The social dimension of globalization: A review of the literature

T he term globalization is used in many different contexts. Indeed, it has become a buzzword with a multitude of meanings and interpretations. In this literature review, however, globalization is taken to mean the gradual integration of economies and societies driven by new technologies, new economic relationships and the national and international policies of a wide range of actors, including governments, international organizations, business, labour and civil society. Some contributors to the literature have suggested distinguishing between specific facets of globalization (e.g. increased international trade) and parallel developments (e.g. technological advances); others have argued that a separation of interconnected processes is not feasible. From a conceptual point of view, however, it is useful to split the globalization process into two parts. The first concerns factors such as trade, investment, technology, cross-border production systems, information flows and communication. Though all these factors have brought some economies and some societies closer together, they have also marginalized many countries and individuals. There is concern that because of an increasingly knowledge-driven world economy, more and more people will become marginalized, especially if the digital divide cannot be drastically reduced. The second aspect of the globalization process concerns the increased homogenization of policies and institutions across the world, e.g. trade and capital market liberalization; the dismantling of the welfare state; international agreements on intellectual property rights; and the standardization of policies and behaviours that