globalization blessing or curse essay

Globalisation: Blessing or Curse?

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• R. A. Rayman  

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“Globalisation” is the product of two world-wide revolutions: one in economics, the other in technology.

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Introduction to Globalization: Strategies and Effects

Conclusion: Globalization’s Conundrum—Are We in Flux?

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Rayman, R.A. (2013). Globalisation: Blessing or Curse?. In: A Multi-Gear Strategy for Economic Recovery. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137304520_4

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Is globalization a positive force or a destructive force? On April 11, panelists at an IMF Economic Forum entitled “Globalization: North-South Linkages” explored what has happened to growth, poverty, and inequality as a result oftrade and financial liberalization. The panelists were Graciela Kaminsky, Professor of Economics at the George Washington University; David Dollar, Research Manager, Development Research Group, World Bank; and Carol Graham, Deputy Director of Economic Studies, Brookings Institution. Carmen Rein-hart, Deputy Director of the IMF’s Research Department, moderated. The panelists seemed to agree that globalization may not bestow benefits uniformly across the globe but that it does more good than harm.

Graciela Kaminsky pinpointed the dichotomy that characterizes most discussions of globalization by asking if financial liberalization is a blessing or a curse. The answer depends on what literature you read. Those who consider globalization a blessing, she explained, look at the long-run effects, arguing that it improves the functioning of financial markets, allows risk to be diversified across countries, and triggers economic growth.

The opposing view, that globalization is a curse, looks at the short-run impact, citing evidence that most of the financial crises of the 1980s and 1990s were preceded by financial liberalization. This was true of all the Asian crisis countries, Kaminsky noted, which suffered recessions caused by excessive booms and busts in stock and real estate markets.

However, she said, there is evidence that, as liberalization persists, financial markets become much more stable. And this leads to the important question of how—and whether—liberalization and reform should be sequenced. Some argue that it is risky to open up a financial system that is not prepared to cope with free capital movements. For example, if a country has capital controls, its banks tend to be inefficient and have poor balance sheets. Dismantling the controls opens the floodgate to capital flows, and already-bankrupt banks can easily obtain new funding. A financial crisis is likely to erupt.

Thus, the solution appears to lie in cleaning up the institutional system before deregulation occurs. But others point to evidence that changes in institutions do not occur before financial liberalization, Kaminsky said. In fact, liberalization is needed to trigger an improvement in institutions. She urged policymakers to proceed carefully: if a financial crisis takes place after liberalization, capital controls are reinstated—as has happened in Latin America—too soon for the country to derive any benefits.

• Trade benefits the poor

Turning to trade, David Dollar said that North-South relations had changed dramatically over the past 20 years. Developing countries once exported mostly primary products, but many have now switched to services and manufactured products, which are also tied to foreign direct investment. Some developing countries may trade less today than they did 20 years ago, but some others are participating very actively in the trade side of globalization. These “new globalizers,” as he called them (such as Bangladesh, Brazil, China, India, Mexico, and Vietnam), include some of the world’s poorest countries. The countries that are less well integrated with the global economy are often poor (some sub-Saharan African countries fall in this group) but also include a number of lower-middle-income countries.

What is the impact of integration and nonintegra-tion on poor countries and poor people? Some argue that expanded trade makes the rich richer and the poor poorer, while others say that, under some conditions, globalization helps developing countries grow and reduce poverty. Dollar said that World Bank and other studies support the second belief.

First, the research shows that developing countries that embraced globalization have generally seen accelerations in their growth rates over the past 20 years. During the 1990s, Dollar noted, they grew almost twice as fast as the rich countries (5 percent versus 2 percent)—and even excluding China, the most populous nation, the rate is still 3.5 percent. While acknowledging that causality was difficult to prove, he said there was pretty solid evidence that participation in trade and foreign direct investment was very good for developing country growth.

Second, Dollar said that World Bank studies also show that globalizing developing countries reduced their poverty rates in the 1990s and, at the same time, made rapid social progress. Wages and school enrollment rates have risen, and infant mortality and child labor have declined. Nor is there evidence that a systematic relationship exists between measures of globalization and changes in inequality. In some of the new globalizers, inequality has increased, while in others income distribution has shifted in favor of the poor.

Third, integrating with the global economy is not only about trade and investment policies. Developing countries also need to put in place a range of other policies that will enhance the investment climate. For example, Bangladesh has reduced formal tariffs enough to qualify as a globalizer, but corruption and inefficient practices at its main port create bottlenecks in the transportation network that are tantamount to an 8 percent export tax. Problems clearing goods through customs are also common in a number of other developing countries and need to be addressed.

The bottom line? According to Dollar, since 1980, despite increases in world population, the number of poor people has declined by about 200 million because of rapid growth in low-income countries. Integration, he concluded, has been “one part of a successful strategy for many low-income countries to grow faster and reduce poverty.”

• Are the poor getting poorer?

Carol Graham explored the question of income inequality in more depth. Much of the work examining this question has looked at Gini coefficients, which she described as “static measures—snapshots in time of particular countries’ income distributions and of the whole distribution.” So Graham and Nancy Birdsall (President, Center for Global Development) studied movements up and down the income ladder. Income mobility, Graham granted, is harder to measure—it involves obtaining data for the same group of people over time—but reveals much more than Gini coefficients.

To illustrate the relationship between globalization and income mobility, Graham and Birdsall compared mobility rates in Peru for the period during which it liberalized trade and implemented market-oriented reforms (that is, it embraced globalization) with those in the United States. They found that Peru, an emerging market economy, had both more upward and more downward mobility than the United States, widely known as the land of opportunity. Although unable to provide the reason, they reported that Peru’s opening to free trade had changed the rewards for education. Contrary to the expectation that unskilled labor would benefit the most from the opening to free trade, Graham said, skilled labor and better-educated groups saw the highest rewards. The explanation, she suggested, was that the real rewards went to countries with cheaper unskilled labor in Asia.

How well do people think they are doing? According to Graham, people’s perceptions do not necessarily match the facts. In a sample survey, Peruvians with the greatest income gains over a 10-year period tended to have the most negative perceptions. They were generally not the poorest people, who tend to do quite well when trade is liberalized, but those who fell roughly in the middle of the income distribution. These “frustrated achievers,” Graham observed, not only saw themselves as doing less well than they actually were, but they also rated themselves less satisfied with their jobs and less optimistic about their economic situations. They also tended to be less favorably disposed to democracy and to feel that society should limit the incomes of the rich. Although surprising, these results are not unique to Peru. Over a 5-year period, Russians, even more than Peruvians, perceived themselves as doing very badly when they were, in fact, doing very well.

These beliefs, Graham said, have major policy implications. For example, insecurity is a huge issue. Most Latin American countries have no unemployment insurance or broadly available social insurance. Although the poorest members of society are generally protected during a recession, those in the middle do not have a safety net. “If we’re interested in sustained public support for globalization and the kinds of policies that reduce poverty and help countries grow over time,” Graham concluded, “we should think about this”

• How to measure openness

In the question-and-answer session that followed, Dollar fielded several questions about the connection between openness and growth. Hans Peter Lankes, Chief of the Trade Policy Division in the IMF’s Policy Development and Review Department, pointed out that the countries that scored highest on Dollar’s empirical tests of openness and growth were not actually the most open and had not liberalized as much as some other countries that had lower scores. In fact, he noted, China, India, and Vietnam were late liberalizers.

Dollar responded that he had defined globalizers factually, on the basis of increases in trade over the past 20 years, which he believes is a better measure of globalization than a country’s policies. Having served as an advisor to Vietnam, he had firsthand knowledge of that country’s reforms, in which trade liberalization played an important part. Vietnam reduced and stabilized inflation, gave land to peasant families, and liberalized trade simultaneously in 1989. Almost overnight, the rice crop increased, and Vietnam became the third largest exporter of rice in the world. In the first year, the income of the poor began to rise. This is a nice example of how different reforms interact,” Dollar said, and shows that trade liberalization is tied directly to the improvement in people’s lives in Vietnam.

Same Series

• IMF Survey: Vol.25, No.21 1996
• IMF Survey: Vol.25, No.22 1996
• IMF Institute seminar: Regional gathering focuses on challenges of extending benefits of globalization in Africa
• ABCDE conference: Discussion focuses on impact of globalization on inequality and rich-poor disparities
• IMF/Survey Issue No. 1, 1998: Volume 27 1998
• IMF Survey: Vol.25, No.19 1996
• IMF Survey: Vol.25, No.6 1996
• IMF Survey: Vol.25, No.4 1996
• Annual Meetings chair’s opening address: Strengthened cooperation needed to guide global integration
• IMF Survey: Vol.25, No.16 1996

Other IMF Content

• Making Globalization Work for the Poor
• The Distribution of Gains from Globalization
• Causes and Consequences of Income Inequality: A Global Perspective
• Research Summaries: Does Trade and Financial Globalization Cause Income Inequality?
• “Reducing barriers to trade is not enough to fulfill the development promise of Doha.
• Globalization Facts and Figures
• POINT counterpoint: Making Globalization Work for the Poor
• Why We Shouldn’t Turn Our Backs on Financial Globalization
• IV. Globalization and the Opportunities for Developing Countries
• Financial Globalization and Inequality: Capital Flows as a Two-Edged Sword

Other Publishers

Inter-american development bank.

• Trading Promises for Results: What Global Integration Can Do for Latin America and the Caribbean; Chapter 6
• Globalization, Product Differentiation and Wage Inequality
• Capital Openness and Income Inequality: Smooth Sailing or Troubled Waters?
• Intergenerational Schooling Mobility and Macro Conditions and Schooling Policies in Latin America

International Labour Organization

• Making globalization socially sustainable
• There is an alternative: Economic policies and labour strategies beyond the mainstream

The World Bank

• Agricultural Price Distortions, Inequality, and Poverty: Introduction and Summary.
• Openness, inequality, and poverty: endowments matter
• Agricultural Protection and Poverty in Indonesia: A General Equilibrium Analysis.
• Impacts of Trade Liberalization on Poverty and Inequality in Argentina
• Economic Mobility in Vietnam in the 1990s
• Assessing Poverty and Distributional Impacts of the Global Crisis in the Philippines: A Microsimulation Approach
• Liberalizing Trade, and Its Impact on Poverty and Inequality in Nicaragua
• How Does Vietnam's Accession to The World Trade Organization Change the Spatial Incidence of Poverty?
• The impact of trade liberalization on household welfare in Vietnam
• Agricultural Trade Reform and Poverty in Thailand: A General Equilibrium Analysis.

International Monetary Fund Copyright © 2010-2021. All Rights Reserved.

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Globalization – Curse or Blessing?

It turns out, in any form it takes, trade involves a double-thank-you , so to speak. This has become ever clearer since David Ricardo presented to the world the idea of comparative advantage. Put simply, in situations where one of the trading parties involved holds an (absolute) advantage in producing traded goods, both parties should produce what they are better at, and later down the line trade with each other. This way both parties will benefit, more so than if the trade never took place – something seemingly rather easy to understand, but ironically something the politicians of today cannot seem to grasp (or don’t want to for some reason). 

For far too long, the fixed pie fallacy – a belief that the wealth of this world was finite and the only way of getting richer was to steal other people’s wealth – was the widely held belief among the populace, the intellectuals, and those in power. When wars over resources were too costly to fight, society (not understanding that the ultimate resource is the human mind ) went back to the good old trade wars of the mercantilist era. 

Something changed after the Second World War when Japan took a different road. It was through economic liberalization and the advent of trade that the then-devastated nation with no iron resources became a leader in electrical appliances, electronics, steel production, and a champion in the automobile industry. This rapid growth allowed Japan in 1968 to outpace the more-than-twice-in-size, resource-abundant Soviet Union, thus becoming the second-largest economy in the world – a title held for more than four decades. 

The Asian tigers followed suit and showed in practice just how important trade is, proving that the Japanese miracle was not a one-time fluke. In time Mao Zedong died and China started liberalizing its economy and opening up to the world, lifting millions out of poverty. The Berlin wall fell shortly after, which meant globalization for the first time for millions who had been stuck behind the ‘Iron Curtain.’ Thirty years later, the pictures of Russians having their first taste of freedom when companies like McDonald’s first opened up shop are as important and exhilarating as ever.

In 1999, years before globalization became the popular boogeyman, Bernie Sanders saw it as the driving force for wealth inequality across countries, saying “globalization has contributed to an enormous increase in the concentration of wealth in the world and in fact the impoverisation of the poorest people in the world.“ 

Slamming globalization was a key talking point on the road to the presidency for Donald Trump. On the campaign trail, you could hear him say “globalism has taken so many jobs out of our communities and so much wealth out of our country,” making the “financial elite who donate to politicians very, very wealthy” which resulted in “millions of our workers with nothing but poverty and heartache.” When he addressed the UN, he told the world “the future does not belong to globalists” as “we reject the ideology of globalism” in favor of the “ideology of patriotism.”

But what does globalization represent if not proof that, in Adam Smith’s words, “the propensity to truck, barter, and exchange,” is what gives rise to the division of labor, and in turn global prosperity? Despite obstacles such as the Cold War, global trade flourished remarkably after the Second World War – and with trade came the know-how, foreign direct investments, innovation. 

Although the relationship between trade and growth is uncanny, this does not paint the whole picture. Along the way, developing countries imported the necessary institution, to which they owe their great success. As Heritage Foundation’s index of economic freedom shows, institutions like property rights, competitive and open markets, and the rule of law (to name a few) are all parts of the ‘prosperity machine.’ But even when the right set of institutions allow the factors of production to work their magic, due to their diminishing marginal returns, infinite economic growth is not possible. The capital stock, just like human capital, depreciates and must be replenished. Meanwhile, there is so much that can be done on a single parcel of land. It is to technology that we owe the possibility of infinite growth (rates). As the market becomes more globalized, technology is more easily transferable across borders. This has led the poorer nations amongst the developed to grow faster and converge near the top, and all the while new members have joined the ‘developed club.’

Former President Trump talked the trade war talk and it seems like he delivered. Across the Atlantic, when Brexit finally saw the light of day, Boris Johnson paraphrased Cobden by saying “…free trade is God’s diplomacy — the only certain way of uniting people in the bonds of peace since the more freely goods cross borders the less likely it is that troops will ever cross borders.” Brexit, however is not a foolproof plan. From the first days when Brexit was only an idea, it faced problems. The complexity of it all left some questions with no good answers, especially when looking at the issue of the ‘The Irish border.’ This is especially more potent after the speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, threatened that if the U.K. violated the Good Friday agreement, there would be absolutely no chance of an Anglo-American trade deal passing through Congress.  

We ended last year with a deal between the UK and the EU. Let’s hope we get to see the promised ‘Global Britain’ as a paragon of free trade. Let’s hope this will push the rest of the world onto the right track as well. Because the good times are not carved in stone. The free labor, trade, and capital markets must not be hampered, which the pandemic did so, even in the EU. 

It is clear as day globalization is hard to control. That yearning for control, though, brings more problems in its wake than it boasts it solves. Instead of printing money like crazy with the desire to cover the unprecedented spending of what we don’t have ( US , UK ), we should lift the burdens on the market and allow free trade to blossom again. If not for anything else, then simply because we know of no better way towards prosperity. 

Simon Sarevski

Simon Sarevski is an editor at Speak Freely, a research assistant at the Austrian Economics Center, project manager at Libertania, Center for Contemporary Politics, and is involved with European Students for Liberty.

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Globalization: Blessing or Curse for the Economy of the Developing Countries?

• Islam, Md. Sabit Bin
• Mukit, Mushfiqul Haque

Description

Nowadays globalization is a debatable topic regarding the economic growth of the developing countries around the world. This paper tries to determine the aspects associated with this argument and explains the effects of globalization in the developing countries in three important and co-related fields i.e. economic and trade processes, education and health systems and culture on the basis of some of the scholars' arguments expressed on the subject. In the recent past, there have been the pros and cons of globalization in developing countries. Some argue that globalization is indeed a curse to the developing countries as it can neither be rejected nor fully be applied to its national policy. However, many others suggest that globalization should be looked at in all its manifestations and from different angles it is a blessing for those countries. In order to address this issue, when considered from the economic perspective, the negative economic impacts of globalization should be minimized and exportable capacity of the developing countries’ economy in the global market should be maximized in a gradual manner. In practice the study will give the practitioners and the relevant part the knowledge to improve business in developing countries.

Globalization - Blessing or Curse?

The coca cola company as an example, essay, 2010, 7 pages, grade: 1,6, stephanie schlanert (author).

Abstract or Introduction

In this essay I will firstly defining ''Globalization'', secondly challenging the Coca Cola Company, putting this company with its strategies in the context of Globalization and will trying to find its advantages and disadvantages. Finally, I will trying to find out if Globalization with the Coca Cola Company as an example is a blessing or a curse.

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Globalization: A Blessing or a Curse to US Middle Class Workers? Research Paper

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Key Concepts and the basic logic of postmodernism

Key concepts and the basic logic of liberalism, globalization is a curse to the us middle class workers, based on postmodernism, globalization is a blessing to the us middle class workers.

Postmodernism is a movement that is historically and philosophically against modernism. According to a certain cadre of leading intellectuals, the world has moved from modernism and is now in a new era – an era of revolution.

We are sandwiched between the presence and the future in such a manner that whereas we are in an era that is emancipated from the tyrannical limitations of the past, we are concurrently uncertain about the anticipations of the future. Even anti postmodernists, scrutinizing the intellectual atmosphere and not liking what they notice, attest to the fact that there is a new cutting edge.

There have been transitions in the intellectual arena regarding who is on the lead. Michel Foucault, and Jacques Derrida, just to name but a few are the spear headers of the postmodern movement (Hicks, 2004. p.1). They not only draw the direction, but also avail necessary tools. According to its leaders, postmodernism does not embrace the components of the past such as reason, truth, and knowledge.

They further postulate that postmodernism is neither true nor does it provide knowledge. Since such suggestions would be conflicting, postmodernists must then be ironical in their use of language. They assert that either the globe or the self has a built-in nature. Since there is nothing to control or limit our thoughts or the way we feel, we are at liberty to either do or say whatever we wish.

It focuses on deconstruction of reason which sets one free from the duty of being right but requires him to be thrilling. Postmodernism then becomes a technique that can be used by an activist to oppose reason and power. It enables one to detect, confront, and oppose the political horrors in a particular time. Those horrors originate from the west where reason and power have been so established.

However, the pain that the horrors cause is unequally distributed (Hicks, 2004. p. 3). The power is in the hands of males, rich and whites who use it to oppress women, racial minorities and the needy. Postmodernism also advocates for censorship on pornography because it is viewed as oppressive to women, violent and politically repressive.

The violence is not only encountered by the needy at the hands of the affluent, but also by the developing nations at the hand of the capitalist countries. The violence of capital civilization is masked under aspects like democracy and progress, forgetting past evils, and freedom and equality as regards the law. However, the underlying essence is not fully manifested.

Although at a glance, postmodernism denies link to philosophy, it however embraces an embedded conception of reality and ethics. It is founded on premises that can allow for situation of thoughts and actions. Metaphysically, postmodernism refutes the possibility of talking about a reality that exists on its own.

It rather looks at reality from a socio-linguistic sense or constructs (Hicks, 2004. p.6). Having replaced reality with social linguistic constructs, postmodernism maintains that these constructs are supposed to be subjective, conventional, and not commensurable.

Postmodernism holds a collective account of the human nature asserting that people’s identities are greatly determined by the social-linguistic groups that they belong to. Such groups differ on the basis of race, sex, materialism, and ethnicity.

It further accounts for conflicts among those groups, which are mainly resolved through the use of force since reason is not used. Using force results to dominance, subjugation and giving in. Finally, when it comes to political and ethical themes, postmodernism seeks to identify and feel sorry for the oppressed.

Liberalism comprises a greater stream within the culture of the United States. It is founded on two basic pillars: democracy and personal freedom (Garry, 1992 p.41). With its flexibility and ability to respond to the needs of the layperson, democracy causes a difficulty in social control. In a similar way personal liberty plays a vital role in promoting the power and wave of revolution in the society.

Unimpeded democracy and personal liberty pose a threat to some key conservative interests that need a regulated, inflexible social and political atmosphere. Although it is founded in enlightenment, liberalism extends into both the private and public lives of people.

It forms part of what drives the constitutional law, forms the guidelines of what should hold reason in both the government and economics and determines the political correctness within the nation. It lays a major emphasis on an individual person whose ability to either volunteer or be rational forms the basis of innate value and provides a justification to defensive rights of independence, privacy, and freedom.

Every individual is considered important, and this is based neither on his or her religion nor on his or her roles in contributing to the common good of the country. An individual’s significance is rather based on their abilities to both think and make radical decisions. The major historic achievement of liberalism has been the emancipation of Jews, blacks and women (Cochran, 1999, p.4).

This, apart from its role, is continuing to lobby for everybody’s equal rights as well as justice in public policy. Liberal rights are regarded as self-evident regardless of the position that one might choose to take, having a preference of either property rights or civil rights.

Individual and innate rights are esteemed so highly and are always suspected to be under the threat of the government of the day, sporadically by science but hardly by business. Similar to other living creeds, liberalism does not only focus on the political spectrum, but it also takes varying forms and manifests in several kinds of intricacy (Almeder, 1998. p.181).

The aspect of human cloning is seen to undermine the principles of liberalism. This is because this anxious scientific practice clearly defies the intensely acknowledged American belief that every individual is unique in his or her own capacity. It begs a related question of as to whether it is possible to replicate something that is special. For something to be regarded as precious and unique, it should not be possible to copy it.

Even when it comes to artistic objects, the value of an object is not transferable to its replicas. In addition, if it is not possible to make a distinction between a copy and its original, then the value of the latter is compromised. Therefore, cloned individuals seem to have lost the unique worth that liberalism acknowledges in everyone.

Liberalism was formulated as a political plan that was meant to be a social guide begin from England and the United States and then to Europe and other parts of the world. However, in the entire world, the proponents of liberalism never succeeded in bringing their agenda to maturity (Mises, 2002, p.24).

Liberalism is a doctrine that is directly aimed at the conduct of men in the world. It is concerned with the advancement of their external material benefits and does not aim at fulfilling their internal spiritual needs. It does guarantee men satisfaction and happiness but only the most possible satisfaction that the things of the outer world can make them meet.

Liberalism has been criticized for its emphasis on what is material and worldly. Liberalism is concerned with the fact that that which is both highest and profound in a man cannot be touched by any external regulation.

It seeks to enhance external welfare because it acknowledges that inner spiritual fulfillment cannot be accessed by man from outside but rather from his own heart. It aims at creating the external environment for the cultivation of the inward life (Mises, 2002, p.28).

Based on liberalism

Globalization is a continuous interdependence between nations and their citizens. It not only complex, but is also multifaceted. It is driven by technological, cultural, and political changes (Fischer, 2003 p.3). It is really resulting to a very close interdependence between the United States and other countries. It is perceived to have affected the current decline in home wages (Polaski, 2007, p. 1).

The middle class are people who are neither rich nor poor but contribute towards the development of market economy and democracy. The middle class workers can be looked at from perspectives. One is based on the fixed time and space element that bases them on a combination of education and the job they do.

Another approach refers to the middle class workers as those households that can be found at the middle of the income distribution within a given state (Birdsall, Graham and Pettinato, 2000, p.3). In Latin America, there are huge differences between the income of those at the top and the middle class. This in turn has really contributed towards the poverty level of the middle class workers.

Since liberalism, lays emphasis on materialism, the middle class workers can hardly gather enough based on their meager pay. This is as a product of policies whose roots are deeply found in political and economic interdependence between the United States and other nations since in most developed nations the middle class do get income that is way below average (Birdsall, Graham and Pettinato, 2000. p.5).

It is further argued that national policy choices, technology, and other effects of stagnation have contributed to the static effect in most of the United States incomes.

It is also argued that the United States trade and globalization has not contributed to the material welfare of the middle class workers in several ways. It has lowered their standards of living by undercutting their social, environmental, customer safety and other protections concerned with public health.

It has also increased their debts with foreign nations, undermined the security of the nation, and at the same time put them in a situation where it is difficult to be innovative in such a manner as to enhance one’s future progress (Sq Researcher, 2009. p.17).

It is there fore plausible to conclude that if the negative impacts of globalization are to be reduced in the United States to allow it access less skilled and less secured labour, income will have to be minimized especially for those employees who do not have a university degree.

Therefore, the worth of most Americans should be based on their level of education, which negates the tenets of liberalism that recognizes an individual as useful and unique without necessarily being made to be so by education or any other factor.

And so, America’s real economy cannot therefore be reconstructed effectively or be used to elevate the living standards of the middle class if at all the relevant authorities cannot be able to find out how to use revenue, currency, commerce and investment policies to recompense efficient domestic production rather than the foreign one. This is not in any way to assert that trade and globalization are harmful.

The United States globalization policies in the recent past years focused so much on the development of those mobile large-scale industries that are based in many nations. This was done at the expense of home manufacturers. At almost the same period, the projections for equitable, retainable, and democratic growth were downplayed. This was a great violation of one of the key pillars of liberalism; democracy.

In order to make progress, it is therefore imperative to realize that the current policy framework on globalization and trade has not been able to fulfill its promises especially to the middle class workers (Sq Researcher, 2009. p.17).

Although a majority of black men and women form the most of middle class workers in the United States, they are still accorded less value on the basis of race. To fully understand the state of a group that is oppressed on the basis of race requires a conceptualization that can clearly reveal how both class and race interface to change the way people live.

Most Afro-Americans that entail both the working and middle class are narrowed to occupations that are of low pay and least impressive as compared to whites within the same working category (Dill and Zinn, 1994, p.115). Most workers based on race were not allowed to secure positions in the industrial, clerical, and marketing sectors. These dockets were set aside for the whites. Black ladies and gentlemen were to secure occupations that had been left out by the whites.

The first half of the century saw most black women secure domestic jobs before they were eventually able to secure jobs as service workers, factory employees, sales persons, and clerics. In the past, men and women of a black race that were serve in professional dockets attended to their fellow black people.

These responsibilities are often avoided by whites and even lately, most middle class black workers provide teaching, medical, professional and management based services to other blacks. Gender also contributes to the access of professional job opportunities in the United States.

Job ceilings have been playing a significant role in hindering the economic mobility of some target groups (Bose, 2001, p.6). This is a type of economic repression that perpetuated either formally or informally. The outcomes are non-changing such that most black people are not permitted to undertake some occupations even if they are competent enough to deliver.

This is because employers believe that such specific duties are not open to the black people. Throughout the years, blacks have been anticipating positive changes regarding this situation. For instance, the period between the second world war and depression saw a bigger percentage of the negro population become embroiled in the least paid, manual, risky and unattractive jobs.

Policies related to employment from individual organizations, trade-union limitations, and racial segregation in both training and promotions made it very hard for them to access jobs in management, clerics, sales and other related positions. Some industries had policies that favored only whites. Examples of such firms include the city financial institutions, offices, and electric production industries (Drake and Cayton, 1993, p.112).

Chicago did not have a different case of the job ceiling. It was part of the labor market in the rural and city areas. Its existence banned the black people from experiencing job mobility trends that were accessible by both native and immigrant white people who could with time change from less paying jobs to prestigious factory jobs.

With this developed system inaccessible to them, black men and women were to find a way of getting out of their meager paying jobs. They therefore started changing to household duties, housekeeping and caretaker services, laundry work, among other occupations where they could be employed. They strived to attain education, mainly in conventional black colleges.

For most blacks, an education was the key to competency that could make one secure middle class occupation (Dill and Zinn, 1994, p. 117). Through this way, some middle class black employees could find their way beyond the job ceiling to a better place. For women who were black, a college education could only enable them secure either domestic or alternative low remunerative jobs.

Despite advancement in college education, most black women encountered another host of impediments on their way. Both race and sex hindrances barred them from securing well paying and satisfying professional employment.

Before World War II, both gender and race were determinants of the kind of jobs that women could do. Black women undertaking college-based education were made to secure jobs as primary or secondary school teachers, nurses, social workers and librarians. This is evidenced especially in the Newark metropolitan region.

Black women with a college education were given a different professional treat. They were not allowed to pursue male oriented professionals but were led to undertake female professions (Hine 1989). For example, women could not secure automobile related jobs that strictly believed as belonging to men.

Despite the positive economic viability of such companies like Ford Motors, they were no provision of jobs to black women from such firms (Hine, 1989, p. 135). Women faced a major hurdle in securing jobs for both themselves and their children.

The devastations of underemployment, compulsory job layoffs, and sexual exploitation in the labour force during the economic crises of the 1930’s compelled most middle class black women employees to resort other sources of livelihood to survive.

Studies reveal that most black women have resorted to domestic roles in the United States were enslaved Africans. They worked in field where they grew food and cotton. They also cared for the families and children of the plantation owners who were mainly middle class whites (Ammot and Matthaei, 1996, p.16).

During the entire industrialization, women’s responsibility was neither visible nor acknowledged, reflecting how politically oppressive the Congress legislation was towards them.

In a bid to resolve this, we have had the emergence of women liberation movements whose aim has been to champion for the entry of middle class white women in most occupations. The work performed by women, whether based at home or in public is continuously seen as either less skilled or of little worth (Mercado and Poo, 2007, p.1).

The criticism leveled against globalization is comprehensible but mislaid. Despite rising concerns about deteriorating income allocation, wage stagnation and lack of secured occupations, most in depth studies in economy reveal that globalization has really led to an improvement in the United States economy and particularly that of the middle class.

Serious study shows that the United States economy registers an annual increment of about $1 trillion as a result of economic globalization for the last fifty years. These profits emanate from low – priced imports, additional well paying export jobs and a rapid pace in productivity.

The American economy is highly likely to grow by fifty percent annually if the remaining impediments are taken off the transnational exchange of commodities. In addition, this will go to an extent of improving the standards of living of the middle class employees.

The United States cannot prevent globalization in any way but it can only avail social safety valves for those affected while ensuring that its employees and companies can compete according to global economic standards.

The congress under the leadership of president Obama have already began laying down these safety valves as seen through the financial stimulus allocation. Insurance that may benefit the unemployed has already been unveiled. Restructuring of the health care has commenced.

All trade affected employees and communities have already been covered through the expansion of Trade Adjustment Assistance. Additionally, globalization has pulled numerous people out of poverty. Most nations that have attained sustainable modernization have incorporated globalization. Latest examples are both China and India (Sq Researcher, 2009. p.17).

Based on Postmodernism

On the other hand, the professional destiny of black men was also determined by gender. Based on this, most of them could end up as teachers, medics, business people and dentists. Blacks were permitted to exercise their professional duties within a community that is racially discriminative. Generally, education prepared black men to undertake occupations within black oriented institutions.

For example, dentists could only attend to black patients, and in big communities, they were able to succeed economically. As clergies, black men were allowed to attend to the needs of a black gathering. For larger gatherings, the minister’s economic security was guaranteed.

Other black men took the initiative to avail insurance services to their fellow blacks, which went a long way to benefit them in many ways. Additionally, black women who undertook domestic based roles have been reported to contribute Marjory towards the development of financial and social life in the United States.

The utilizability, strengths and weaknesses of liberalism and postmodernism

Liberalism has been criticized mainly for its focus on the social policy that concentrates on the material aspect of human kind while it downplays the importance of the inner spiritual aspects that form the source of ones satisfaction and happiness (Mises, 2002, p.27). In the discussion about the effects of globalization to the middle class, it brings out the aspect of how the affluent are denying the needy their liberty and democracy.

This has been entrenched in the economic policies and their implementation continues to render the middle class workers poor. However, it helps us to see the way out of this morass in a practical sense as seen in the latest initiatives laid down by the Congress government as already discussed.

On the other hand, the shortcomings of postmodernism are that, it exaggerates the problems we undergo while living together, it presents manipulates us with an antithesis that suggests the subjectivity of all knowing, when applied to moral settings, it concentrates more on the need to live with integrity and be selfless than on any other aspect (Carson, 2003, p.6).

Its strength is that it provides us with a vivid picture of oppression based on gender, race, and ethnicity. In the discussion above, the postmodernism perspective focuses at the impacts of globalization to the US middle class workers from a broader dimension as compared to liberalism which only highlights the how their outward aspects have been affected. The former should therefore be preferred over the latter in tackling this issue.

Almeder, R. (1998). Human cloning . Totowa: Humana Press. Web.

Ammot, T. L. and Matthaei, J. A. (1996). Race Gender and Work: A multi-cultural economic history of women in the United States . NY: South End Press. Web.

Birdsall, N., Graham, C. and Pettinato, S. (2000). Stuck in the Tunnel: Is globalization muddling the middle class? Web.

Bose, C. E. (2001). Women in 1900: gateway to the political economy of the 20th century . Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Web.

Carson, D. A. (2003). Reaching out in our time. The dangers and delights of postmodernism. Web.

Cayton, H. R. and Drake, C. (1993). Black Metropolis: A study of Negro life in a Northern City . New York: University of Chicago Press. Web.

Cochran, D. C. (1999). The color of freedom: race and contemporary American liberalism . Albany: State University of New York Press. Web.

Fischer, S. (2003). Globalization and its challenges. Citigroup. Web.

Garry, P. (1991). Liberalism and American Identity . New York: Kant State University press. Web.

Hicks, S. (2004). Explaining Postmodernism: Skepticism and Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault . Arizona: Scholarly Publishing. Web.

Hine, D. C. (1989). Hine Sight : Black Women and the reconstruction of the American History. United States: Indiana University Press. Web.

Mercado, A. C. and Poo, A. (2007). Domestic Workers Organizing in the United States Web. Web.

Mises, L. V. (2002). Liberalism in the Classic Tradition. Web.

Polaski, S. (2007). Carnegie. Endowment for International Peace. US living standards in an era of globalization. Web.

Sq Researcher. (2009) . Issues for Debate in Social Policy : Selections from CQ Researcher . California: Sage Publications. Web.

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IvyPanda. (2019, June 25). Globalization: A Blessing or a Curse to US Middle Class Workers? https://ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-a-blessing-or-a-curse-to-us-middle-class-workers/

"Globalization: A Blessing or a Curse to US Middle Class Workers?" IvyPanda , 25 June 2019, ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-a-blessing-or-a-curse-to-us-middle-class-workers/.

IvyPanda . (2019) 'Globalization: A Blessing or a Curse to US Middle Class Workers'. 25 June.

IvyPanda . 2019. "Globalization: A Blessing or a Curse to US Middle Class Workers?" June 25, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-a-blessing-or-a-curse-to-us-middle-class-workers/.

1. IvyPanda . "Globalization: A Blessing or a Curse to US Middle Class Workers?" June 25, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-a-blessing-or-a-curse-to-us-middle-class-workers/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Globalization: A Blessing or a Curse to US Middle Class Workers?" June 25, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-a-blessing-or-a-curse-to-us-middle-class-workers/.

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Globalization Blessing or Curse – Impact of Globalization

Impact of Globalization

“Globalization is a highly contested domain, and there are no absolute lines for demarcating it” (Mittelman).

Globalization has several Impacts, namely, economic, political, social, cultural, and environmental . Its concept started emerging in the 1500s and the development of the idea was gradual but slow.

Humans have interacted over long distances for thousands of years. The overland Silk Road that connected Asia, Africa, and Europe is a good example of the transformative power of trans-local exchange that existed in the “Old World”. Philosophy, religion, language, the arts, and other aspects of culture spread and mixed as nations exchanged products and ideas.

In the 15th and 16th centuries, Europeans made significant discoveries in their exploration of the oceans, comprising the start of intercontinental travel to the “New World” of the Americas. The global movement of people, goods, and ideas expanded considerably in the following centuries.

Today, everyone is well aware of the term and some analysts criticize while others support this idea. The fact is that like a coin, every idea has two aspects; light and the dark one. There are certain benefits of globalization , one of the most important of which is global trade.

These business transactions involve economic resources such as capital, natural and human resources used for international production of physical goods and services such as finance, banking, insurance, construction, and other productive activities ( Joshi, Rakesh Mohan , (2009) International Business ).

In the modern world scenario of today, however, globalization has severe consequences, most notorious of which is terrorism and the so-called war against terror. The 9/11 attack is the best example. This attack enabled America to gain sympathies from the Muslim World too.

Soon after the 9/11 attack, the American Army invaded first in Afghanistan and then in Iraq claiming that the Taliban forces of Afghanistan were responsible for this. This started a war which is to this date continued and has cost tens of thousands of lives. This was just because of globalization and the open boundaries of the countries.

Today, drone attacks in Pakistani territory are also because of the fact that we live in a globalized world. Many innocent children and people die of this every day but we do nothing except to condemn. But avoiding globalization and being cut-off from other nations is not an option for the solution to the problems being caused. The need of the hour is the intervention of the United Nations to combat problems and maintain the honor of a country by formulating some laws.

Globalization might be a curse and can be a blessing. It depends on the nations which side of the coin they choose for themselves. Living with peace and harmony costs nothing but brings happiness and prosperity.

By: Aimon Malghani

Tags: Articles , Globalization , Globalization Blessing or Curse , Impact of Globalization , opinion

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2024 Mental Health Essay Contest Awardee: Gold

Exposing the Impact of Social Media on Teenage Mental Health: A Journey of Self-Discovery

Michaela, maryland.

High school began for me amid the pandemic. Like so many others, my mental health was affected. Virtual land became my reality. I turned to screens for connection. As a 14-year-old with a still-developing brain, my thoughts and feelings were ripe for programming. I experienced many ups and downs, like riding a roller coaster; only at every turn the pervasive influence of social media infected my psyche. Social media is a significant part of teenage experiences; scary to say, it became my life. Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, the triad of our digital age, wished me good morning and bid me goodnight. I became infected with the “holy trinity” of body dysmorphia: obsessive mirror usage, unreal concern about a body part, and constant comparison syndrome. The digital forms of others and the carefully curated versions of myself, programmed me, leaving indelible marks on my mind.

It began innocently enough. A kid having a phone was not in my mom’s repertoire. She felt that kids didn’t need a phone. Mom set a “when you start high school” bar for the phone. As fate would have it, I had an overnight camp during middle school. Worried about me being alone, Mom caved. I got my phone. Everyone at camp had Snapchat, and asked for my “Snap.” Mom let me download it because she trusted me. I never gave her any reason not to trust me. I was a good girl.

Fast forward four years, and I’m still a good girl, but that person became buried under lies. Lies that were virtual aspects of me, through disappearing conversations, photos on the “for your eyes only” section, and perfectly angled poses. I needed those perfection posts as constant reinforcement of this idealized image I crafted. Sadly, even with these “perfect” photos, I obsessed about what I wasn’t. I felt less than because I didn’t have the “hourglass” shape. In reality, strangers would come up to me and ask me if I was a model. I have that body. Tall, lean, athletically fit. A model’s body that everyone wants. Ironic, isn’t it?

Consequently, the last four years of school, were heavily influenced by the digital demons to the point that I forgot who I was. My friends had to approve my posts. I couldn’t make a decision without them. I had to time posts so a friend could be “first” to comment. I compulsively bought fake “likes” to make me appear more popular.

In the throes of this virtual maelstrom, my family challenges reached a crescendo with the death of my dogs and my father’s life-threatening illness. Seeking solace, I unwittingly dove deeper into socials for escape, inadvertently exacerbating my mental health struggles.

Then a significant senior year victory occurred. I was offered a scholarship to play collegiate Division 1 soccer. The pressure may have been off for college, but my commitment post opened a wormhole for jealousy to take its aim. I expected friends to be excited. That was my first mistake, followed by more, including me taking almost every word they said personally. I accept responsibility. I took everything to heart and it hurt. In a seemingly innocuous incident where friends mocked a filter that was used on my photos, I hit my limit.

I spontaneously decided to deactivate my Instagram. I decided to pull away from toxicity. I decided to find myself. I felt liberated. No, I do not regret it.

However, the aftermath was unexpected. Friends, dropped me. I was forwarded anonymous posts on an “extreme confessions” Instagram account. Those posts about me were degrading, offensive, and vile. I was shocked and confused, especially since the initial response about me deactivating social media was “good for you” and “I’ll do it with you.”

No one ever joined me. To the contrary, they stood against me.

Have you ever heard of “Crab Mentality” or the crab-bucket effect? It basically means, “If I can’t have it, you can’t either.” Crabs that try to climb out of the bucket are pulled back down by the others.

I felt like a crab.

But I decided to be THE crab that makes it out of the bucket before I was completely cooked like the rest.

How do we fix this? Or better yet, how do we prevent social media addiction? I have nieces who are nine and seven. I don’t want them or any children lured into the chaos.

Obviously, a supportive community is paramount. Implementing educational programs that promote media literacy, and coping mechanisms for teenage girls focusing on building self-esteem and embracing individuality. Additionally, requiring mental health classes incorporating mindfulness and breathwork techniques can help immensely.

To prevent addiction and brainwashing, social media should be treated like any dangerous substance. Longitudinal studies are needed to determine the ramifications social media use has on developing brains. Laws against underage (U18) usage should be enforced; if violated, parents are fined, or repeat offenders jailed. It could be the wake-up call needed. Typically, when presented with what “could happen,” parents don’t usually get the message until it’s too late. That being the case, let’s be smart about using technology, instead of it using us through brain hacking and notification dopamine hits. Everyone can stay connected through texting or a call, an app is not needed.

In conclusion, the journey to reclaiming mental health amidst the pressures of social media requires a collective effort. In the spirit of truth, however, it takes desire from the inflicted person to choose self-love and individuality. By fostering compassion, promoting confidence, and cultivating a support system, we can empower teenagers to break free from the shackles of unrealistic standards and embrace their inimitability.

NIH recognizes these talented essay winners for their thoughtfulness and creativity in addressing youth mental health. These essays are written in the students' own words, are unedited, and do not necessarily represent the views of NIH, HHS, or the federal government.

Page published May 31, 2024

May 2024: NIH Announces Winners of High School Mental Health Essay Contest

Dec. 2023: High School Students Invited to Reflect on Mental Health Stigma in National Essay Contest

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My son was diagnosed with autism at age 5. I spent decades hoping he'd change — but now I accept him as he is.

• Evan was diagnosed with autism when he was 5 years old. 
• While I've advocated for autism acceptance, I spent my life hoping my son would change. 
• He's now 27 and I'm starting to understand that I need to just let him be. 

My son, Evan, is 27. He was diagnosed with autism at the age of 5. For years, I've advocated for autism acceptance and awareness. But I haven't spent my life hoping that Evan will be accepted. I've spent my life hoping that he will change.

Admitting this fills me with shame .

I have three children. At times, I know I have failed them , but Evan is the one I have let down the most.

I'm sometimes ashamed

I expect more of him than he can give and more of him than he can be. I am ashamed of him sometimes. And that makes me ashamed of myself. Evan is brilliant and charming, but he has no social connections outside our family. He works at home for my husband, Jamie, and lives with us. The way things look, our nest will never be empty. And there are days I resent Evan for being there.

Evan can identify a country from merely an outline of a map. But he rarely leaves home on his own. He has long hair, a beard, and wears sweatpants. We recently attended a Celtics game , and Evan wore gray sweats with a massive hole in them. I was embarrassed; Evan was unfazed. I keep waiting for him to put on khakis and a crisp white shirt.

I keep waiting for him to be someone else.

I've willed myself to believe that a pair of pants and a shave are the answer. I clung to the hope that I could tamper Evan's rigidity and nonconformity with interventions. I've sought advice from experts, friends, and family. But why?

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Because this is so hard, and I want it to go away. I want a magic pill. But even if there were a magic pill, Evan wouldn't take it. He has resisted medical and behavioral interventions since he was in middle school and signed himself out of special ed when he turned 18.

I sometimes regret all the interventions

There are many days I regret all the IEP s, interventions, and therapies trying to mainstream a boy who was anything but mainstream. And despite the support of empathetic family and friends, we often feel alone.

Evan doesn't see a behaviorist, but the rest of our family does. And each session we have, I weep. Talking about all of this isn't easy. And seeing her compassion mirrored back to us is more than I can bear. Recently, she said, "Maribeth, I talk to many mothers of children and adults on the autism spectrum. You are all grieving."

I thought I knew what grief felt like. I've watched both of my parents die. I've grieved close family members and friends. I've suffered broken hearts and fractured friendships. But nothing felt as raw as her recognition of the guttural scream that lives inside me. I've lost something profound, yet I feel utterly unworthy of that loss.

I had ideas of what my kids' lives would be like

Long before Evan and his siblings were born, I dreamed of them and for them, envisioning the lives they would one day lead. When my dream for Evan went unrealized, I blamed him. I held onto something that I never had, and that grief has kept me from appreciating and accepting what was always there.

Recently, Evan had his wisdom teeth removed. Afterward, I sat with him in the recovery room. His mouth was full of gauze, and he was still enjoying the effects of anesthesia. We rarely have quiet moments like this together. I wasn't reminding him to sit up straight or cut his nails or hair. I wasn't nagging him to be different when all he's ever wanted was to be the same.

The sterile silence of that recovery room was a gift.

In that pure and still place, I started to let go of what I had hoped would be and began to accept what was. Gray sweatpants will always be one of Evan's wardrobe staples; our never-empty nest is more of a blessing than a curse, and it will never be Evan's responsibility to make his mother's dreams come true.

As I looked at Evan sitting across from me, half asleep with ice packs on both cheeks, I heard a voice inside say, "Just let him be."

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