Globalization & Culture Change

1. Globalization & Culture Change Tension between global and local forces in a competitive world

2. Culture • Learned Behavior • A device providing social structure, influencing what we learn, how we behave, what we value • Both traditional and dynamic

3. Major Cultural Elements • Language, the Vehicle of Culture • Several Asian languages grew as their populations expanded, e.g. Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, Bengali, Urdu • Diffusion of Islam spread Arabic • Colonialism spread several European languages, e.g. English, Spanish, Portuguese • Global significance of English—and the advantages and disadvantages to us

4. Religion, with influences on sense of purpose, motivation, attitudes toward others • Significance of proselytizing religions • Spread of Christianity in its various forms • Spread of Islam

5. Other Cultural Elements • Family structure, gender relations • Political and economic ideologies • Attitudes toward race and ethnicity • Popular culture • Attitudes toward the Enlightenment and learning • Conflict between tradition and creativity

6. Globalization & Culture Change • Globalization required overthrowing the Ancien Regime • The Ancien Regime was based on tradition, superstition, acceptance of the status quo • Triumph of Reason • The Enlightenment questioned authority, sought logical explanations, sought solutions to problems • Challenge of Postmodernism • Incomplete understanding led to new problems rather than solutions • How can we face challenges without succumbing to the technological fix on the one hand and the straitjacket of tradition on the other?

7. Samuel Huntington’sClash of Cultures • In short, Huntington sees the enlightened West clashing with the superstitious East • Certainly there are clashes, but they include • Clashes within the West • Clashes within the East • Clashes between global forces and local resistance

8. Cultural ElementsWith a Global Reach • Democracy • Mixed-Market Economy • Mass Consumption Culture • Global Youth Culture

9. Rosenau’s Fragmegration • Does anyone argue that everyone is becoming the same? No • Rosenau: • We have global integration • We have local fragmentation • We have fragmegration

10. Culture Realms • Certainly the world has major regions defined by cultural elements • Latin America, with major roles for Spanish & Catholicism • Middle East, with major roles for Arabic & Islam • Does that mean we have such a clash of cultures that war is inevitable? • The future is what people will make it • Culture Realms are not monolithic