- Published: September 24, 2022
- Updated: September 24, 2022
- University / College: The University of Georgia
- Language: English
- Downloads: 35
Technology has been during the years the key feature of social and mainly economic development. A classic example is that of the industrial revolutions. The industrialisation of the western world that took place at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th was possible in great part thanks to the new technological developments that had been achieved till then. Also think of the way satellites are used for things like television: this is a very powerful mass marketing system, that guarantees the diffusion (some call it ” information superhighway”) of a certain consumerist attitude that fuels financial globalisation.
These are just a few examples. Technology has become an important aspect of our everyday life, ranging from cell phones to computers, the internet, planes and so on that are part of our communication and transport system. The answer here is pretty straight forward: yes, there seems to be no doubt that national economies have more and more been integrated into a single global economy largely through the development of an international trading system. Trade no longer seems to respect national boundaries.
The growth of Multinational Corporations (MNCs) led to a shift in economic power from the national governments to companies like General Motors, Ford, Microsoft, Nike, McDonald’s and so on. National governments are not entirely out of the economic world but they are strongly challenged: when capital can be transferred across the globe in the flick of a computer screen, and financial markets react to crisis on the other side of the globe, governments have to work harder to make their societies more internally competitive.
The state has the capacity to shape the direction of the economy, but doesn’t have much control over what MNCs do out of their home country. Although globalisation is mainly a characteristic of the world financial system (as a whole), it is also reflected on the mass through an internationalisation of everyday life (this always refers to the developed world).