spreading culture, those involved in trade also gain some aspects of other cultures hence cultural mixing. For example, the MacDonald restaurants although they offer similar services and food all over the world, they are affected by local culture. You will get a restaurant in India offering Indian foods besides those which are offered by similar restaurants elsewhere. Some organizations have to adapt to the local culture inorder to operate effectively. For example, the labour laws are different in different countries and the company has to adopt these laws in managing employees. Some religions are opposed to some cultural practices and therefore may ban such cultural activities hence individuals have to adopt different cultures in different contexts. Griswold (42-44) indicates that as much as some aspects of culture are homogenized, in most cases cultural globalization leads to emergence of new forms of cultural expression due to hybridization. For example, in traditional societies culture used to be differentiated in terms of national differences but today, cultural differences take different forms such as ethnicity, religion, gender, identity, and minority groups discourses. There is thus a clash of civilizations or cultures as universalism contradicts with particularism. According to Steger there is no clear cut manifestation of “sameness” or “difference” as in some contexts there is manifestation of sameness, in others there is cultural particularism while in others, there is cultural hybridity. For Cowen (2-20), there is collision of cultures through trade which enhance creation of new cultural expressions. This is due to the fact that advanced technology which is transmitted by the globalization process to other nations helps to improve the cultural symbols of those nations. For example, improved technology enable artists to perfect their creations and trade them with other nations hence spreading their culture. People also learn to appreciate other cultures and think globally instead of locally leading to cosmopolitan culture. Final Draft Introduction Tomlinson (2) defines globalization as “a rapidly developing and ever-densing network of interconnections and interdependence that characterize modern social life.” The process of globalization is enhanced by liberalization of trade and advancements in information and communication technologies. The meaning of the word globalization is contestable by different disciplines such as economics, politics, sociology, and culture. Economists view globalization in terms of liberalization of trade and finance leading to widespread capitalistic ideals. Politics on the other hand, views globalization in terms of international power relations. In cultural terms, globalization is the spread of shared meanings, ideas and values across national boundaries. Culture shapes a person’s norms, values, beliefs and practices (Griswold, 21). In recent times, many aspects of culture in many nations have been affected by westernization or Americanization leading to the fear of cultural convergence. The question that begs an answer is, “are we then heading towards a homogenous world culture?” The paper will discuss globalization of culture and whether we are heading towards a homogenous world culture or not. Globalization of culture refers to the transmission of ideas, meanings, and values across national borders or intensification and expansion of cultural flows across the globe. The major forms of cultural expression include; language, music and images. Cultural globalization is enhanced by improved communication technology and trade liberalization. Trade liberalization has led to emergence of multinational corporations, exchange of products and services as well as intellectual property hence migration of labor between countries (Griswold, 119-135). American companies have penetrated all parts of the world leading to transmission of American culture across the globe. Some refer to the process as MacDonaldization where principles of fast food restaurants dominate the world while some call it cocalization (Pieterse, 50). America has thus become a cultural hegemony since it has dominated the world through its media, music, advertisements, movies and multinational corporations. The multinational companies sell American products all over the world thus changing people’s lifestyles, For example, one can always find sports people all over the world wearing Nike shoes or Chicago Bulls sweatshirts. Improved communication technology is the major force behind globalization of culture. Through mass advertisements of American products by the media, consumerist ideas are spread all over the globe thus changing people’s life experiences (Griswold, 146). Media is also responsible for spreading popular culture through music, for example, by discussing celebrities such as Britney Spears. Many people emulate these individuals and adopt the music styles thus abandoning traditional music and culture. The Hollywood movies which depict American culture are also watched widely in the world thus spreading American culture. The western media is so widespread such that information reaches the globe in an instant. For example, the September 11 terror bombing of the world trade center was televised all over the world in an instant. Besides media, the internet technology has led to spread of culture in various ways (150). People can access the internet all over the world hence it is easy to spread information and change people’s way of thinking. It also spreads ideas and enables people to make purchases through the internet. Culture is spread in the society through the learning process and as such language is an important tool in spreading culture. It is used as a means of expressing ideas and meanings thus transmitting culture. Traditional cultures are learnt though the language of parents, peers, and the society hence localization of culture. Due to interconnectedness between various populations from diverse cultures, culture is spread beyond borders. The most common language used worldwide is English hence the spread of western culture to other parts of the world. According to Steger (82), globalization of language is influenced by various factors such as number of languages, migration, foreign language learning and tourism, internet and scientific publications. Research indicates that the number of languages used in international communication have been declining as a result of homogenizing cultural forces. As people migrate from one place to another, they spread their language and also assimilate other languages hence changing the way they interpret the meanings of culture. Language is also spread through tourism and teaching of foreign languages in schools. The language used in internet communication also affects other languages since those who want to access the internet must be able to understand using internet language. Professionals who publish scientific information also spread language to those who read them (Griswold, 145-146). The globalization of culture has various impacts on human life experiences as well as on the ecological systems. There has been widespread concern that globalization may lead to erosion of world cultures and lead to cultural imperialism or homogenization of culture. However, as Griswold (42-44) puts it, the dominance of one culture over other cultures does not necessarily lead to a homogenous world culture but a formation of new cultural expressions through acculturation. There are cross-cultural exchanges as people engage in trade and as technology is spread to other parts of the world. Just as there are gains and losses in trade, there are also gains and losses when culture is globalized (Griswold, 7). Whether cultural convergence, particularism or hybridization occurs depends on cultural context. Some cultures are more adaptive than others leading to homogenization while others like Islam are conservative leading to particularism. Other cultures adopt new best cultures but maintain their traditional cultures hence mixture of cultures or formation of new cultural meanings. Steger (90) thus concludes that there is no clear cut manifestation of “sameness” or “difference” but a hybrid of cultures. Though MacDonaldization has resulted in cultural homogenization, it has also resulted in cultural diversification. The restaurants in different parts of the world have similar principles but some aspects are affected by local contexts in what Steger (75) calls glocalization leading to hybridization. These multinational companies and restaurant chains borrow ideas from the local culture and incorporate them so as to be relevant in the industry. For example, a company has to follow the employment laws of the countries they are operating in and operate in line with cultural norms of the surrounding communities. A restaurant has to offer traditional dishes and employ people from surrounding communities hence has to learn their culture and incorporate them into the organizational culture (Griswold, 131-137). Ignoring the culture of those people can lead to interethnic tension and loss of business. In that sense, homogenization of culture is limited by the cultural contexts. Cowen (2-20) argues that there is a collision of cultures through trade which enhance creation of new cultural expressions. This is due to the fact that advanced technology which is transmitted by the globalization process to other nations helps to improve the cultural symbols of those nations. For example, improved technology enables artists to perfect their creations and trade them with other nations hence spreading their culture. People also learn to appreciate other cultures and think globally instead of locally leading to cosmopolitan culture. As people migrate to developed countries, they acquire new knowledge and skills which they bring back to their countries and use them to improve their products hence diversifying cultural experience. People also get employed in other countries and adopt the culture of the receiving country but they do not give up their traditional cultures, they just give new meanings to cultural symbols. For example, a dog in African countries is used for security reasons but in American societies, a dog is used as a pet just like the cat but these two communities coexist together and appreciate each other’s culture. In traditional societies culture used to be differentiated in terms of national differences but today, cultural differences take different forms such as ethnicity, religion and gender, identity, and minority groups’ discourses. This has led to problems in society as new meanings are created. The concept of identity has become more fragile as people try to find things to identify with leading to identity crisis. People now identify themselves with the work they do instead of who they are due to the spread of capitalism and its ideals of consumerism and accumulation of material wealth (Griswold, 99-114). Materialism is also eroding cultural values of environmental conservation leading to global warming among other problems. Health problems such as cancer and juvenile obesity have also resulted to globalization of culture. Conclusion Globalization facilitated by trade liberalization and technological advancements is shrinking the world into a global village. The world has become interconnected and interdependent in terms of economic, social, political and cultural aspects. There has been widespread debate about Americanization of the world due to spread of American ideals to all parts of the world leading to fears that the world would have a global culture. The American culture is spread through media, music, movies, cinemas, multinational corporations and mass advertisements enhanced by communication technology such as the internet and the use of English language to interpret cultural meanings and spread ideas. However, the fear is unfounded because it all depends on local cultural context. As a result, instead of cultural homogenization the world is moving more towards cultural hybridization and formation of new cultural expressions. References Cowen, T. Creative Destruction: How Globalization is changing the World’s Cultures. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2002. Griswold, W. Cultures and Societies in Changing World, 3ed. Thousand Oaks: Pine Forge Press, 2008. Pieterse, J. Globalization and Culture: Global Mélange, Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2009. Steger, M. Globalization: A Very Short Introduction, 2ed, New York: Oxford University Press, 2009. Tomlinson, J. Culture and Globalization, Chicago: University of Chicago, 1999. Read More