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Essay on Impact Of Globalization On Communication

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100 Words Essay on Impact Of Globalization On Communication

Introduction.

Globalization is the process of integrating the world’s economies, cultures, and societies. It has greatly influenced how we communicate. This essay will explore the impact of globalization on communication.

Global Connectivity

Globalization has made the world a smaller place. With the help of the internet and technology, we can now communicate with anyone, anywhere, at any time. This has made sharing ideas and information easier and quicker than ever before.

Language and Communication

Globalization has also affected language use. English has emerged as a global language, making communication between different cultures more efficient. It has also led to the mixing of languages, creating new forms of communication.

Cultural Exchange

Globalization has led to a greater exchange of cultures. This cultural exchange has influenced the way we communicate, introducing new words, phrases, and styles of communication from different cultures into our own.

Despite the benefits, globalization also brings challenges. The rapid pace of communication can lead to misinformation spreading quickly. Additionally, the dominance of English can undermine other languages and cultures.

In conclusion, globalization has significantly impacted communication. It has brought us closer, influenced language use, and facilitated cultural exchange. But it also presents challenges that need to be addressed.

250 Words Essay on Impact Of Globalization On Communication

Globalization is the system of interaction among the countries of the world to develop the global economy. This has a big impact on how people communicate.

Global Communication

Globalization has made communication easier and faster. Before, it was hard to talk to someone far away. Now, with the internet and mobile phones, we can talk to anyone, anywhere, anytime. This is because of globalization.

Language and Culture

Globalization has also changed the way we use language. English has become a global language. It helps people from different countries to talk to each other. Also, we learn about other cultures through communication. This helps us understand and respect each other more.

Business Communication

In business, globalization has made it easy to share ideas and information. Companies can now work with people from different countries. They can also sell their products to customers all over the world. This has helped businesses grow and succeed.

Even though globalization has made communication easier, it also brings challenges. For example, not everyone has access to the internet. Also, there can be misunderstandings because of language and cultural differences.

In conclusion, globalization has changed the way we communicate. It has made it easier and faster, but also brought challenges. We need to work on these challenges to make the most of global communication.

500 Words Essay on Impact Of Globalization On Communication

The meaning of globalization and communication.

Globalization is the process of making something worldwide in scope or application. It means that people, ideas, and goods move more easily and quickly across the world. Communication, on the other hand, is the way we share or exchange information. So, when we talk about the impact of globalization on communication, we’re talking about how globalization changes the way we share and receive information.

Before globalization, communication was limited. People could only talk face-to-face or send letters that took weeks to arrive. But, with globalization, we now have the internet, mobile phones, and social media. These tools make it easy for us to talk to someone on the other side of the world in real-time.

Breaking Down Barriers

Globalization breaks down communication barriers. Before, language differences made it hard for people from different countries to talk. But now, we have translation tools that can translate languages in real-time. This means we can talk to people from different parts of the world without knowing their language.

Sharing of Cultures

Globalization also impacts the way cultures share information. Through the internet, we can learn about different cultures without leaving our homes. We can watch videos, read articles, and even talk to people from different cultures. This helps us understand and appreciate different cultures better.

Increased Business Opportunities

Globalization has also made it easier for businesses to communicate with customers and other businesses from different parts of the world. Through emails, video calls, and social media, businesses can reach more people and expand their market.

The Downsides

Despite the many benefits, globalization also has its downsides. The ease of communication can lead to information overload. We’re constantly bombarded with news, messages, and updates. This can be overwhelming and can make it hard for us to focus.

Additionally, while globalization allows us to learn about different cultures, it can also lead to cultural homogenization. This is when cultures become more similar to each other because of the influence of dominant cultures.

In conclusion, globalization has a big impact on communication. It has made communication easier, faster, and more accessible. It has broken down barriers, allowed us to learn about different cultures, and increased business opportunities. But, it also has its downsides like information overload and cultural homogenization. As we continue to live in a globalized world, it’s important for us to learn how to navigate these changes in communication.

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effects of globalization in communication essay

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Home > Books > Globalization - Education and Management Agendas

The Impact of Globalization on Cross-Cultural Communication

Submitted: 21 December 2011 Published: 17 August 2012

DOI: 10.5772/45816

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Globalization - Education and Management Agendas

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Author Information

Lowell c. matthews.

  • Southern New Hampshire University, Manchester, NH, USA

Bharat S. Thakkar

  • PREMGroup, Inc. and Faculty, College of Business, Walden University, USA

*Address all correspondence to:

1. Introduction

In a global environment the ability to communicate effectively can be a challenge. Even when both parties speak the same language there can still be misunderstandings due to ethic and cultural differences. Over the last decade, there have been countless examples from the business sector that demonstrate how poor communication can lead to poor organizational performance. Understanding the impact of globalization on cross-culture communication is imperative for organizations seeking to create a competitive advantage in the global market. Recent economic challenges further highlight the need for organizations to develop the internal communication capacity necessary to control and monitor external threats. As society becomes more globally connected the ability to communicate across cultural boundaries has gained increasing prominence. Global businesses must understand how to communicate with employees and customers from different cultures in order to fulfill the organization’s mission and build value for stakeholders. The use of technology has had a profound impact on how businesses communicate globally and market their products and services. However, with the advancements in technology organizations must still be cognoscente of the culture nuisances that can potentially present obstacles in trying to increase profits and market share. According to Genevieve Hilton, “cultural proficiency doesn't mean memorizing every cultural nuance of every market. It's knowing when to listen, when to ask for help, and when—finally—to speak” [ 1 ].

For companies involved in global business operations the relationship of managers and subordinates in multinational firms is important. In research conducted by Thomas and Ravlin [ 2 ] it was found that participants to whom nationality was more important indicated lower perceptions of similarity with the manager, lower intentions to associate, and lower perceptions of managerial effectiveness. The results of the study strongly indicate that teaching members of different cultures to behave like each other is an ineffective approach to improving intercultural interactions in business settings [ 2 ]. Focus should be placed on using individual differences to create innovation. Training and development of individuals involved in intercultural interactions should involve more than simply promoting cultural adaptation

Communication is vital for businesses to effectively explain how their products and services differ from their competitors. Companies that are successfully able to communicate cross-culturally have a competitive advantage because they can devote more time and resources to conducting business and less time on internal and external communication issues [ 1 ]. Communication is necessary for individuals to express themselves and to fulfill basic needs. The same holds true for businesses, governments, and countries. Without the ability to communicate and understand each other, there would be chaos.Communication that is based on cultural understanding is more apt to prevent misunderstandings caused by personal biases and prejudices.

To illustrate the importance of communication on building relationships globally consider the example of the United States and South Korea. The relationship between these two countries is one built upon a rich history. In 1884, the United States government became the first foreign entity to purchase property in Korea [ 3 ]. Before this time no foreigner was permitted to live inside Seoul. Despite significant cultural differences, South Korea and the United States have been able to develop a communication process that other countries seek to replicate. The American Chamber of Commerce in Korea was established in 1953 with the chief purpose to promote the advancement of trade and commerce between Korea and the United States. Article II of the Chamber’s constitution outlines the following six objectives [ 4 ]:

To promote the development of commerce between the United States of America and Korea;

To promote measure calculated to benefit and protect the interests in Korea of member companies and citizens of the United States;

To represent, express, and give effect to the opinions of the Chamber business community of the United States regarding trade, commerce, finance, industry, and related questions;

To collect, evaluate, and disseminate among its members statistical and other information concerning commerce or other undertakings of interest to them;

To associate and cooperate with other organizations sharing mutual interests;

To do any and all other things incidental or related to the attainment of the above objectives.

When countries are able to exchange ideas and communicate in an open society everyone benefits. Kathleen Stephens, U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea, summed it up by saying, “we must use our shared interests and values to compliment and transform each other’s growth” [ 5 ]. The main purpose of this study is to develop a cross-cultural communication model that can be applied by companies that communicate with employees from different cultures. The aim is to identify the steps that leaders of organizations competing in a global environment should consider when communicating to different cultures. This study uses a group a college students participating in the 2 nd Korea America Student Conference (KASC) as the main research source for creating the model. KASC is supported by the International Student Conferences, a non-profit organization located in Washington, D.C., which sponsors student-run educational and cultural exchange programs for university students from the United States, Japan, and Korea [ 6 ]. The researchers used a mix of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies to generate the model. A comparative literature review is conducted and organizational examples of Samsung and Hyundai are considered to demonstrate the impact of globalization on cross-culture communication practices. The study also highlights the action research methodology that was employed to design the cross-culture communication model. In conclusion, the 4 C’s Global Leadership Model is introduced to demonstrate how organizational leaders can create innovation in a global environment by managing conflict, communication, creativity, and connectivity.

2. Literature review

Research on cross-cultural communication often focuses on understanding how individual differences influence our ability to communicate with others. Since most individuals grow up within a single culture having to interact with others from a different culture or background can represent a challenge [ 7 ]. Exposure to different cultures affects our ability to communicate with others in a way that leads to positive outcomes. Fink, Neyer, and Kölling propose that researchers involved in cross-cultural studies should develop an understanding of the interrelations between cultural dimensions, cultural standards, and personality traits [ 7 ]. This increased awareness helps an individual to manage their own cross-cultural behavior as well as that of others.

Reza Najafbagy refers to co-orientation, the ability to familiarize all aspects of one’s own life in relation to someone of a different culture, as a primary component of intercultural communication [ 8 ]. Individuals that have experienced different cultures are more cognizant of how to alter their communication style so that others understand the information they are trying to transfer. Research conducted by Seak and Enderwick revealed the importance of providing cross-cultural communication and training skills for expatriates assigned to foreign locations in particularly, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea [ 9 ]. Now more than ever global organizations must ensure that their employees have the skills required to communicate across cultural boundaries. Cross-cultural communication enhances innovation by allowing for collective problem solving and the open dissemination of information [ 10 ].

Cohen and Levinthal define the term absorptive capacity as an organization’s ability to identify and recognize the value of new external information, absorb it, and implement it into their business operations [ 11 ]. Organizations that understand the importance of external information are better able to use their core competencies to create a competitive advantage. Cross-culture communication enhances an organization’s absorptive capacity because it provides a new of perspective for satisfying the needs of stakeholders.Communication is the life-blood of organizations and must be allowed to flow throughout the entire organization. However, when information flows are random and there is no apparent directive of how to apply the outside knowledge the organization will not benefit [ 11 ]. Productivity decreases when organizational leaders are not able to communicate clear and concise expectations. Furthermore, conflict and tension arises when employees do not understand how their personal efforts contribute to the overall success of the organization.

Culture can affect how we perceive the actions of others. Ambassador Stephens gave the example of a “cheerleading group from North Korea that was participating in a sports competition in South Korea. When the group was heading to the venue one of the cheerleaders yelled for the bus stop. She then proceeds to get off the bus in the rain to get a poster of the North Korean leader that was getting wet. Why? Usually, 70% of Americans would say it was for show. 70% of Koreans would respond that the cheerleader really felt something” [ 5 ]. Our perception of others directly affects how we interpret their behavior and actions. Effective cross-culture communication requires that we base our perceptions on facts and not merely on personal biases and prejudices. The Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness Project (GLOBE) examined cultural values of organizational practices and leadership. The study focuses on identifying cultural influences on leadership and management practices. Some scholars believe that as society becomes more interconnected cultural differences will converge [ 12 ]. Even though some convergence may occur over time, countries will still maintain distinct cultural differences that will transcend technology and external influences.

Successful business leaders must be able to balance organizational objectives with external global challenges. As organizations become more interconnected the role of leaders in managing global teams is becoming increasingly important. Being able to navigate through different cultural nuances is a key skill for global leaders. Rabotin defines cultural intelligence as “the ability to interact with others from diverse cultural backgrounds, being aware of our cultural values that drive our attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs” [ 13 ]. Regardless of their geographic location leaders must be able to communicate across borders in order to create a competitive advantage and achieve results. It is clearly apparent that physical boundaries are increasingly becoming transparent. A global leader must be aware of their personal cultural biases and be willing to change their opinions by learning from those that are different from them [ 13 ].

In research conducted by Choi and Chang it was noted that organizational culture directly impacts the attitudes and motivation of employees towards innovation [ 14 ]. The researchers identified three organizational factors of management support, resource availability, and support for learning as key enablers for innovation [ 14 ]. All three factors were found to be significantly correlated to implementation, however; only management support was determined to be a significant predictor of innovation [ 14 ]. This research supports the conclusion that when employees are fully engaged in the process of innovation success is more likely to be achieved. Organizations must have in place procedures that encourage innovation throughout the entire company. Every employee must feel vested in the company and continually seeking ways to improve processes.

3. Methodology

A qualitative and quantitative research strategy consisting of group observations, interviews, and surveys were used to gather information. These methods are most appropriate because of the complexity involved in studying culture and communication from an individual perspective. By using these methods the researchers were able to ascertain underlying factors that are relevant to understanding the affects of culture on communication when two different groups interact with each other.

Participants were undergraduate and graduate students from South Korea and the United States selected to participate in the 2 nd Korea America Student Conference (KASC). Selection to KASC is based on a competitive process. Participation in the study was completely voluntary and students were asked to complete a consent form. A total of 46 students attended KASC and 65% were female. 52% of the students resided in South Korea and 48% in the United States. Interestingly, 73% of all the students identified Korean as part of their ethnicity. 91% of the students were 19 to 23 years of age.

The researchers focused on collecting data from participants to assist in the development of a cross-cultural communication model. The researcher addressed the differences and similarities in communication strategies and the affect on building relationships. Previous research on culture has applied a field-based approach that allows for the exchange of information from multiple sources. The researchers followed a similar structure when participating in KASC over a two-week period.

The role of the researchers was that of consultants that sought to serve as a bridge between the participants and the administrators of the conference. It was important for the researcher to develop a level of trust with the participants quickly. To accomplish this, the researchers assisted staff with administrative tasks during the conference and shared in activities with the participants. The researchers used current programs established by KASC to expand opportunities to exchange information. For example, the researcher attended lectures, group discussions, and roundtable sessions.

The topics discussed during interviews included: a) reasons for participating in KASC, b) individual experiences and interactions with different cultures, c) reactions to changes that occurred during the conference, and d) discussion of how culture affects the communication between American and Korean students. During group observations the researchers focused on key words and phrases that were used by the students and categorized them according to relevant themes. Based on the words and phrases a concept map was created that helped to identify the predictors used in the study.

Five cultural measurements of acceptance, conflict, individualism, risk, and sharing were used to predict the country of residence. Table 1 defines the variables used in the study. The country of residence index was selected as the dependent variable because it is directly affected by culture.

Rigor and validity were addressed by continuously redefining the key issues identified by participants. Participant feedback was vital to this study and was used to form and shape the cross-cultural communication model. The survey that was developed for this study consisted of 23 items that were rated on five point Likert scale with 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree. Each of the items assessed one of the cultural measurements of acceptance, conflict, individualism, risk, or sharing.

Variables in Cross-Cultural Communication Study

A multiple regression analysis was conducted to evaluate how well the five independent variables for culture predict the country of residence. The linear combination of culture measures was significantly related to the country of residence index, F (5, 17) = 3.57, p <.01. The sample multiple correlation coefficient was.71, indicating that approximately 51% of the variance of the country of residence index in the sample can be accounted for by the linear combination of culture measures.

Model Summary

The partial regression plots for conflict and sharing exhibit the best correlations for predicting the country of residence index. Table 3 presents indices to indicate the relative strength of the individual predictors. As expected all of the bivariate correlations between the country of residence index were positive.

The Bivariate and Partial Correlations of the Predictors with the Country of Residence Index

5. Cross-cultural communication model

The purpose of communication is to transfer ideas and knowledge from one entity to the other. The first step in communication is input; someone must say something that is received by someone else. The communication loop is successful when the receiver demonstrates that he or she understands what was being communicated. From an organizational perspective there are many barriers than can impede the flow of communication. These barriers include culture, technology, language, workforce, and environment. For the purpose of this model culture refers to the traditions and customs that are prevalent in the country where each company is located. These traditions and customs influence policies and procedures implemented by businesses. Technology is simply the use of mediums such as email, Internet, text messaging, and cell phones to communicate. When a company does not have experience using a particular technological medium to communicate it may rely on older methods that the other company views as inadequate. Language is what is spoken in the country where the company is located. If the languages of the two companies are different, then one company must learn the other’s language or a new language must be created. Workforce refers to the internal structure of the company, including employees, managers, and organizational leaders. Environment refers to the external forces that affect the company. For example, the economy can have an adverse impact on an organization and present an obstacle to cross-culture communication.

As illustrated in Figure 1 , when these barriers are eliminated companies are able to experience innovation, reduced conflict, and better dissemination of information. J. Ku-Hyun (personal communication, July 20, 2009) stated “to be successful as a global corporation communication is critical.” Without communication organizations will cease to be. The challenge for organizations that must communicate cross-culturally is to ensure that their message is understood the way that it was intended. When communication barriers are not removed it is easy to make assumptions about what is being communicated. Our assumptions of what we thought was being communicated can be very different from the original message. Communication takes effort, it is much easier to sit back and simply assume what we think others are trying to tell us. To actively engage in communication takes time and energy. Organizations must be willing to invest the resources needed to support cross-culture communication.

Successful cross-cultural communication creates a dialogue, a continuous transfer of information. This exchange of information addresses our assumptions and clarifies points we do not understand. It also provides the opportunity for us to ask questions and confirm the information that was received. Having a dialogue reduces conflict because cultural misunderstandings can be dealt with when they arise. The dialogue only occurs when both parties agree to share information and ensure that the transfer of information is not blocked.

effects of globalization in communication essay

Cross-Culture Communication Model

6. Samsung and Hyundai

To illustrate how companies can utilize the cross-culture communication model to improve business practices consider the examples of Samsung and Hyundai. Samsung is unique because of its focus on human resources and risk taking initiatives. The company was founded in 1938 and is the world’s largest conglomerate. Samsung is recognized as a global industry leader because of its inner capacity to take advantage of distinct initiatives (J. Ku-Hyun, personal communication, July 20, 2009). It hires a small percentage of non-Koreans inside Korea but employs a higher percentage off non-Koreans outside of Korea. The culture of the organization is very family centric. Decisions occur in a collective atmosphere that allows for communication at all levels of the organization. However, even when decisions are clearly communicated throughout the organization employees may not always show support.

The workforce can represent a barrier to cross-cultural communication when employees feel they are not valued. This presented an issue at Samsung. The expectation was that you stayed at job until your assignment was completed. However, with the increase of younger employees entering the workforce who had different expectations, Samsung had to make a change. Management made the decision to change the workday from five-to-nine to seven-to-four [ 15 ]. The reason for Samsung’s change was to get employees to be more team oriented and more productive. Changing the hours of the workday required employees to work together and it also required managers and supervisors to have a more active role in completing daily tasks. The seven-to-four schedule was a cultural shift that was instigated by new employees entering the company with a different outlook towards work and personal time. Prior to the change, employees were expected to stay on the job until it was completed. With the change the office closed at four and everything stopped. Now employees have to proactively plan their workday in order to ensure that everything is accomplished in a timely fashion.

Samsung has been able to become a global leader because of its commitment to the development of technological capabilities [ 16 ]. Management’s objective is to “develop technology capabilities for value creation in diverse business areas” that will ultimately support growth in global competition [ 16 ]. The focus on innovation requires the sharing of business practices and technology throughout the organization. Samsung must communicate with employees and customers simultaneously to ensure that company objectives are met.

J. Ku-Hyun (personal communication, July 20, 2009) reports that Samsung’s competitive advantages include 1) commitment to work that is translated into speed advantages, 2) highly skilled engineers and technicians, and 3) management talent and experience. Samsung has used these competitive advantages to enhance its relationship with customers and expand globally.

Hyundai Motor Company was formed in 1967 and has established itself as company that focuses on quality improvement and innovation [ 17 ]. From the small beginning in Seoul, Korea the company has now expanded to more than ten countries including the United States, Canada, India, China, Turkey, Russia, Malaysia, Sudan, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, and Japan [ 17 ]. For this expansion to take place requires effective communication that is able to overcome cultural barriers and accomplish global management initiatives. Research conducted by Wright, Suh, and Leggett revealed that Hyundai’s achievement at globalization depended upon its ability to expand international sales as it gained experience in international markets [ 18 ]. The move from domestic to global production means Hyundai must operate in “unfamiliar and uncertain economic and cultural contexts” [ 18 ].

Over the years Hyundai has learned valuable lessons on the importance of knowing and valuing the needs of its customers. In the early 1990s, Hyundai experienced problems when trying to expand production to Canada. The primary issue was that the company did not adapt the design of the Sonata for North American customers [ 18 ]. Consequently, the company lost market share to Toyota’s Camry and Honda’s Accord. Another important lesson was learned when Hyundai made the decision to start production in Turkey because of the lower cost for workers. Because of the lower wages management decided to use more hand-operated technology instead of the automated manufacturing processes utilized in its domestic plants. As a result, the production rate of the Turkish plant was 25% lower than that in Korea [ 18 ]. From these experiences Hyundai learned the importance of researching the culture of a country before making profound business decisions. Cross-culture communication involves adapting organizational policies to fit the context of where business transactions will occur.

Key to Hyundai’s success is its corporate philosophy that places the needs of customers as top priority in all business areas. This customer-oriented management style requires organizational leaders to be receptive to new ideas and to think outside the box. To encourage employees to expand their cultural awareness the company encourages three-month assignments to its overseas sites. For example, when the company was building a site in Alabama it allowed employees to visit and study the culture [ 19 ].The company promotes an employee backpack travel program around the globe where teams of three design their cultural experience. The teams compete for a company sponsorship of 15-day expeditions by writing what they hope to learn [ 19 ]. More than 47 teams have traveled to 70 countries, including Peru, Turkey, and Greece [ 19 ]. Employees that participate bring back what they learn and share it with their colleagues.

“Hyundai Motor Company is strengthening its position as a global brand, establishing local production systems on a global scale and supplying automobiles that meet the needs and tastes of customers in each specific region” [ 17 ]. During a visit to the Asan Plant located in Chungchungnam-do, Korea, it was very apparent of how the company is being innovative. The plant has a production capacity of 300,000 units and utilizes the latest in robotic technology to assemble vehicles (Tour Guide, personal communication, July 27, 2009). One unit is produced every 57 seconds and 100% of all the welding is completely automated. The Asan plant has 34,000 employees; the average annual salary is $50,000. The plant operates two ten-hour shifts and provides numerous incentives for employees that are innovative on the job.

7. Conclusion

The researchers proposed attending the 2nd Korea-America Student Conference in order to develop a relationship with participants that have a vested interest in global issues and to define the criteria for the proposed cross-culture communication model by using various qualitative methods. These objectives were accomplished and much insight gained into understanding how culture affects communication.

Samsung and Hyundai are only two examples of organizations that are effectively communicating cross-culturally. Both organizations have been able to learn from their past mistakes and create strategies that support their growth in the global market. The sharing of information makes it possible for other organizations to also benefit from the mistakes made by these organizations.

During one of the group observations a Korean participant stated, “A smile is a basic tool of communication” (personal communication, July 16, 2009). How true it is that a simple smile can break down communication barriers and build bridges of understanding. Cross-culture communication is not easy, especially when we are unfamiliar with the receiver of the information. Organizational leaders that have to communicate cross-culturally can use the following steps:

Develop clear and concise expectations for how the organization will accomplish its mission;

Ensure that employees understand their role in the organization;

Be willing to invest time to communicate;

Remember that communication is a two-way process, listen before you speak.

“Many misunderstanding have occurred, not only because of mistakes in the usage of words or expressions, but also because of the lack of goodwill and cultural knowledge” [ 8 ]. Mistakes are a normal part life and at times if we are not careful our mistakes can have lasting consequences. “We can make mistakes as long as we can correct mistakes. We can get feedback from the global market” [ 10 ]. The cross-culture communication model developed from this study provides a mechanism for obtaining feedback from the global market. The model identifies the barriers to cross-culture communication and summarizes the outcomes that can be achieved when these barriers are tackled.

The results of study verified that the five independent variables of acceptance, conflict, individualism, risk, and sharing could be used to predict country residence. A limitation to this study was the small sample size that used. In order to validate the validity and reliability of the study a larger sample size should be used in future studies. The participants of the study were also aware of the need to increase cultural awareness and displayed a desire to gain a deeper understanding of American and Korean relations. The study adds to the current body of knowledge on cross-culture communication by demonstrating the importance of culture in business settings.

Organizational cross-functionality or connectivity is essential to innovation because it brings together a diverse group of people from different functional backgrounds [ 20 ]. Management must take steps to ensure that cross-functionality does not create conflict and hinder communication within the team [ 20 ]. To effectively generate innovation the level of expertise and individual skill set of each team member must be ascertained. The innovation process is supported when members share a common vision and goal. Research indicates that cross-functional teams are more effective at new produce development that is valued by the customer [ 21 ].

Leadership is the foundation to cross-functionality because it provides the oversight and direction necessary for it to work. Leaders that are innovators are receptive to change and value feedback from those around them. They recognize that they cannot be successful unless those around them are successful. For innovative organizations it is necessary for management to develop innovative leaders. This is done by having in place recruitment strategies that target successful applicants that possess the skills necessary to the organization to the next level [ 22 ]. There should also be in place a well-developed talent-management process that identifies innovators, connects them to the mission of the organization, and provides the necessary internal resources for them to be successful.

effects of globalization in communication essay

The 4 C’s Global Leadership Model

A comparison of leadership strategies between Samsung and Hyundai provides the basis for developing the 4 C’s Global Leadership Model that can be employed by organizations to make certain that they have the right person for the job. The model consists of four key factors: communication, conflict, creativity, and connectivity. Being aware of what types of individuals make good global leaders allows the organization to develop HR policies to support recruitment and succession. By creating a pipeline of capable global leaders the organization is able to sustain innovation and change.

Leaders are the main link responsible for harnessing the ideas of employees to create innovation. They must also assess the development of their competitors and the needs of customers. Bringing together individuals from different cultural backgrounds will lead to conflict; however, this does not have to be perceived as a negative. The challenge for global leaders is to use the conflict as a benefit for the organization. Gehani and Gehani define conflict as simply the result of natural differences that occur between people from different backgrounds [ 23 ]. Different ideas and views lead to innovation and new products and services. From this perspective leaders should encourage healthy conflict. “Conflict between diverse groups of people can be used to drive the growth of their organizations” [ 23 ]. If there were no conflict to spark discussion there would be no innovation.

Communication helps to moderate the relationship between conflict and innovation. This fact is furthermore impacted by the complexity of competing in global environment. Leaders must be aware of the communication styles that are needed when working with multicultural teams. The use of the email, conference calls, and other technological innovations to communicate need to be addressed to ensure that all members are able to participate fully. When members feel they are not able to communicate openly innovation is hindered and the organization suffers.

As global competition continues to increase, successful organizations must evolve to meet the changing needs of consumers. Innovation provides the opportunity for organizations to think outside the box and “produce better product, faster, cheaper and more efficiently than competitors [ 24 ]. Creativity is directly linked to communication and innovation. Increased attention on innovation has caused organizational leaders to develop systems to manage the process and support the efforts of employees. According to Dooley & O’Sullivan being able to identify the correct process for implementing innovation will directly impact the success [ 24 ]. It is easier to implement innovation when the culture of the organization allows for employee feedback, planning, and evaluation.

Employees play a vital role in innovation. In research conducted by Barnett and Storey it was found that there was a strong connection between learning and innovation in organizations [ 25 ]. The researchers studied 220 employees at a manufacturing company, Tensator, located in the United Kingdom. Key to Tensator’s success is their ability to integrate succession planning with sustaining innovation [ 25 ]. Instead of focusing solely on keeping top management positions filled, the organization seeks to keep the pipeline of skilled laborers in amble supply to support innovation. Tensator follows a growth strategy that centers on “grow-your-own” [ 25 ]. This strategy requires the company to continually provide learning and development opportunities for employees to ensure that they remain at the top of their game.

Microsoft is applying a holistic approach to innovation in seeking to compete with Yahoo and Google in the development of search engines [ 26 ]. Management is aware they must do more than simply try to catch up with their competitors; they must redesign the way that search engines are viewed and utilized. The holistic approach is further supported by Porter in work done with organizations to help them improve their supply chains [ 27 ]. Organizations that use a holistic approach are able to obtain a broader view of how they fit into the global market. Instead of focusing on small segments of their business operations, attention is given to the entire process. This allows for the organization to implement innovation that will create value for customers.

Connectivity is defined as the ability to orchestrate organizational networks to move in the same direction in order to accomplish the company’s mission. Employees must feel contacted to the organization and understand how their individual effort contributes to the bottom line. Global leaders must look for opportunities to connect everyone within the organization to the overall goals and objectives. When employees understand the big picture and the direction the organization is taking innovation and change are supported.

The 4 C’s Global Leadership Model is designed to provide a basis for organizational leaders to use in mapping out strategies for working globally with multicultural teams. The business environment is continually evolving and global leaders must persistently develop new organization strategies to meet global challenges. Although, Samsung and Hyundai both compete in different industries there are parallels that can be gleamed from how they communicate and inspire innovation from their employees. The Cross-Culture Communication Model and 4 C’s Global Leadership Model are tools designed to assist organizational leaders to compete in the ever-changing global environment.

The core aspects of global leadership critical to leading innovation and change are vision, communication, and responsibility. In 2008 a group of scholars and business leaders identified twenty-five factors that are important for managers in implementing innovation [ 28 ]. Key among them was that management must have a clear vision for the organization. The organizational vision provides a roadmap for employees by defining what the organization hopes to accomplish.Communication is important because it allows for the exchange and refinement of ideas. Effective communication requires that organizations not become bogged down with hierarchal thinking that can typically slow down the communication process. Large organizations must operate like small organizations and be able to respond quickly to organizational and market changes [ 28 ].

Successful organizations must focus on goals that are socially responsible [ 28 ]. Innovation is not just creating the coolest new gadget but it is creating the coolest new gadget that serves the environment in a sustainable manner. As organizations become more global the focus on corporate social responsibility increases. Organizations can no longer operate within a silo. The actions of one organization can affect many others. According to Westlund it is no longer sufficient for organizations only to make a profit and comply with the law [ 29 ]. They must also be socially responsible and give something back to the global community that they serve.

  • 3. Habbi House. The American Embassy Residence Seoul, Korea. 2009
  • 4. American Chamber of Commerce in Korea. AMCHAM Korea’s Constitution. http://amchamkorea.org/about/constitution.jsp accessed 15 August 2009
  • 6. ICS. International Student Conferences. http://www.iscdc.org/ (accessed 17 August 2009).
  • 10. Lim, Wonhyuk. Korea export-oriented industrialization. Lectured presented at Korea Development Institute. Seoul, South Korea. 2009
  • 15. Lee, H., Lee, J., Lee, J., Choi, C. Time to change, time for change: How was time used to change a global company? Academy of Management Proceedings, August 2005.
  • 17. Hyundai Motor Company. Hyundai Motor Company PR Brochure 2008 1 60

© 2012 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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11.4 The Effects of the Internet and Globalization on Popular Culture and Interpersonal Communication

Learning objectives.

  • Describe the effects of globalization on culture.
  • Identify the possible effects of news migrating to the Internet.
  • Define the Internet paradox.

It’s in the name: World Wide Web . The Internet has broken down communication barriers between cultures in a way that could only be dreamed of in earlier generations. Now, almost any news service across the globe can be accessed on the Internet and, with the various translation services available (like Babelfish and Google Translate), be relatively understandable. In addition to the spread of American culture throughout the world, smaller countries are now able to cheaply export culture, news, entertainment, and even propaganda.

The Internet has been a key factor in driving globalization in recent years. Many jobs can now be outsourced entirely via the Internet. Teams of software programmers in India can have a website up and running in very little time, for far less money than it would take to hire American counterparts. Communicating with these teams is now as simple as sending e-mails and instant messages back and forth, and often the most difficult aspect of setting up an international video conference online is figuring out the time difference. Especially for electronic services such as software, outsourcing over the Internet has greatly reduced the cost to develop a professionally coded site.

Electronic Media and the Globalization of Culture

The increase of globalization has been an economic force throughout the last century, but economic interdependency is not its only by-product. At its core, globalization is the lowering of economic and cultural impediments to communication between countries all over the globe. Globalization in the sphere of culture and communication can take the form of access to foreign newspapers (without the difficulty of procuring a printed copy) or, conversely, the ability of people living in previously closed countries to communicate experiences to the outside world relatively cheaply.

TV, especially satellite TV, has been one of the primary ways for American entertainment to reach foreign shores. This trend has been going on for some time now, for example, with the launch of MTV Arabia (Arango, 2008). American popular culture is, and has been, a crucial export.

At the Eisenhower Fellowship Conference in Singapore in 2005, U.S. ambassador Frank Lavin gave a defense of American culture that differed somewhat from previous arguments. It would not be all Starbucks, MTV, or Baywatch , he said, because American culture is more diverse than that. Instead, he said that “America is a nation of immigrants,” and asked, “When Mel Gibson or Jackie Chan come to the United States to produce a movie, whose culture is being exported (Lavin, 2005)?” This idea of a truly globalized culture—one in which content can be distributed as easily as it can be received—now has the potential to be realized through the Internet. While some political and social barriers still remain, from a technological standpoint there is nothing to stop the two-way flow of information and culture across the globe.

China, Globalization, and the Internet

The scarcity of artistic resources, the time lag of transmission to a foreign country, and censorship by the host government are a few of the possible impediments to transmission of entertainment and culture. China provides a valuable example of the ways the Internet has helped to overcome (or highlight) all three of these hurdles.

China, as the world’s most populous country and one of its leading economic powers, has considerable clout when it comes to the Internet. In addition, the country is ruled by a single political party that uses censorship extensively in an effort to maintain control. Because the Internet is an open resource by nature, and because China is an extremely well-connected country—with 22.5 percent (roughly 300 million people, or the population of the entire United States) of the country online as of 2008 (Google, 2010)—China has been a case study in how the Internet makes resistance to globalization increasingly difficult.

Figure 11.7

image

China has more Internet users than any other country.

On January 21, 2010, Hillary Clinton gave a speech in front of the Newseum in Washington, DC, where she said, “We stand for a single Internet where all of humanity has equal access to knowledge and ideas (Ryan & Halper, 2010).” That same month, Google decided it would stop censoring search results on Google.cn, its Chinese-language search engine, as a result of a serious cyber-attack on the company originating in China. In addition, Google stated that if an agreement with the Chinese government could not be reached over the censorship of search results, Google would pull out of China completely. Because Google has complied (albeit uneasily) with the Chinese government in the past, this change in policy was a major reversal.

Withdrawing from one of the largest expanding markets in the world is shocking coming from a company that has been aggressively expanding into foreign markets. This move highlights the fundamental tension between China’s censorship policy and Google’s core values. Google’s company motto, “Don’t be evil,” had long been at odds with its decision to censor search results in China. Google’s compliance with the Chinese government did not help it make inroads into the Chinese Internet search market—although Google held about a quarter of the market in China, most of the search traffic went to the tightly controlled Chinese search engine Baidu. However, Google’s departure from China would be a blow to antigovernment forces in the country. Since Baidu has a closer relationship with the Chinese government, political dissidents tend to use Google’s Gmail, which uses encrypted servers based in the United States. Google’s threat to withdraw from China raises the possibility that globalization could indeed hit roadblocks due to the ways that foreign governments may choose to censor the Internet.

New Media: Internet Convergence and American Society

One only needs to go to CNN’s official Twitter feed and begin to click random faces in the “Following” column to see the effect of media convergence through the Internet. Hundreds of different options abound, many of them individual journalists’ Twitter feeds, and many of those following other journalists. Considering CNN’s motto, “The most trusted name in network news,” its presence on Twitter might seem at odds with providing in-depth, reliable coverage. After all, how in-depth can 140 characters get?

The truth is that many of these traditional media outlets use Twitter not as a communication tool in itself, but as a way to allow viewers to aggregate a large amount of information they may have missed. Instead of visiting multiple home pages to see the day’s top stories from multiple viewpoints, Twitter users only have to check their own Twitter pages to get updates from all the organizations they “follow.” Media conglomerates then use Twitter as part of an overall integration of media outlets; the Twitter feed is there to support the news content, not to report the content itself.

Internet-Only Sources

The threshold was crossed in 2008: The Internet overtook print media as a primary source of information for national and international news in the U.S. Television is still far in the lead, but especially among younger demographics, the Internet is quickly catching up as a way to learn about the day’s news. With 40 percent of the public receiving their news from the Internet (see Figure 11.8 ) (Pew Research Center for the People, 2008), media outlets have been scrambling to set up large presences on the web. Yet one of the most remarkable shifts has been in the establishment of online-only news sources.

Figure 11.8

image

Americans now receive more national and international news from the Internet than they do from newspapers.

The conventional argument claims that the anonymity and the echo chamber of the Internet undermine worthwhile news reporting, especially for topics that are expensive to report on. The ability of large news organizations to put reporters in the field is one of their most important contributions and (because of its cost) is often one of the first things to be cut back during times of budget problems. However, as the Internet has become a primary news source for more and more people, new media outlets—publications existing entirely online—have begun to appear.

In 2006, two reporters for the Washington Post , John F. Harris and Jim VandeHei, left the newspaper to start a politically centered website called Politico. Rather than simply repeating the day’s news in a blog, they were determined to start a journalistically viable news organization on the web. Four years later, the site has over 6,000,000 unique monthly visitors and about a hundred staff members, and there is now a Politico reporter on almost every White House trip (Wolff, 2009).

Far from being a collection of amateurs trying to make it big on the Internet, Politico’s senior White House correspondent is Mike Allen, who previously wrote for The New York Times , Washington Post , and Time . His daily Playbook column appears at around 7 a.m. each morning and is read by much of the politically centered media. The different ways that Politico reaches out to its supporters—blogs, Twitter feeds, regular news articles, and now even a print edition—show how media convergence has even occurred within the Internet itself. The interactive nature of its services and the active comment boards on the site also show how the media have become a two-way street: more of a public forum than a straight news service.

“Live” From New York …

Top-notch political content is not the only medium moving to the Internet, however. Saturday Night Live ( SNL ) has built an entire entertainment model around its broadcast time slot. Every weekend, around 11:40 p.m. on Saturday, someone interrupts a skit, turns toward the camera, shouts “Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!” and the band starts playing. Yet the show’s sketch comedy style also seems to lend itself to the watch-anytime convenience of the Internet. In fact, the online TV service Hulu carries a full eight episodes of SNL at any given time, with regular 3.5-minute commercial breaks replaced by Hulu-specific minute-long advertisements. The time listed for an SNL episode on Hulu is just over an hour—a full half-hour less than the time it takes to watch it live on Saturday night.

Hulu calls its product “online premium video,” primarily because of its desire to attract not the YouTube amateur, but rather a partnership of large media organizations. Although many networks, like NBC and Comedy Central, stream video on their websites, Hulu builds its business by offering a legal way to see all these shows on the same site; a user can switch from South Park to SNL with a single click, rather than having to move to a different website.

Premium Online Video Content

Hulu’s success points to a high demand among Internet users for a wide variety of content collected and packaged in one easy-to-use interface. Hulu was rated the Website of the Year by the Associated Press (Coyle, 2008) and even received an Emmy nomination for a commercial featuring Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey, the stars of the NBC comedy 30 Rock (Neil, 2009). Hulu’s success has not been the product of the usual dot-com underdog startup, however. Its two parent companies, News Corporation and NBC Universal, are two of the world’s media giants. In many ways, this was a logical step for these companies to take after fighting online video for so long. In December 2005, the video “Lazy Sunday,” an SNL digital short featuring Andy Samberg and Chris Parnell, went viral with over 5,000,000 views on YouTube before February 2006, when NBC demanded that YouTube take down the video (Biggs, 2006). NBC later posted the video on Hulu, where it could sell advertising for it.

Hulu allows users to break out of programming models controlled by broadcast and cable TV providers and choose freely what shows to watch and when to watch them. This seems to work especially well for cult programs that are no longer available on TV. In 2008, the show Arrested Development , which was canceled in 2006 after repeated time slot shifts, was Hulu’s second-most-popular program.

Hulu certainly seems to have leveled the playing field for some shows that have had difficulty finding an audience through traditional means. 30 Rock , much like Arrested Development , suffered from a lack of viewers in its early years. In 2008, New York Magazine described the show as a “fragile suckling that critics coddle but that America never quite warms up to (Sternbergh, 2008).” However, even as 30 Rock shifted time slots mid-season, its viewer base continued to grow through the NBC partner of Hulu. The nontraditional media approach of NBC’s programming culminated in October 2008, when NBC decided to launch the new season of 30 Rock on Hulu a full week before it was broadcast over the airwaves (Wortham, 2008). Hulu’s strategy of providing premium online content seems to have paid off: As of March 2011, Hulu provided 143,673,000 viewing sessions to more than 27 million unique visitors, according to Nielsen (ComScore, 2011).

Unlike other “premium” services, Hulu does not charge for its content; rather, the word premium in its slogan seems to imply that it could charge for content if it wanted to. Other platforms, like Sony’s PlayStation 3, block Hulu for this very reason—Sony’s online store sells the products that Hulu gives away for free. However, Hulu has been considering moving to a paid subscription model that would allow users to access its entire back catalog of shows. Like many other fledgling web enterprises, Hulu seeks to create reliable revenue streams to avoid the fate of many of the companies that folded during the dot-com crash (Sandoval, 2009).

Like Politico, Hulu has packaged professionally produced content into an on-demand web service that can be used without the normal constraints of traditional media. Just as users can comment on Politico articles (and now, on most newspapers’ articles), they can rate Hulu videos, and Hulu will take this into account. Even when users do not produce the content themselves, they still want this same “two-way street” service.

Table 11.2 Top 10 U.S. Online Video Brands, Home and Work

The Role of the Internet in Social Alienation

In the early years, the Internet was stigmatized as a tool for introverts to avoid “real” social interactions, thereby increasing their alienation from society. Yet the Internet was also seen as the potentially great connecting force between cultures all over the world. The idea that something that allowed communication across the globe could breed social alienation seemed counterintuitive. The American Psychological Association (APA) coined this concept the “ Internet paradox .”

Studies like the APA’s “Internet paradox: A social technology that reduces social involvement and psychological well-being (Kraut, et. al., 1998)?” which came out in 1998, suggested that teens who spent lots of time on the Internet showed much greater rates of self-reported loneliness and other signs of psychological distress. Even though the Internet had been around for a while by 1998, the increasing concern among parents was that teenagers were spending all their time in chat rooms and online. The fact was that teenagers spent much more time on the Internet than adults, due to their increased free time, curiosity, and familiarity with technology.

However, this did not necessarily mean that “kids these days” were antisocial or that the Internet caused depression and loneliness. In his critical analysis “Deconstructing the Internet Paradox,” computer scientist, writer, and PhD recipient from Carnegie Mellon University Joseph M. Newcomer points out that the APA study did not include a control group to adjust for what may be normal “lonely” feelings in teenagers. Again, he suggests that “involvement in any new, self-absorbing activity which has opportunity for failure can increase depression,” seeing Internet use as just another time-consuming hobby, much like learning a musical instrument or playing chess (Newcomer, 2000).

The general concept that teenagers were spending all their time in chat rooms and online forums instead of hanging out with flesh-and-blood friends was not especially new; the same thing had generally been thought of the computer hobbyists who pioneered the esoteric Usenet. However, the concerns were amplified when a wider range of young people began using the Internet, and the trend was especially strong in the younger demographics.

The “Internet Paradox” and Facebook

As they developed, it became quickly apparent that the Internet generation did not suffer from perpetual loneliness as a rule. After all, the generation that was raised on instant messaging invented Facebook and still makes up most of Facebook’s audience. As detailed earlier in the chapter, Facebook began as a service limited to college students—a requirement that practically excluded older participants. As a social tool and as a reflection of the way younger people now connect with each other over the Internet, Facebook has provided a comprehensive model for the Internet’s effect on social skills and especially on education.

A study by the Michigan State University Department of Telecommunication, Information Studies, and Media has shown that college-age Facebook users connect with offline friends twice as often as they connect with purely online “friends (Ellison, et. al., 2007).” In fact, 90 percent of the participants in the study reported that high school friends, classmates, and other friends were the top three groups that their Facebook profiles were directed toward.

In 2007, when this study took place, one of Facebook’s most remarkable tools for studying the ways that young people connect was its “networks” feature. Originally, a Facebook user’s network consisted of all the people at his or her college e-mail domain: the “mycollege” portion of “[email protected].” The MSU study, performed in April 2006, just 6 months after Facebook opened its doors to high school students, found that first-year students met new people on Facebook 36 percent more often than seniors did. These freshmen, in April 2006, were not as active on Facebook as high schoolers (Facebook began allowing high schoolers on its site during these students’ first semester in school) (Rosen, 2005). The study concluded that they could “definitively state that there is a positive relationship between certain kinds of Facebook use and the maintenance and creation of social capital (Ellison, et. al., 2007).” In other words, even though the study cannot show whether Facebook use causes or results from social connections, it can say that Facebook plays both an important and a nondestructive role in the forming of social bonds.

Although this study provides a complete and balanced picture of the role that Facebook played for college students in early 2006, there have been many changes in Facebook’s design and in its popularity. In 2006, many of a user’s “friends” were from the same college, and the whole college network might be mapped as a “friend-of-a-friend” web. If users allowed all people within a single network access to their profiles, it would create a voluntary school-wide directory of students. Since a university e-mail address was required for signup, there was a certain level of trust. The results of this Facebook study, still relatively current in terms of showing the Internet’s effects on social capital, show that not only do social networking tools not lead to more isolation, but that they actually have become integral to some types of networking.

However, as Facebook began to grow and as high school and regional networks (such as “New York City” or “Ireland”) were incorporated, users’ networks of friends grew exponentially, and the networking feature became increasingly unwieldy for privacy purposes. In 2009, Facebook discontinued regional networks over concerns that networks consisting of millions of people were “no longer the best way for you to control your privacy (Zuckerberg, 2009).” Where privacy controls once consisted of allowing everyone at one’s college access to specific information, Facebook now allows only three levels: friends, friends of friends, and everyone.

Meetup.com : Meeting Up “IRL”

Of course, not everyone on teenagers’ online friends lists are actually their friends outside of the virtual world. In the parlance of the early days of the Internet, meeting up “IRL” (shorthand for “in real life”) was one of the main reasons that many people got online. This practice was often looked at with suspicion by those not familiar with it, especially because of the anonymity of the Internet. The fear among many was that children would go into chat rooms and agree to meet up in person with a total stranger, and that stranger would turn out to have less-than-friendly motives. This fear led to law enforcement officers posing as underage girls in chat rooms, agreeing to meet for sex with older men (after the men brought up the topic—the other way around could be considered entrapment), and then arresting the men at the agreed-upon meeting spot.

In recent years, however, the Internet has become a hub of activity for all sorts of people. In 2002, Scott Heiferman started Meetup.com based on the “simple idea of using the Internet to get people off the Internet (Heiferman, 2009).” The entire purpose of Meetup.com is not to foster global interaction and collaboration (as is the purpose of something like Usenet,) but rather to allow people to organize locally. There are Meetups for politics (popular during Barack Obama’s presidential campaign), for New Yorkers who own Boston terriers (Fairbanks, 2008), for vegan cooking, for board games, and for practically everything else. Essentially, the service (which charges a small fee to Meetup organizers) separates itself from other social networking sites by encouraging real-life interaction. Whereas a member of a Facebook group may never see or interact with fellow members, Meetup.com actually keeps track of the (self-reported) real-life activity of its groups—ideally, groups with more activity are more desirable to join. However much time these groups spend together on or off the Internet, one group of people undoubtedly has the upper hand when it comes to online interaction: World of Warcraft players.

World of Warcraft : Social Interaction Through Avatars

A writer for Time states the reasons for the massive popularity of online role-playing games quite well: “[My generation’s] assumptions were based on the idea that video games would never grow up. But no genre has worked harder to disprove that maxim than MMORPGs—Massively Multiplayer Online Games (Coates, 2007).” World of Warcraft (WoW , for short) is the most popular MMORPG of all time, with over 11 million subscriptions and counting. The game is inherently social; players must complete “quests” in order to advance in the game, and many of the quests are significantly easier with multiple people. Players often form small, four-to five-person groups in the beginning of the game, but by the end of the game these larger groups (called “raiding parties”) can reach up to 40 players.

In addition, WoW provides a highly developed social networking feature called “guilds.” Players create or join a guild, which they can then use to band with other guilds in order to complete some of the toughest quests. “But once you’ve got a posse, the social dynamic just makes the game more addictive and time-consuming,” writes Clive Thompson for Slate (Thompson, 2005). Although these guilds do occasionally meet up in real life, most of their time together is spent online for hours per day (which amounts to quite a bit of time together), and some of the guild leaders profess to seeing real-life improvements. Joi Ito, an Internet business and investment guru, joined WoW long after he had worked with some of the most successful Internet companies; he says he “definitely (Pinckard, 2006)” learned new lessons about leadership from playing the game. Writer Jane Pinckard, for video game blog 1UP , lists some of Ito’s favorite activities as “looking after newbs [lower-level players] and pleasing the veterans,” which he calls a “delicate balancing act (Pinckard, 2006),” even for an ex-CEO.

Figure 11.9

11.4.0

Guilds often go on “raiding parties”—just one of the many semisocial activities in World of Warcraft .

monsieur paradis – gathering in Kargath before a raid – CC BY-NC 2.0.

With over 12 million subscribers, WoW necessarily breaks the boundaries of previous MMORPGs. The social nature of the game has attracted unprecedented numbers of female players (although men still make up the vast majority of players), and its players cannot easily be pegged as antisocial video game addicts. On the contrary, they may even be called social video game players, judging from the general responses given by players as to why they enjoy the game. This type of play certainly points to a new way of online interaction that may continue to grow in coming years.

Social Interaction on the Internet Among Low-Income Groups

In 2006, the journal Developmental Psychology published a study looking at the educational benefits of the Internet for teenagers in low-income households. It found that “children who used the Internet more had higher grade point averages (GPA) after one year and higher scores after standardized tests of reading achievement after six months than did children who used it less,” and that continuing to use the Internet more as the study went on led to an even greater increase in GPA and standardized test scores in reading (there was no change in mathematics test scores) (Jackson, et. al., 2006).

One of the most interesting aspects of the study’s results is the suggestion that the academic benefits may exclude low-performing children in low-income households. The reason for this, the study suggests, is that children in low-income households likely have a social circle consisting of other children from low-income households who are also unlikely to be connected to the Internet. As a result, after 16 months of Internet usage, only 16 percent of the participants were using e-mail and only 25 percent were using instant messaging services. Another reason researchers suggested was that because “African-American culture is historically an ‘oral culture,’” and 83 percent of the participants were African American, the “impersonal nature of the Internet’s typical communication tools” may have led participants to continue to prefer face-to-face contact. In other words, social interaction on the Internet can only happen if your friends are also on the Internet.

The Way Forward: Communication, Convergence, and Corporations

On February 15, 2010, the firm Compete, which analyzes Internet traffic, reported that Facebook surpassed Google as the No. 1 site to drive traffic toward news and entertainment media on both Yahoo! and MSN (Ingram, 2010). This statistic is a strong indicator that social networks are quickly becoming one of the most effective ways for people to sift through the ever-increasing amount of information on the Internet. It also suggests that people are content to get their news the way they did before the Internet or most other forms of mass media were invented—by word of mouth.

Many companies now use the Internet to leverage word-of-mouth social networking. The expansion of corporations into Facebook has given the service a big publicity boost, which has no doubt contributed to the growth of its user base, which in turn helps the corporations that put marketing efforts into the service. Putting a corporation on Facebook is not without risk; any corporation posting on Facebook runs the risk of being commented on by over 500 million users, and of course there is no way to ensure that those users will say positive things about the corporation. Good or bad, communicating with corporations is now a two-way street.

Key Takeaways

  • The Internet has made pop culture transmission a two-way street. The power to influence popular culture no longer lies with the relative few with control over traditional forms of mass media; it is now available to the great mass of people with access to the Internet. As a result, the cross-fertilization of pop culture from around the world has become a commonplace occurrence.
  • The Internet’s key difference from traditional media is that it does not operate on a set intervallic time schedule. It is not “periodical” in the sense that it comes out in daily or weekly editions; it is always updated. As a result, many journalists file both “regular” news stories and blog posts that may be updated and that can come at varied intervals as necessary. This allows them to stay up-to-date with breaking news without necessarily sacrificing the next day’s more in-depth story.
  • The “Internet paradox” is the hypothesis that although the Internet is a tool for communication, many teenagers who use the Internet lack social interaction and become antisocial and depressed. It has been largely disproved, especially since the Internet has grown so drastically. Many sites, such as Meetup.com or even Facebook, work to allow users to organize for offline events. Other services, like the video game World of Warcraft , serve as an alternate social world.
  • Make a list of ways you interact with friends, either in person or on the Internet. Are there particular methods of communication that only exist in person?
  • Are there methods that exist on the Internet that would be much more difficult to replicate in person?
  • How do these disprove the “Internet paradox” and contribute to the globalization of culture?
  • Pick a method of in-person communication and a method of Internet communication, and compare and contrast these using a Venn diagram.

Arango, Tim. “World Falls for American Media, Even as It Sours on America,” New York Times , November 30, 2008, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/01/business/media/01soft.html .

Biggs, John. “A Video Clip Goes Viral, and a TV Network Wants to Control It,” New York Times , February 20, 2006, http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/20/business/media/20youtube.html .

Coates, Ta-Nehisi Paul. “Confessions of a 30-Year-Old Gamer,” Time , January 12, 2007, http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1577502,00.html .

ComScore, “ComScore release March 2011 US Online Video Rankings,” April 12, 2011, http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events/Press_Releases/2011/4/ comScore_Releases_March_2011_U.S._Online_Video_Rankings .

Coyle, Jake. “On the Net: Hulu Is Web Site of the Year,” Seattle Times , December 19, 2008, http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/entertainment/2008539776_aponthenetsiteoftheyear.html .

Ellison, Nicole B. Charles Steinfield, and Cliff Lampe, “The Benefits of Facebook ‘Friends’: Social Capital and College Students’ Use of Online Social Network Sites,” Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication 14, no. 4 (2007).

Fairbanks, Amanda M. “Funny Thing Happened at the Dog Run,” New York Times , August 23, 2008, cse http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/24/nyregion/24meetup.html .

Google, “Internet users as percentage of population: China,” February 19, 2010, http://www.google.com/publicdata?ds=wb-wdi&met=it_net_user_p2&idim=country: CHN&dl=en&hl=en&q=china+internet+users .

Heiferman, Scott. “The Pursuit of Community,” New York Times , September 5, 2009, cse http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/06/jobs/06boss.html .

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The Effects of Globalization on Global Communication

by Anam Ahmed

Published on 21 Nov 2018

Connecting with people on the other side of the world is now much easier than it was a few years ago. Satellites, fiber-optic cables and the internet make it effortless to share information with those in different time zones and locations. Global communication is directly affected by the process of globalization, and helps to increase business opportunities, remove cultural barriers and develop a global village. Both globalization and global communication have changed the environmental, cultural, political and economic elements of the world.

Increased Business Opportunities

Many companies today hire employees that are located in other countries. Using communication vehicles such as video calling make it simple to converse with colleagues across the globe, almost making it feel as if they are in the same room. Technology also makes it easier to connect with suppliers and customers all over the world, and to streamline those relationship through improves ordering, shipment tracking and so on. With this kind of communication technology, many businesses are able to take advantage of opportunities in different countries or cities, improving the economic outlook on a global level.

Thanks to global communications, information itself can be transferred as a valuable business asset from one country to another. This has the effect of making everyone's operations more modern and efficient, regardless where they are located.

Fewer Cultural Barriers

Many people perceive culture to be the root of communication challenges. When people from two different cultures try to exchange information, the way they speak, their body language or their mannerisms can be interpreted differently by the other person. The way people approach problems and how they participate in communities is all influenced by culture.

Globalization has made it possible, for example, for someone in Japan to understand how someone in the U.S. goes about their day. With television and movies, cultural barriers are becoming less prevalent. Being able to communicate effectively and frequently with colleagues or friends across the planet helps people understand each other’s cultures a little better.

Creation of a Global Village

You’ve likely heard of the phrase "global village," coined by theorist Marshall McLuhan. Affected both by globalization and global communication, the global village is created when distance and isolation no longer matter because people are connected by technology. Wide-spread telephone and internet access have been life-changing for many people across the world, especially those in developing countries. Many are now enrolling in universities across the world without having to leave their desk chair. Virtual assistant jobs are becoming commonplace, where employees from developing countries work with companies in North America or Europe, providing administrative support and other business services that can easily be conducted over the phone or via the internet.

Globalization and global communication have made it easier to see people on the other side of the world as a neighbor, instead of a stranger from a faraway land. There is so much knowledge about other countries and cultures available online, that it’s no longer a complete mystery.

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The Globalization of Communication

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Communication of countries with each other was very difficult due to geographic reasons. globalization, even those distant from each other, are interlinked and influence each other, the effect of which is to produce a change in the structure of the economy, various cultures and societies of the world. Technologies used to communicate and its effects have been felt across the planet. In a nutshell, communicating globally means sending and receiving information all around the Earth. From a different perspective, globalization merely implies the coalescence of different societies in matters of culture, politics, ethics, ideas and other areas fundamental to human societies. Multinational communication has become easier and thus seems to develop closer bonds. The theory of cultural hybridization proposes that interacting cultures take from and absorb each other's features , resulting in a hybrid form based on synergy. The case appears strongest when examining popular music. This viewpoint focuses on the exchange of cultural features and their absorption into another culture's way of doing things. Analogously to hybrid formation in nature , which involves the exchange of genetic material, so, the theory goes, society's practices are formed from a fusion of elements taken from multiple different cultures.

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Globalization has led to the hybridization of culture, becoming an increasingly interesting research topic. This is a reflection of the cultural changes in modern society. Globalization allows for and also causes interaction between cultures worldwide. Consequently, different cultures interact with each other, resulting in a hybrid culture. The process of globalization has been accelerated by advancements in communication, transportation, and technology on a global scale. This has increased mutual interaction between cultures worldwide, accelerating cultural hybridization. This article will discuss the reasons and consequences of globalization and cultural hybridization, as well as their impact on cultures.

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When the world is growing closer, new and more proficient linkages are being created among people from various cultures. Globalization has promoted the level of interaction which takes place among people when they get an opportunity to come together. In such a scenario where one country such as Nigeria has to perform at an international level, several new terminologies are being coined and understood. One such phenomenon is that of Cultural Hybridization, which is being recognized as a very popular subject matter for further study. Cultural Hybridization by definition means the amalgamation of cultural and related elements of two or more different backgrounds. To understand the exact meaning, it is very important to understand the complete concept of international interface and interaction and globalization in details.

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Looking at the concept differently, globalization- which is the result of technological, ideological, political, social and economic transformations- can possibly be seen as the reason social borders now remain only at a geographical level. This is due to the common benefits of perceiving the world as being as small as a village. The perception of the world as a “Global Village” in McLuhan’s expression, points out the importance of communication in the globalization process. Communication –making people understand each other: socialize and compromise; by the common codes- emerges as a mediatory factor providing social and inter-communal convention. This study shows the role and the significance of communication in the area of social/cultural convention’s formation and development. The main characteristic of globalization is that it results in social and cultural change and transformation, immediately, in all senses, and in any field of life; as well as in relation to economics and t...

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The world is in the age of dramatic social change due to the rapid transformation of capital, finance, technologies, ideas, and information through cross-national boundaries (Holton, 2000). The international trade and commerce, human migration, technological exchange, expansion of religion, and military hegemony are massively integrated and interdependent across the globe now. Whereas, the cultural consequences of globalization are interlinked with a varied and intricate culture around the world. Therefore, this study will explore the cultural perspectives of globalization, find out the cultural consequences of globalization, and evaluate the illusion of cultural globalization critically. Keywords: Globalization, Culture, Consequences, Standardization, Polarization, Hybridization

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The term Globalization (or globalisation) refers to processes of international integration arising from the interchange of world views, products, ideas, and other aspects of culture. [1][2] Advances in transportation and telecommunications infrastructure, including the rise of the telegraph and its posterity theInternet, are major factors in globalization, generating further interdependence of economic and cultural activities. [3] Though several scholars place the origins of globalization in modern times, others trace its history long before the European age of discovery and voyages to the New World. Some even trace the origins to the third millennium BCE. [4][5]

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Effects of Economic Globalization

Globalization has led to increases in standards of living around the world, but not all of its effects are positive for everyone.

Social Studies, Economics, World History

Bangladesh Garment Workers

The garment industry in Bangladesh makes clothes that are then shipped out across the world. It employs as many as four million people, but the average worker earns less in a month than a U.S. worker earns in a day.

Photograph by Mushfiqul Alam

The garment industry in Bangladesh makes clothes that are then shipped out across the world. It employs as many as four million people, but the average worker earns less in a month than a U.S. worker earns in a day.

Put simply, globalization is the connection of different parts of the world. In economics, globalization can be defined as the process in which businesses, organizations, and countries begin operating on an international scale. Globalization is most often used in an economic context, but it also affects and is affected by politics and culture. In general, globalization has been shown to increase the standard of living in developing countries, but some analysts warn that globalization can have a negative effect on local or emerging economies and individual workers. A Historical View Globalization is not new. Since the start of civilization, people have traded goods with their neighbors. As cultures advanced, they were able to travel farther afield to trade their own goods for desirable products found elsewhere. The Silk Road, an ancient network of trade routes used between Europe, North Africa, East Africa, Central Asia, South Asia, and the Far East, is an example of early globalization. For more than 1,500 years, Europeans traded glass and manufactured goods for Chinese silk and spices, contributing to a global economy in which both Europe and Asia became accustomed to goods from far away. Following the European exploration of the New World, globalization occurred on a grand scale; the widespread transfer of plants, animals, foods, cultures, and ideas became known as the Columbian Exchange. The Triangular Trade network in which ships carried manufactured goods from Europe to Africa, enslaved Africans to the Americas, and raw materials back to Europe is another example of globalization. The resulting spread of slavery demonstrates that globalization can hurt people just as easily as it can connect people. The rate of globalization has increased in recent years, a result of rapid advancements in communication and transportation. Advances in communication enable businesses to identify opportunities for investment. At the same time, innovations in information technology enable immediate communication and the rapid transfer of financial assets across national borders. Improved fiscal policies within countries and international trade agreements between them also facilitate globalization. Political and economic stability facilitate globalization as well. The relative instability of many African nations is cited by experts as one of the reasons why Africa has not benefited from globalization as much as countries in Asia and Latin America. Benefits of Globalization Globalization provides businesses with a competitive advantage by allowing them to source raw materials where they are inexpensive. Globalization also gives organizations the opportunity to take advantage of lower labor costs in developing countries, while leveraging the technical expertise and experience of more developed economies. With globalization, different parts of a product may be made in different regions of the world. Globalization has long been used by the automotive industry , for instance, where different parts of a car may be manufactured in different countries. Businesses in several different countries may be involved in producing even seemingly simple products such as cotton T-shirts. Globalization affects services, too. Many businesses located in the United States have outsourced their call centers or information technology services to companies in India. As part of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), U.S. automobile companies relocated their operations to Mexico, where labor costs are lower. The result is more jobs in countries where jobs are needed, which can have a positive effect on the national economy and result in a higher standard of living. China is a prime example of a country that has benefited immensely from globalization. Another example is Vietnam, where globalization has contributed to an increase in the prices for rice, lifting many poor rice farmers out of poverty. As the standard of living increased, more children of poor families left work and attended school. Consumers benefit also. In general, globalization decreases the cost of manufacturing . This means that companies can offer goods at a lower price to consumers. The average cost of goods is a key aspect that contributes to increases in the standard of living. Consumers also have access to a wider variety of goods. In some cases, this may contribute to improved health by enabling a more varied and healthier diet; in others, it is blamed for increases in unhealthy food consumption and diabetes. Downsides Not everything about globalization is beneficial. Any change has winners and losers, and the people living in communities that had been dependent on jobs outsourced elsewhere often suffer. Effectively, this means that workers in the developed world must compete with lower-cost markets for jobs; unions and workers may be unable to defend against the threat of corporations that offer the alternative between lower pay or losing jobs to a supplier in a less expensive labor market. The situation is more complex in the developing world, where economies are undergoing rapid change. Indeed, the working conditions of people at some points in the supply chain are deplorable. The garment industry in Bangladesh, for instance, employs an estimated four million people, but the average worker earns less in a month than a U.S. worker earns in a day. In 2013, a textile factory building collapsed, killing more than 1,100 workers. Critics also suggest that employment opportunities for children in poor countries may increase negative impacts of child labor and lure children of poor families away from school. In general, critics blame the pressures of globalization for encouraging an environment that exploits workers in countries that do not offer sufficient protections. Studies also suggest that globalization may contribute to income disparity and inequality between the more educated and less educated members of a society. This means that unskilled workers may be affected by declining wages, which are under constant pressure from globalization. Into the Future Regardless of the downsides, globalization is here to stay. The result is a smaller, more connected world. Socially, globalization has facilitated the exchange of ideas and cultures, contributing to a world view in which people are more open and tolerant of one another.

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Communication Technology and Globalization

Globalization is the impact of spurt of advancement in communication technology. The communication growth is so rapid that globalization has to double step in attaining the pace with such technology achievements. Technological inventions of very recent past now look like decade old when compared to current advancements and inventions. Communication technology has become a driving force of globalization. The study in this paper analyses the impact of growth in communication technology on globalization.

Communication advancements of nineties caused widespread growth when communication technology revealed its real potential. Growth in communication network brought out by information technology witnessed a stream of expansion of products and ideas breaking geographic boundaries. The impact was so great that communication development brought out by IT became the catalyst for global integration. Consider goods manufactured in China were available in those countries where China is not even involved diplomatically. Everything is moving dramatically fast. Few years earlier desktop computers were operated by small numbers of people and the main sources of document production were the typewriters. Now even desktop is giving way to laptops and such other versions of computerization that conveys faster information through the wonder of the centuries called ‘internet’. Imagine mobile phones have become so necessary that communication is virtually impossible without mobile phones.

Internet has revolutionized the all round activities so much that no place in the world is far from the other. “Websites, chat rooms, instant messaging systems, e-mail, electronic bulletin boards, and other internet- based communication systems have made it easier for the people of common interests to find each other, exchange information, and collaborate with each other.” (CSIS, 2006). Internet has made the status of globalization so strong that the importance of information on internet does not go waste like tangible goods. The internet information remains useful for years to come as internet has emerged as network built upon the exchange of information.

The most important feature boosting globalization is the information travels very fast and at very negligible cost. Now “we hear much of the creation of a borderless world and the end of nation state. It is true that satellites and the internet have greatly increased the speed at which the information of cultural and informational impulses is propagated throughout the globe.”(Jonathan M. Harris and Neva R Goodwin, page 62).

The world is aggressively marching towards a free economy. Competition has become high because information about goods or services produced in a remote part of world is made available through ever advancing communication technology. There is Electronic Fund Transfers (EFT) boosting businesses in every part of the world. Emergence of an organization called SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) has ensured a reliable electronic financial system. All this is happening because of advancement in communication technology. The fact is that “the current cycle of globalization is in part the product of new global media, information and communication technologies that instantly connect people, organizations, and systems across vast distances.” (Marcelo M. Suraez-Orozco and Desiree Qin- Hilliard, page 17).

It is believed that globalization is an extensive complement to the advanced communication technology. It not only makes the business entities powerful but also moving the world towards an integrated society. That is the reason that communication technology is being considered as the real facilitator of the process of globalization.

  • CSIS (Center for Strategic and information Studies), Information Technology and Globalization,  2006.
  • Jonathan M. Harris and Neva R Goodwin, New thinking in microeconomics: social, institutional, and environmental, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2003, page 62
  • Marcelo M. Suraez-Orozco and Desiree Qin- Hilliard, Globalization: cultural and education in the new millennium, University of California Press,2004, page 17

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Impacts Of Globalization On Culture And Communication Essay Examples

Type of paper: Essay

Topic: Business , Management , Globalization , Communication , Human , Culture , Community , Human Resource Management

Words: 2250

Published: 12/19/2019

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The concept of globalization has become central in recent pats. There is shift in the manner in which business, commerce, human relation and culture is currently presented to the world. Improvement and innovation in technology in transport and communication has allowed both human and commerce to go beyond national, continental and cultural boundaries. For this particular reason, multinational businesses have emerged and are doing business at nearly every corner of the world. Numerous businesses involved in consumer products and services in, particular financial and management services, have taken advantage of globalization to build huge business empires. China and the other emerging Asian ‘tiger’ economies present a good business location for manufacturing based. The Middle East is taking the bunch of financial services multinational companies to facilitate trade between the East and the West (Hitt, Ireland, & Hoskisson, 2010). Oil firms are investing in remote locations in the world as oil exploration leads the oil industry. This massive globalization is not without its share of hurdles. Several factors such as political influences, government regulation, stiff competition, incoherent consumer behavior, different marketing strategies, differentiated human resource management strategies and culture are examples of few factors affected by globalization. Culture is perhaps the most influential aspect that is affected by the said globalization. Exchanges in commerce and the relation of humans from different corners of the world have a profound effect on the culture of the people. Impacts on the culture also tend to spill over and impact communication. This research evaluates the impacts of impacts of globalization on culture and how this affects communication especially in business. The first part of the paper provides a theoretical review on culture and a brief analysis on how globalization affects the same. The second part evaluates the manner in which different cultures provides the foundation for human resource management strategies. Thirdly the research will examine the impact of multicultural communities on communication as presented by globalization.

Theoretical Review of Culture

The term culture is somewhat a multifaceted characteristic of a people that is somewhat difficult to define in simple terms. Social scientists have developed several definitions of the term culture however, the simplest definition terms culture as a combination of accepted character among the people living within a community (Aycan, Mendonca, Yu, Deller, Stahl, & Kurshid, 2000). In general, every community has an accepted character defined by personal perceptions, attitudes, motivation, background, social class and personality. All these factors affect the behavior of an individual. Aycan, et al, (2000,) argues that such factors tend to be similar in cases where a community shares similar traditions, religion, perceptions, heritage and motivation. The result is a sought of collective programming of the minds of the people within the community and thus a shared tradition. This collective perspective on several aspects of life may be defined as the culture of a community. However, geographical location seems to have a greater influence in religion and thus definiting the culture of the people. For instance, the Middle East is predominantly a Muslim territory and thus teachings in Islam tend to define most of the social structure in the region. In the United States, there is a general perception of liberty to do and believe in anything of interest, thus the ‘American culture’ is one of social liberty . However, there are simple tests that have been developed to understand the manner in which these cultures differ. For instance, the manner in which people relate to each other has been carefully studied and two theories have since emerged. These theories are social individualism versus collectivism. The two social theories try to determine the degree to which individuals feel a belonging to a social stratification or groups such as families . This characteristic also extends to work places in determining the nature of working protocols. It determines whether group psychology would yield more results or individual performance will work best. Researchers and sociologists have developed an index matrix called the Individualism Index (IDV). This is a good tool used in determining whether a population prefers individual independence over group performance (Panayotopoulou, Bourantas, & Papalexandris, 2003). Highest independence indices were found in the United States, Australia, and Great Britain. Here most of the population preferred a more secluded lifestyle and individual business performance is preferred. On the other hand, lowest IDV scores were found in Ecuador, Guatemala, India and East Africa. Asia was also found to have low individualism indices and this implies that team and a collective responsibility is important and vital. These differences continually play out in the society. There are other theories that have been developed to explain the existence of different cultures. One theory that has been developed explains a motivation within a community. Each culture has a different way of viewing aspect regarding motivation based on what leads a community to seek improvement. Singh (2003) asserts that social motivation can either be masculinity, femininity or the degree of uncertainty avoidance. Masculinity and feminism can be viewed as directly opposing theories. By definition, these two theories attempt to define the distribution of emotional roles between genders in the society. Masculinity defines the nature in which each gender has a stratified role in the society while feminism allows non-defined roles for each gender . Duality of the sexes is one of the most fundamental aspects that define cultures and respecting this definition is fundamental. In the same respect, several scholars and social theorists have undertaken research on the issue of masculinity vs. Feminism. It was found that both men and women are supposed to be modest and value the quality of life (Aycan, et al, 2000). A similar index that evaluates the definition of gender roles at the work place was used. This index is referred to as Masculinity Index (MAS). Sonja & Phillips (2004) state that Japan was found to be the country with the highest MAS score, implying that the Japanese population has distinct definition of the role of each gender within an organization. German speaking nation such as Germany, Switzerland and Austria also reported similarly high MAS scores. Anglo nations such as the United Kingdom, United States, South Africa and Canada had fairly average MAS score. At the lower end of MAS index scores Netherlands, Norway and Sweden have less definitions of the role of each gender (Budhwar & Katou, 2005). This implies that these nations with lower MAS score have no problem with women at leadership positions as compared to countries with high score such as Japan. With regard to uncertainty avoidance, Freitag (2005) illustrates that this is the manner in which a society react and deals with unstructured situations. Such situations are unknown and surprising and thus different cultures have different methods of attempting to bring the situations under control. Each region has different methods of dealing with uncertainty. While this research may not have yielded conclusive results, there is evidence of high uncertainty avoidance index in Asian communities as compared to western societies. Globalization has since thrown these perceptions of culture into much confusion. The movement of humans and commerce to other location of the world has created challenges to different communities. While commerce has allowed shifting and relocation and expatriates to different locations in the world, such relocation has allowed the absorption of different cultures. Today the world is continually adopting new cultures. The west and the ‘American lifestyle’ are continually adopted around the globe . A very good example that can illustrate this is the penetration of the pop music now associated with the youth around the world. Several societies are shifting for cultural music to more lavish and stylish kind of music. China has also shifted its cultural trend. The traditional mode of dressing has been dropped and new western firms such as Dolce & Gabbana are now doing big business in China and this can only be attributed to cultural changes. Globalization has also significantly affected the methods and techniques of communication.

Impacts of Culture on Communication

Culture has been said to have a great impact on communication and this is also affected by the extent of globalization. Adoption of different cultures is continually changing the method and level of communication. Each culture tends to provide to the society with express knowledge on how to behave on different situation. It also directs how someone should react in some situations. International businesses, as fostered by the extensive globalization efforts, have the challenge of understanding how different cultures define acceptable communication protocols . Social theorists have identified two theories that affect communication in the society. These are individualism and collectivism. As earlier discussed each of these tendencies defines how individuals view themselves in the precepts of the society. While individualism allows one to be self-expressive and articulate matters of concern at any level, collectivism calls for a consensus on matters before passing a communication of agreed result. Collectivism simply stratifies the employees into one unit and articulate matters as a unit. Thus, it would difficult for a junior employee to talk to the director in nations such as China and Japan, while in the United States individuals may be advised to express personal opinion. Different cultures prescribe different behaviors for males and females. Such differentiated character is instilled from a young age and continue to direct behavior throughout the lives of a particular cultural group. In general however, males are expected to be assertive and aggressive while females are expected to be more sensitive and nurturing. In most cultures, these issues affect the manner in which communication may be carried in an organization. In some cultures, women may not be able to articulate their issues even though they have issues. On the other hand, globalization has presented new socio-economic relations between men and women in the society. The effect is a more assertive women-folk and thus organization must provide room for women to express themselves. For instance, in India the communication mechanism of both sexes is quite different. While men were given priority in articulating issues, cultural changes have now provided women with ability to speak out. The most important aspect about globalization and communication is the issue of language. Each culture has different language and each culture has a very unique way of expressing as shown different languages . This has been problem since no two languages are exactly similar. Additionally, an expression in one language may have a totally different meaning in another language. Thus communication that is intended to pass a similar message is completely distorted. Societies are further stratified by biases of social, political or spiritual issues inherent in different cultures. Finding a common ground for communication between these diverse cultures is a major challenge posed by globalization. For instance in Japan disagreement and argument is seen as deeply offensive and disrespectful towards seniors and is highly discouraged. On the other, in the Netherlands, people see arguments as a very important tool in arriving at constructive solutions. Such communication difference in culture means that a Japanese multinational organization may have difficulties operating in the Netherlands and vice versa.

The twenty first century has seen massive improvement in information and technology making the world such a small ‘village’. Big multinational corporations have expanded their businesses to diverse geographical locations to improve their balance sheet assets and profits as well. However, such massive expansion and global reach of different societies has its challenges. Businesses have to put cultural difference into consideration. Globalization has a great impact on the different cultures that existed in the society. While the impact on the culture, be it positive or negative impacts, may be argued, the impacts on communication surely abounds. This differentiation in culture has been found to greatly impact communication in my aspects.

Aycan, Z. K., Mendonca, M., Yu, K., Deller, J., Stahl, G., & Kurshid, A. (2000). Impact of Culture on Human Resource Management Practices: A 10-Country Comparison. Applied Psychology: An International Review Vol 49 (1), , 192-221. Budhwar, P., & Katou, A. (2005). The effect of human resource management systems on organizational performance in Greek manufacturing: A mediating model. EURAM 2005 Conference,, (pp. 42-67). Munich.

Delery, J. (1998). Issues of fit in strategic human resource management: Implications for research. Human Resource Management Review. Vol 8 (3), , 289-309.

Fields, D., Chan, A., & Akhtar, S. (2000). Organizational Context and Human Resource Management Strategy: A Structural Equation Analysis of Hong Kong Firms International. Journal of Human Resource Management Vol 11(2), , 264-277. Freitag, N. (2005). Critical The Impact of Culture on International Marketing Plans and Review of the French Wine Industry. Toronto: GRIN Verlag.

Hitt, M. A., Ireland, R. D., & Hoskisson, R. E. (2010). Strategic Management: Competitiveness & Globalization, Concepts. Boston: Cengage Learning,.

Paauwe, J., & Boselie, P. (2002). Challenging (Strategic) Human Resource Management Theory: Integration of Resource-Based approaches and new institutionalism. Rotterdam: Erasmus Research Institute of Management (ERIM),. Panayotopoulou, L., Bourantas, D., & Papalexandris, N. (2003). Strategic human resource management and its effects on firm performance: an implementation of the competing values framework. International Journal of Human Resource Management. Vol 14(4), , 680-699.

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Singh, K. (2003). The effect of human resources practices on firm performance in India. Human Resource Development International 6(1), , 101-116. Sonja, A., & Phillips, M. (2004). Contextual Influences on Culture Research Shifting: Assumptions for New Workplace Realities. International Journal of Cross Cultural Management Vol 4(3) , 370-390.

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The Impact of Instant Communication on Globalization

This essay about the impact of instant communication on globalization explores how technology has revolutionized the way we connect and interact on a global scale. It highlights the role of instant communication in facilitating global trade and commerce, fostering the exchange of ideas and cultures, and reshaping human relationships across geographical boundaries. While acknowledging the benefits of instant communication, the essay also discusses the challenges it poses, such as the spread of misinformation and concerns about digital well-being. Overall, it emphasizes the need for mindful use of instant communication to harness its potential for positive change while addressing its risks in an increasingly interconnected world.

How it works

In the grand tapestry of globalization, instant communication threads its way as a vibrant strand, weaving together the fabric of our interconnected world. This phenomenon has sparked a revolution in how we connect, communicate, and collaborate across vast distances, transcending the limitations of time and space.

At the heart of the matter lies the transformative impact of instant communication on global commerce. With the click of a button or the swipe of a screen, businesses can now engage in real-time dialogue with partners and customers across continents.

From negotiating deals to resolving issues, the ability to communicate instantly has streamlined operations and accelerated the pace of international trade. This seamless exchange of information has paved the way for the emergence of global markets, where goods and services flow effortlessly across borders, fostering economic interdependence and driving prosperity on a global scale.

Yet, beyond the realm of business, instant communication has become a catalyst for the dissemination of ideas and the exchange of cultures. Social media platforms, messaging apps, and online forums serve as virtual melting pots where individuals from diverse backgrounds converge to share stories, swap insights, and forge connections. This digital agora has given rise to a new era of global citizenship, where borders dissolve and barriers to understanding crumble in the face of open dialogue and shared experiences. From viral memes to grassroots movements, instant communication has become the lifeblood of a truly global conversation, where every voice has the potential to be heard and every idea has the power to inspire change.

Moreover, instant communication has redefined the nature of human relationships in the digital age, transcending geographical boundaries to foster connections that span the globe. Whether it’s staying in touch with loved ones halfway across the world or collaborating with colleagues in different time zones, technology has made distance virtually irrelevant in the pursuit of meaningful relationships. Through video calls, voice messages, and social networking, individuals can bridge the gap between cultures, languages, and lifestyles, forging bonds that transcend the constraints of physical proximity. In this borderless world, the notion of community takes on new dimensions, encompassing virtual tribes united by shared interests, values, and aspirations.

However, as with any technological advancement, instant communication also brings its share of challenges and complexities. The speed and scale of information dissemination can sometimes outpace our ability to discern truth from fiction, leading to the spread of misinformation and the erosion of trust in traditional media sources. Moreover, the constant barrage of notifications and alerts can take a toll on mental well-being, fueling a culture of distraction and information overload that leaves little room for reflection or contemplation.

In conclusion, the impact of instant communication on globalization is both profound and multifaceted, reshaping the way we interact, transact, and relate to one another in an increasingly interconnected world. As we navigate the opportunities and challenges of this digital frontier, it is essential to approach instant communication with a sense of mindfulness and responsibility, harnessing its potential to bridge divides and foster understanding while mitigating its risks to ensure a more inclusive, equitable, and sustainable global future

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4 Effects of Globalization on the Environment

Rainforest deforestation resulting from globalization

  • 15 Apr 2021

Globalization —defined in the online course Global Business as the increased flow of goods, services, capital, people, and ideas across international boundaries—has brought many changes in its wake.

While globalization can positively and negatively impact society, its effect on the environment is primarily negative. Here’s a breakdown of how globalization impacts society and the environment and what business leaders can do to reduce these negative consequences.

How Does Globalization Affect Society?

The world has become more connected than ever before through the increase in technological advancements and economic integrations. Advanced economies are formed as domestic businesses transform into international ones and further contribute to the spread of technology around the world.

There are several benefits of globalization , such as increased international trade and cooperation and less international aggression. Social globalization —the sharing of ideas and information between countries—has led to innovation in the medical, technological, and environmental preservation industries.

Additionally, globalization has improved the quality of life in several developing nations. This includes implementing efficient transportation systems and ensuring accessibility to services such as education and healthcare.

However, globalization can also have negative effects on society, such as increased income inequality and substandard working conditions in developing countries that produce goods for wealthier nations. Income inequality is directly related to globalization as it further increases the gap between more advanced and developing areas of a nation. As a result, it can also increase the risk of societal violence.

Along with its societal effects, globalization has a lasting impact on the environment—and typically not a positive one.

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What Are the Effects of Globalization on the Environment?

4 Effects of Globalization on the Environment

1. Increased Transport of Goods

One of the primary results of globalization is that it opens businesses up to new markets in which they can sell goods and source labor, raw materials, and components.

Both of these realities mean finished products travel farther now than ever before—potentially halfway around the globe. In the past, products were more likely to be produced, sold, and consumed locally. This increased transport of goods can impact the environment in several ways, including:

  • Increased emissions: The farther a product travels, the more fuel is consumed, and a greater level of greenhouse gas emissions is produced. According to a report by the International Transport Forum , CO2 emissions from transport will increase 16 percent by 2050. These emissions contribute to pollution, climate change , and ocean acidification around the world and have been shown to significantly impact biodiversity.
  • Habitat destruction: Transportation—especially when land-based—requires infrastructure like roads and bridges. The development of such infrastructure can lead to issues including habitat loss and pollution. The more ships that travel by sea, the greater the chances for major oil spills or leaks that damage the delicate marine environment.
  • Invasive species: Every shipping container and vessel presents an opportunity for a living organism—from plants to animals to fungus—to hitch a ride to a new location where it can become invasive and grow without checks and balances that might be present in its natural environment.

2. Economic Specialization

One often-overlooked side effect of globalization is that it allows nations and geographical regions to focus on their economic strengths while relying on trading partners for goods they don’t produce themselves. This economic specialization often boosts productivity and efficiency.

Unfortunately, overspecialization can threaten forest health and lead to serious environmental issues, often in the form of habitat loss, deforestation, or natural resource overuse. A few examples include:

  • Illegal deforestation in Brazil due to an increase in the country’s cattle ranching operations, which requires significant land for grazing
  • Overfishing in coastal areas that include Southeast Asia, which has significantly contributed to reduced fish populations and oceanic pollution
  • Overdependence on cash crops, such as coffee, cacao, and various fruits, which has contributed to habitat loss, especially in tropical climates

It’s worth considering that globalization has allowed some nations to specialize in producing various energy commodities, such as oil, natural gas, and timber. Nations that depend on energy sales to fund a large portion of their national budgets, along with those that note “energy security” as a priority, are more likely to take intervening actions in the market in the form of subsidies or laws that make transitioning to renewable energy more difficult.

The main byproduct of these energy sources comes in the form of greenhouse gas emissions, which significantly contribute to global warming and climate change.

3. Decreased Biodiversity

Increased greenhouse gas emissions, ocean acidification, deforestation (and other forms of habitat loss or destruction), climate change, and the introduction of invasive species all work to reduce biodiversity around the globe.

According to the World Wildlife Fund’s recent Living Planet Report , the population sizes of all organisms—including mammals, birds, fish, amphibians, and reptiles—have decreased 68 percent since 1970. Latin America and Africa—two rapidly developing regions important to global trade—have seen disproportionate levels of biodiversity loss, especially among environmentally sensitive fish, reptiles, and amphibians.

While this decrease in biodiversity has many causes, it’s widely believed that the issues listed above have contributed in part.

4. Increased Awareness

While many of globalization’s environmental effects have been negative, its increase has heightened environmental awareness worldwide.

Greater connectivity and higher rates of international travel have made it easier than ever for individuals to see the effects of deforestation, habitat loss, and climate change on the environment. This, in turn, has contributed to new laws, regulations, and processes that limit negative effects.

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Globalization as a Threat and an Opportunity

Globalization has allowed society to enjoy many benefits, including increased global cooperation, reduced risk of global conflict, and lower prices for goods and commodities. Unfortunately, it’s also led to serious negative effects on the environment.

Since it isn’t feasible for globalization to end or reverse, it’s likely the situation will worsen until nations, governing bodies, and other organizations are compelled to implement laws and regulations that limit negative effects.

Businesses and industries that operate globally have an incentive to take whatever voluntary actions they can to reduce the potential for negative consequences. Doing so can not only provide an organization greater control over its initiatives, but also a powerful marketing and communication tool .

Some ways businesses address climate change include:

  • Transitioning to renewable energy sources
  • Choosing greener infrastructures or equipment
  • Reducing energy consumption
  • Creating credible climate transition plans
  • Raising awareness among employees

In addition, investing in renewable energy and packaging, embracing responsible land-use management, and shifting goods production to move closer to the end customer are all viable options that businesses can and should consider. The challenge lies in balancing a desire to embrace corporate social responsibility with the need to turn a profit and run a successful business.

Are you interested in breaking into a global market? Sharpen your knowledge of the international business world with our four-week Global Business course. In addition, explore our Business and Climate Change course to help your organization adapt to and embrace business risks and opportunities created by climate change, as well as our other online courses related to business in society .

This post was updated on February 28, 2024. It was originally published on April 15, 2021.

effects of globalization in communication essay

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The Effect of Globalization on a World Culture Essay

Introduction, globalization and culture.

Scientific innovations and inventions have accelerated the growth of globalization. Nations can easily trade, socialize, share ideas, and assist each other in different spheres of life.

Improved international relations have enabled the movement of factors of production among nations with minimal barriers to trade. The cooperation has led to social, political, and economical globalization; although neither of the above three classifications of globalization have been fully attained, their effects can be felt in economic, political, and social spheres of life.

Critics of globalization appreciate that it has positive effect on economic wellbeing of countries. However they are quick to point out that globalization has high culture and identity loss/costs (Sheila 56). They are of the opinion that modernization has the potential of running roughshod over the world’s distinctive cultures and creates a single world which resembles a tawdry mall. This paper discuses the effect of globalization on a world culture.

Culture is the identity of people that any member adheres to. It has some defined attributes, some of them are written and others are not. The set way of operation that is governed by some cultural, communal, and societal goals assists in holding people together and creates a norm in the community.

When people trade, socialize or interact with each other in a way it has been enabled by globalization, there is the tendency that they will lose their identity and inherit a system of operation or a certain mode of conduct that is generally accepted by the community (in this instance, the word community has been used to refer to the larger global community created by globalization).

According to Tyler Cowen, modernization and cultural globalization have resulted into the growth of creativity, innovation, and invention among communities. When people interact, they tend to learn the other parties’ way of operation and the difference is likely to trigger some creative mind for the benefit of the two parties.

The above observation by Tyler Cowen can be interpolated either negatively or positively; from a positive angle, modernization has created a room for invention and innovation. On a negative note, the world is utilizing the differences it has as failing to create more differences that future generation is likely to run out of creative mind, as there will be lack of motivation in the form of current culture differences.

For example, in the 1950s, Cuban Music and Reggae was produced in Cuba with the target consumers as American Tourists who visited the country. In Cuba, the style of music was part of their tradition that the Americans loved to sing along. With diffusion of culture and more exposure, the style of music has been adopted by the Americans, and today it is played in modern clubs and bars.

Today, if a Cuban was to visit the United States, he or she was likely to feel accommodated by the structures as there are some similar attributes that he/she gets. In either French or German restaurants, a shopper is able to buy Sushi (Japanese foods consisting of cooked vinegared rice (shari) combined with other ingredients (neta)). Such a move shows how Japanese have been accommodated in both European countries (Sheila 256).

With cultural globalization, people of different cultures, ethnicities, nationalities, religions, and values find themselves in the same atmosphere where no one has the freedom to fully adhere or practice his culture. With such kind of setting, the most probable thing that can happen is people to develop a set of culture that will assist them transact business despite their differences.

The net result is a global culture; the effect and extent that global culture has gone in the world varied among nations and continents; developed countries have their culture more diffused and uniformity can be seen from their way of operation. In developing countries, there is a tendency of resistance to change the culture, but the force therein is strong. Efforts to change the culture of people are not deliberate, but they are necessitated by the prevailing condition in the world.

In contemporary business environments, organizations hire employees of different nationalities, ethnic backgrounds, cultural believes, intellectual capacity, and age. The nature and mix of employees calls for management to develop policies and management mechanisms that will gain from the differences in their human capital; to manage the diverse personnel, business leaders need to adopt international human resources management strategy (IHRM).

The policies that organizations embark on should entail policies that address diverse human resource issues; organization stands to benefit from diversity if the right management policies are set in place, but there is the risk that the differences create uniform business practice. With diffusion of cultures, management can enact some common human resource policies that cut across its diverse human capital. However, care should be exercised since chances of repellence in the event policies seem to be confronting with culture of people.

When managing human capital of different nationalities, businesses leaders should make policies that can assist in tapping their organization’s personnel’s intellectual capacity, as it grows their talents and skills. Culture is likely to affect people in different spheres, thus when companies have diverse human resources, they have to ensure that their programs are sensitive to the differences in culture and beliefs.

When working in different countries, management should never assume that the human management style adopted in the country is fully-effective and applicable to another country; they should take their time, understand what the other country’s employee value and consider best. Management gurus continue to offer insights of how culture and ethnicity of a people affect their performance in their works; they have suggested culture intelligence to assist organization handle their employees effectively regardless of their nationality.

When making business decisions, the culture and exposure that someone has is likely to affect the kind of decision that he is going to make; people who are exposed to the right materials through televisions, the internet, and print media are likely to make more informed decisions. With culture globalization, there has been exposure to different settings and information is available through the assistance of communication channels; the resultant community is an informed community that can make quality decisions for the exploitation of available resources effectively.

Differences in norms and culture among different ethnicity, nationalities, and communities has been a hindrance to effective trade, to some extent, the differences have acted as non tariff barriers that has hindered the development of trade.

When people interact and change their cultural beliefs to adopt a uniform set of beliefs, they are breaking the unseen barriers of trade and create a room for more business, ideas, equality, and economic development. For example, among the Muslims, Women had been regarded as inferior to men and they could hardly be allowed to take leadership positions.

With the interaction with Christians and getting their take on the same, there has been a wave in the community that has enabled them to seek leadership positions like men have. The above case has shown how culture globalization has created opportunities to different people and enabled women to get more opportunities. In the developed worlds, the state and position of the woman had been respected long before the same was done in developing worlds.

As the developed and developing countries trade among each other, the developing countries are getting into the system and women have started to have their positions in the communities. Gender differences has been minimized by globalization, there has been the reduction on gender differences among communities were human beings can now relate more as people not on gender grounds as the case had been when culture globalization was not adhered to.

The rights of girl child campaigns have gained roots in different countries as culture diffuses to reinforce and create awareness to the need to protect women and reduce gender differences that have prevailed among communities for a lengthy duration.

When people of different cultures interact, they develop the sense of togetherness and there are shared common interests that are developed; globalization has enabled the interaction, as well as sharing of ideas, opinions, view points and ways of doing things in a way that facilitates trade. Trade prevails better when the trading partners have some common values, attributes, and beliefs.

Culture globalization has enabled people to have the same perception and attitude towards similar products; with the similarity, peace and harmony in doing and handling issues have been developed. When there is peace and harmony, business and trade prevail effectively.

When people share culture, it means that when someone is in a geographical location different from his or hers, coping will be easy as there will be likelihood that the person will get something that is the same with what he or she beliefs.

For example, although the Chinese food is different from American food, a Chinese visiting the United States only need to establish the restaurant selling Chinese food as the nature and the diversity has been accepted by both the communities. Sales and marketers have much to benefit from globalized world, they can easily develop new formats and marketing strategies developed can be similar and message passed remains the same.

According to Benjamin Barber, one of the main challenges that have been brought about by globalization is culture borrowing and culture mimicry; with the borrowing and mimicry people have lost their sense of identity that someone can manage to treat his brother wrongly and hide under the new system of global culture.

Although culture globalization has not been fully attained, there are moves that indicate that its full operation cannot happen. In areas like religion (religion is an aspect of culture), changing people’s religious believes have been a challenge. The existence of some elements that can hardly change results to the notion of global culture being a mere statement by advocators of the integration, the situation cannot be attained.

Some industries in the globe exist because of differences in culture of people, for example, the tourism industry is much dependent on the cultural differences of people in different places. With culture diffusion, the industry is likely to suffer a huge blow.

In Kenya, the East African country whose tourism is the second earner of the foreign exchange has multicultural where the tourisms from different countries visit to enjoy and learn the diversity of the country’s population.

The move to global culture is thus likely to injure some industries while supporting others. Culture within communities is supported by generally agreed attributes that passes from one generation to another. The “nature of passing” of modern global culture is challenging as people or the global community has not set mechanisms to pass the culture, reinforce, or even punish offender.

To pass the global culture, the materials that young generation become exposed to modern methods of passing information like television, radio, the internet, peers, and written materials. When such materials have been used to pass culture, there are high chances that young generation will get reinforcement of culture which is not good. Global culture is more likely to be for the larger global community benefit, but rarely does it address issue of an individual.

With the structures and development of global culture, there cannot be said to have an effective method of culture reinforcement or a system to punish offender. This means that the culture is vulnerable to changes and hicks ups. Any small attribute or change in the global world is likely to shake the culture of the people since it’s not based on a strong foundation.

With globalization, companies can work in different parts of the world as multinationals; however they have to be sensitive to the nature of products, services, and structure of employees they deploy. Multinationals generally have three main methods to get their employees on board, they use a localization approach, expatriates approach, and a third country approach.

To maintain quality and quantity workforce, the management should ensure that they are aware of the culture of people and manage them effectively. The challenge that multinationals have is putting the notion that with culture globalization, there is uniformity, thus there is no need to have culture intelligence and culture awareness programs.

For example, Pepsi has been a major competitor in the American industry as its style is more American, however the brand has not maintained strong competitiveness in African countries since its style of marketing and sales fails to meet the needs of the continents culture. The above example shows how the notion of global culture has been mis-interpolated (Sheila 256).

Other than human resources, department maintaining qualified and efficient human capital at the most affordable cost possible, they have the role of ensuring they combine their human capital in a manner that will benefit the entire organization.

Diversity and difference in culture by itself offers an organization rich knowledge, opinions, values, and experience, with culture globalization such important attributes to business competitiveness are lost; before an organization decides to fill a certain vacancy in its system, the human resources should liaise with the departmental heads to know exactly the kind of qualification that are sort for, in some instances, the management may advice for some age gap, nationality, gender, and experience.

It is through effective recruitment that an organization can build an effective team that meets its personnel requirement needs. When enacting empowerment and motivational policies or schemes, the management should ensure that the diversity of its employees has been considered.

There are people who are generally team-players, others prefer individualism, and others are charismatic leaders. When making decision, it is important to consider the diversity. Management gurus has continually advised companies to have culture coaches when operating in a country they are not very sure of the nature and the culture of the people; with the coaches, they can develop orchestrate teams and make products that meet the requirement of customers in the country.

Diverse human resource can be biennial to an organization is managed effectively; failure to manage diversity effectively means exposure to risks. Management gurus have continued to support the use of culture intelligence and culture awareness programs to support the culture awareness within organizations; those companies that have undertaken the advice are doing better than those who have not.

Although cultural globalization has build strong operating base through which trade can prevail, it has brought some challenges to the world and the people in general. The lack of identity has resulted into sharing of values likely to dilute societal values and norms.

When the community lacks strong values that are maintained with a certain mechanism, the result is a disintegrated society were social evils are the order of the day. For example, in developed countries, one of the vises that the countries are dealing with is use of drugs and substance abuse by young people.

Although this is taken as a normal condition or social evil, psychologists have suggested that lack of strong values and low behavior standards by young people can be to blame. When the blame is further analyzed, it is seen that parents are not able to raise morally upright children as they have less regard to their cultural beliefs and practices which they consider to have been eroded by globalization.

With diffusion of cultures, there is less emphasis on family and societal values, parents and the community in general seem to ignore the need to maintain, pass and transfer culture to younger generations. When culture is not transferred, children are exposed to new global culture that might be different from the norm.

The results are the families that have low moral standards and which values are questionable. Generally, organizations require physical, human, and informational resources for their operation; business-leaders should realize that human capital is the most crucial capital their organizations have.

In a modern globalized world, organizations have diverse human capital; to manage the capital effectively, companies need to adopt international human resources management strategy. The strategy assists an organization benefit from its personnel diversity as it mitigates risks associated with a diverse workforce. With culture globalization the workforce seems to have the same ideologies an attributes that hinder creativity, innovation, and invention (Sheila 56-78).

Globalization has resulted into culture diffusion, culture sharing, and multiculturalism; the uniformity in culture facilitates trade among nations and promotes international relations and understanding.

However, multiculturalism has been blamed of dilution of people’s cultural values, norms, and virtues. Multiculturalism has also been challenged as a mere statement by business philosophers that will not be attained in the near future as family structures vary among different parts of the globe.

Sheila, Lucy. Globalization and Belonging: The Politics of Identity in a Changing World . London: Rowman & Littlefield, 2004.

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IvyPanda. (2019, November 14). The Effect of Globalization on a World Culture. https://ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-and-culture/

"The Effect of Globalization on a World Culture." IvyPanda , 14 Nov. 2019, ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-and-culture/.

IvyPanda . (2019) 'The Effect of Globalization on a World Culture'. 14 November.

IvyPanda . 2019. "The Effect of Globalization on a World Culture." November 14, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-and-culture/.

1. IvyPanda . "The Effect of Globalization on a World Culture." November 14, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-and-culture/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "The Effect of Globalization on a World Culture." November 14, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/globalization-and-culture/.

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From the world wide web to AI: 11 technology milestones that changed our lives

Laptop half-open.

The world wide web is a key technological milestone in the past 40 years. Image:  Unsplash/Ales Nesetril

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Stay up to date:, emerging technologies.

  • It’s been 40 years since the launch of the Apple Macintosh personal computer.
  • Since then, technological innovation has accelerated – here are some of the most notable tech milestones over the past four decades.
  • The World Economic Forum’s EDISON Alliance aims to digitally connect 1 billion people to essential services like healthcare, education and finance by 2025.

On 24 January 1984, Apple unveiled the Macintosh 128K and changed the face of personal computers forever.

Steve Jobs’ compact, user-friendly computer introduced the graphical user interface to the world, marking a pivotal moment in the evolution of personal technology.

Since that day, the rate of technological innovation has exploded, with developments in computing, communication, connectivity and machine learning expanding at an astonishing rate.

Here are some of the key technological milestones that have changed our lives over the past 40 years.

Have you read?

9 ways ai is helping tackle climate change, driving trust: paving the road for autonomous vehicles, these are the top 10 emerging technologies of 2023: here's how they can impact the world, 1993: the world wide web.

Although the internet’s official birthday is often debated, it was the invention of the world wide web that drove the democratization of information access and shaped the modern internet we use today.

Created by British scientist Tim Berners-Lee, the World Wide Web was launched to the public in 1993 and brought with it the dawn of online communication, e-commerce and the beginning of the digital economy.

Despite the enormous progress since its invention, 2.6 billion people still lack internet access and global digital inclusion is considered a priority. The World Economic Forum’s EDISON Alliance aims to bridge this gap and digitally connect 1 billion people to essential services like healthcare, education and finance by 2025.

1997: Wi-Fi

The emergence of publicly available Wi-Fi in 1997 changed the face of internet access – removing the need to tether to a network via a cable. Without Wi-Fi, the smartphone and the ever-present internet connection we’ve come to rely on, wouldn’t have been possible, and it has become an indispensable part of our modern, connected world.

1998: Google

The launch of Google’s search engine in 1998 marked the beginning of efficient web search, transforming how people across the globe accessed and navigated online information . Today, there are many others to choose from – Bing, Yahoo!, Baidu – but Google remains the world’s most-used search engine.

2004: Social media

Over the past two decades, the rise of social media and social networking has dominated our connected lives. In 2004, MySpace became the first social media site to reach one million monthly active users. Since then, platforms like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok have reshaped communication and social interaction , nurturing global connectivity and information sharing on an enormous scale, albeit not without controversy .

Most popular social networks worldwide as of January 2024, ranked by number of monthly active users

2007: The iPhone

More than a decade after the first smartphone had been introduced, the iPhone redefined mobile technology by combining a phone, music player, camera and internet communicator in one sleek device. It set new standards for smartphones and ultimately accelerated the explosion of smartphone usage we see across the planet today.

2009: Bitcoin

The foundations for modern digital payments were laid in the late 1950s with the introduction of the first credit and debit cards, but it was the invention of Bitcoin in 2009 that set the stage for a new era of secure digital transactions. The first decentralized cryptocurrency, Bitcoin introduced a new form of digital payment system that operates independently of traditional banking systems. Its underlying technology, blockchain, revolutionized the concept of digital transactions by providing a secure, transparent, and decentralized method for peer-to-peer payments. Bitcoin has not only influenced the development of other cryptocurrencies but has also sparked discussions about the future of money in the digital age.

2014: Virtual reality

2014 was a pivotal year in the development of virtual reality (VR) for commercial applications. Facebook acquired the Oculus VR company for $2 billion and kickstarted a drive for high-quality VR experiences to be made accessible to consumers. Samsung and Sony also announced VR products, and Google released the now discontinued Cardboard – a low-cost, do-it-yourself viewer for smartphones. The first batch of Oculus Rift headsets began shipping to consumers in 2016.

2015: Autonomous vehicles

Autonomous vehicles have gone from science fiction to science fact in the past two decades, and predictions suggest that almost two-thirds of registered passenger cars worldwide will feature partly-assisted driving and steering by 2025 . In 2015, the introduction of Tesla’s Autopilot brought autonomous features to consumer vehicles, contributing to the mainstream adoption of self-driving technology.

Cars Increasingly Ready for Autonomous Driving

2019: Quantum computing

A significant moment in the history of quantum computing was achieved in October 2019 when Google’s Sycamore processor demonstrated “quantum supremacy” by solving a complex problem faster than the world’s most powerful supercomputers. Quantum technologies can be used in a variety of applications and offer transformative impacts across industries. The World Economic Forum’s Quantum Economy Blueprint provides a framework for value-led, democratic access to quantum resources to help ensure an equitable global distribution and avoid a quantum divide.

2020: The COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated digital transformation on an unprecedented scale . With almost every aspect of human life impacted by the spread of the virus – from communicating with loved ones to how and where we work – the rate of innovation and uptake of technology across the globe emphasized the importance of remote work, video conferencing, telemedicine and e-commerce in our daily lives.

In response to the uncertainties surrounding generative AI and the need for robust AI governance frameworks to ensure responsible and beneficial outcomes for all, the Forum’s Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) has launched the AI Governance Alliance .

The Alliance will unite industry leaders, governments, academic institutions, and civil society organizations to champion responsible global design and release of transparent and inclusive AI systems.

2022: Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology has been around for some time and AI-powered consumer electronics, from smart home devices to personalized assistants, have become commonplace. However, the emergence of mainstream applications of generative AI has dominated the sector in recent years.

In 2022, OpenAI unveiled its chatbot, ChatGPT. Within a week, it had gained over one million users and become the fastest-growing consumer app in history . In the same year, DALL-E 2, a text-to-image generative AI tool, also launched.

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License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

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    Understanding the impact of globalization on cross-culture communication is imperative for organizations seeking to create a competitive advantage in the global market. Recent economic challenges further highlight the need for organizations to develop the internal communication capacity necessary to control and monitor external threats.

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    Electronic Media and the Globalization of Culture. The increase of globalization has been an economic force throughout the last century, but economic interdependency is not its only by-product. At its core, globalization is the lowering of economic and cultural impediments to communication between countries all over the globe.

  7. The Effects of Globalization on Global Communication

    Global communication is directly affected by the process of globalization, and helps to increase business opportunities, remove cultural barriers and develop a global village. Both globalization and global communication have changed the environmental, cultural, political and economic elements of the world.

  8. Globalization and Its Impact

    Its first positive effect is that it makes it possible for different countries to exchange their products. The second positive effect of globalization is that it promotes international trade and growth of wealth as a result of economic integration and free trade among countries. However, globalization is also associated with negative effects.

  9. (PDF) The Globalization of Communication

    Can Cemal Cingi. 2018. Communication of countries with each other was very difficult due to geographic reasons. globalization, even those distant from each other, are interlinked and influence each other, the effect of which is to produce a change in the structure of the economy, various cultures and societies of the world.

  10. Effects of Economic Globalization

    In economics, globalization can be defined as the process in which businesses, organizations, and countries begin operating on an international scale. Globalization is most often used in an economic context, but it also affects and is affected by politics and culture. In general, globalization has been shown to increase the standard of living ...

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    While globalization, or communication between nations beyond their borders, is an old concept, with the onset of new technology globalization is impacting the ways we communicate and learn in ...

  12. Communication Technology and Globalization

    Globalization is the impact of spurt of advancement in communication technology. The communication growth is so rapid that globalization has to double step in attaining the pace with such technology achievements. Technological inventions of very recent past now look like decade old when compared to current advancements and inventions.

  13. Social Media and Globalization: Positive and Negative Effects Essay

    Globalization of social media has brought positive changes in the response to humanitarian crises worldwide. It is now possible to receive first hand communication from afflicted regions. Social media also provides raw unadulterated footage of the situation on the ground (Ellison, 2007, p.1144).

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    Globalization is a complex phenomenon that has a big influence on various fields of human life, including economics, society, and culture. Even though trade between countries has existed since time immemorial, in the 21st-century, globalization has become an integral part of the world's development. While businesses try to expand on a global ...

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    Exchanges in commerce and the relation of humans from different corners of the world have a profound effect on the culture of the people. Impacts on the culture also tend to spill over and impact communication. This research evaluates the impacts of impacts of globalization on culture and how this affects communication especially in business.

  17. Globalization

    globalization, integration of the world's economies, politics, and cultures.German-born American economist Theodore Levitt has been credited with having coined the term globalization in a 1983 article titled "The Globalization of Markets." The phenomenon is widely considered to have begun in the 19th century following the advent of the Industrial Revolution, but some scholars date it ...

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  19. Globalization: The Concept, Causes, and Consequences

    The Concept. It is the world economy which we think of as being globalized. We mean that the whole of the world is increasingly behaving as though it were a part of a single market, with interdependent production, consuming similar goods, and responding to the same impulses. Globalization is manifested in the growth of world trade as a ...

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  24. The Effect of Globalization on a World Culture Essay

    Conclusion. Globalization has resulted into culture diffusion, culture sharing, and multiculturalism; the uniformity in culture facilitates trade among nations and promotes international relations and understanding. However, multiculturalism has been blamed of dilution of people's cultural values, norms, and virtues.

  25. How AI and other technology changed our lives

    In 2004, MySpace became the first social media site to reach one million monthly active users. Since then, platforms like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok have reshaped communication and social interaction, nurturing global connectivity and information sharing on an enormous scale, albeit not without controversy.