Globalisation

Introduction

Globalisation has led to a continuously changing world through the process of economic restructuring and, therefore, has a significant impact on the life of people. It has fostered regional interaction between nations all over the world. It has drawn various definitions in a bid to depict what it is and its impact on the lives of individuals. Theories in Sociology are some of  the  ways in which one may understand the ever-changing subject of globalisation. The study below tries to interpret globalisation through sociological theories. The arguments that have been used to explain the meaning of globalisation are the functional perspective and the symbolic interaction theory.

Globalisation

Globalisation is a process that involves the interaction of people across nations, organisations and their integrations. Information technology is the primary facilitator of globalisation where governments include in international trade, and other multi-national economic agreements, social exchanges, and political interactions. It is a force that has driven different nations at various heights economically, politically and socially and it is fundamentally important to countries of great significance. Globalisation has facilitated movement of goods from countries where the supply is plenty to those where supply is limited. Because of globalisation, different nations take part in different sporting activities. For example football, now the most widely accepted sport that has over two hundred member states, was initially based  in America, and parts of Europe. Globalisation has enabled the sharing of sporting culture, thus turning the world into a global village, where everyone does nearly everything that the other does. This interaction relies predominantly on the accessibility of information, and that constitutes  information technology as the basis of globalisation. Informational platform has improved in various countries the world over. The development has taken place in the developed countries mostly, but in recent years, the developing nations have made significant steps towards the improvement of information technology. There has been a huge investment in internet connection to aid sharing of information among people in matters of economic, social, and even political development. This has provided many companies with the ability to develop and increase their brands worldwide,  as different nations identify their niche markets easily through sharing of information by different people in various countries.

Social Aspects of Globalisation

Globalisation in a social concept refers to the impact of globalisation on people’s lives. It entails how it has affected the day-to-day operations of communities. The social impact looks at the employment trends that come. As a result, the labor conditions, income of the employees and social securities. Globalisation in a social consideration covers norms and how people identify in the society, social inclusions, and the unity of families and societies. It has resulted in wealth creation among many people thus fostering growth.

Understanding Globalisation through Sociological Theories

Theories in Sociology provide different approaches through which various aspects affecting human lives can be observed. The theory is a set of principles that are interconnected and designed to respond to specific phenomena (Robertson,1992). It is, therefore, true that various aspects of the social world can be examined through different theories, which give the major principles of analysing a situation. Globalisation can be understood using different schools of thought in sociology using different perspectives or theories.

Functionalist Perspective

Functionalists argument of sociology emphasises the relationship between the parts of a society and how those aspects are functioning. In globalisation alike, what drives its success is the relationship between people, companies, and governments from different parts of the word and how they carry out their interactions to achieve various economic, political, cultural, and social integration. Different nations engage through commercial networks and economic integration to meet their various objectives. This interaction has led to the improvement of trade blocs in all continents. The economic blocs such as the European Union that fosters interaction between countries that are found in Europe has led to the continent making great economic strides. Economic blocs have been formed in every continent. Countries are limitlessly interacting with each other ensuring that development is achieved both individually and as a unit.

According to Giddens (), the functionalist perspective contends that each aspect of a society is independent and contributes to the general function of the society as a unit. That each unit strives to achieve its goals as a unit and in the end, there is a collective success in the entire system. Similarly, the prevalence of the government depends on the success of every individual within a nation. Every one works hard to earn a leaving. The taxes paid by members of the community originates from their hard work as they strive to succeed. The revenues they pay for, as a result, leads to the success of the government as it enables a government to embody financial strength in order to discharge various duties and responsibilities.

Globalisation also involves a connection of different independent countries that work individually and contribute to the general global achievement. Each nation strives to produce developmental strides within their economic fields, and puts in place regulatory policies to enable them to achieve such desires. Where the countries face a hindrance caused by a shortage of resources, they go to countries where such equipment are in high supply and imports the materials to their country. This is how trade is fostered, and this is how one country, in its endeavor to achieve its goals and objectives, helps another country achieve its targets as well. This kind of involvement leads to individual nations growing on its own, the growth of another, and eventually, the development of all nations and therefore the world as a whole.

The functional sociologists believe that the society is united together by social cohesion, upon which every member of the society agrees, abides, and cooperates to attain what is best for the society in general (Rossides, ). One such element and impact of globalisation is the rise of regional trading blocs. Examples of commercial blocs that are found across the continents include the EU, the AU, Union of South American Nations, Caribbean Community, Central American Integration System, and the AL among many others. A trade bloc is predominantly a commitment between governments regarding ways of making trading activities among them less expensive and less restrictive. This is the cohesion between those countries, and every member respects the rules they set to help them achieve their economic targets. The members always try to achieve their strategic goals and they have rules and regulations to guide their plans in relation to these strategies.