Dimensions of Globalisation (AQA A Level Geography)

• Globalisation is the process whereby the world has become more economically, politically and socially interconnected
  • Economic connections refer to the exchange of goods and services across borders and the creation of global supply chains
  • Political connections refer to countries working together in international organisations such as the United Nations or the European Union
  • Social connections refer to the exchange of cultures and ideas e.g. people sharing their thoughts and experiences via social media, the increase of multicultural societies
  • Cultural connections result from the ability to travel further afield and more easily, greater knowledge and understanding of other cultures
• The term 'global village' was used by McLuhan to describe the breakdown of differences between nations
  • He argued that other scales of economic, social cultural processes were becoming less important than the global scale
• The global societies mean that almost all nations and peoples are influenced and affected by other nations
• Globalisation is caused by the movement or flow of people, information, money, goods and services between countries
  • The map below shows how countries are connected through global trade of a valuable resource such as oil

Map to show global oil trade

Examples of Flows of Globalisation

• KOF Index (The Swiss Institute for Business Cycle Research) produces an annual Index of Globalisation 
• Measures the social, economic and political aspects of globalisation
• Uses a wide range of data such as participation in UN Peace-keeping missions to TV ownership
• Countries are scored out of 100 and the higher the number, the more globalised the country is

• Marketing is the promotion and sale of goods and services
• Many companies advertise and sell their product all over the world using one global marketing strategy 
• An example of this is Coca Cola which sells soft drinks in over 200 countries with a brand identity that is recognised globally
• Having one global strategy reduces costs and develops global awareness 
• This enables companies to boost sales and achieve economies of scale due to global awareness of, and trust in the brand
• When customers around the world recognise a particular brand or logo, this contributes to the acceleration of globalisation

• In the past, most manufacturing was concentrated in industrialised countries such as USA, UK and Germany
• More recently, TNCs have moved production to Emerging Market Economy (EME) countries such as China to take advantage of cheaper costs of land and labour
• This process is known as global shift
• The largest markets for manufactured goods remain in Highly Developed Economy (HDE) countries, so most products are exported for sale to Europe and North America
• As EME countries continue to develop, it is likely that patterns of production and consumption will shift again