Globalization and Social Change in Sociology

Globalization is the process of rapid integration and interconnectedness among countries, people, and governments worldwide. It is a diverse concept. Globalization makes it possible to grow interdependence among countries in the matter of economy, culture, flow of investments, technology, and services. Globalization has reduced the distance between countries as now they are interconnected in almost every sphere of life may it be personal or political.

Students of class 12 arts should note that globalization and social change in sociology is the crucial topic so they must learn and know the entire topic thoroughly to score good marks in sociology subject.

There are 3 dominant types of Globalization-

1. Economic Globalization

Economic globalization means increasing economic interdependence among countries. And it is possible through regular cross-border movements with a rapid increase in export and import of goods and services, capitals, and technology.

2. Political Globalization

This refers to political cooperation among countries and the arrival of international organizations to increase cooperation among countries. Political globalization increases the size and complexity of the political system throughout the world.

3. Cultural Globalization

It refers to the exchange of ideas, values, and cultures throughout the world. It is a way to extend social relations. Cultural globalization has shown its impact on every individual of the society which makes it the most important type of globalization in the world.

However, among all these types, the impact of globalization on social change is diverse as it has impacted on an individual level. Thus in this article, we will focus on the Impact of globalization on social change.

Impact of Globalization on Social Change

The social dimension of globalization refers to the impact of globalization on the life and work of people. The impact of globalization is diverse as it affects employment, working conditions, income, and social benefits. Along with that it also encompasses security, culture, and identity.

The recent phase of globalization that is from 1999-2000 has shown a major social change in society where one culture becomes the predominant among others. From changes in cuisine to clothing style to cultural values, there is a paradigm shift from localization to Americanization. Where it is observed that there is a great influence of American culture on the world.

This was the entire impact of globalization on social change that we saw above.

Globalization and Social Change in India

The impact of globalization on developing countries is dominant where every developing country is adopting other cultures and neglecting their age-old values. Thus globalization has homogenized/ uniformed the world's culture. From changes in languages to traditions, there is a great threat to local cultures. Let's have a look at how globalization is affecting every aspect of Indian Society.

Nuclear Families- There was an old age tradition in India that children/ grandchildren reside with their parents throughout their lives. However, with the exchange of values and thoughts, people started adopting the American culture of nuclear families. In this way, globalization has created a huge distance among families.

Privatization in Education- India is a welfare state thus before the advent of globalization there was no system of private institutes. However, privatization in education has created a great difference between rich and poor.

McDonaldization- Fast food restaurants have taken the place of Indian cuisine which was once known for its specialization in herbs and spices. Brands like Mcdonald's have been happily welcomed by people and have taken the place of Indian cuisine.

Walmartization- Globalization has created the trend of big Walmarts which has been successful to capture the people’s attraction. This leads to the loss of business to small vendors and hence created a huge gap between rich and poor.

Pop Culture- American pop culture has taken the place of the Indian classical style of performing traditional dances and music. Western music is predominant to the extent that people play western music at all their festivals.

Clothing- Traditional Indian clothes like saree, lungi, suits, dhoti, and kurta has been replaced by western jeans, shorts, tops, and t-shirts.

All these Impacts on society show the effect of globalization and social change in India ie. how Indian society has been deeply affected by globalization where we allow the dominance of particular culture on us.

Conclusion

Although Globalization has increased job opportunities, technology, widen cooperation among countries, increases the choice in terms of clothing and food but its effect on our culture is something which cannot be ignored. Globalization has contributed a lot when it comes to social change. After globalization, there was a wave of social changes in society which has caused harm to their own culture that we have highlighted above. Thus the impact of globalization and social change in India is a blend of both negative and positive values.

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