Globalization in Question: The International Economy and the Possibilities of Governance, 2nd Edition, Fully Revised, Updated and Expanded

by Paul Q. Hirst; Grahame Thompson (Open University)

• ISBN13: 9780745621647
• ISBN10: 0745621643
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2001-02-01
• Publisher: Polity Pr

Summary

"Globalization" is one of the key concepts of our time. It is used by both the right and the left as the cornerstone of their analysis of the international economy and polity. In both political and academic discussions, the assumption is commonly made that the process of economic globalization is well under way and that this represents a qualitatively new stage in the development of international capitalism. But is there in fact such a thing as a genuinely global economy? Globalization in Question investigates this notion, providing a very different account of the international economy and stressing the possibilities for its continued and extended governance. The new edition of this best-selling text has been thoroughly revised, updated and expanded to take into account new issues which have become salient in the period since the first edition was published, including the impact of the internationalization of economic relations on the welfare state; the various debates about the concept of "competitiveness"; the Asian crisis; and the relationships between the North and the South in terms of their effects on wage rates and living standards. Globalization in Question, Second Edition, is a timely intervention into current discussions about the nature and prospects of globalization. The book has far-reaching implications which will be of interest to students and academics in a number of disciplines including politics, sociology, economics and geography, as well as to journalists and policy-makers.

Author Biography

Paul Hirst is Professor of Social Theory, Birkbeck College, University of London and Senior Lecturer in Economics at the Open University.


Grahame Thompson is Professor of Political Economy at the Open University.

Table of Contents

List of Figures	vii
List of Tables	ix
Preface to the Second Edition	xi
Acknowledgements	xv
Acronyms and Abbreviations	xvii
Introduction: Globalization--a Necessary Myth?	1	(18)
Globalization and the History of the International Economy	19	(47)
The Trade to GDP Ratio Controversy	62	(4)
Multinational Companies and the Internationalization of Business Activity: The Consequences of `Globalization' for National Systems	66	(31)
North--South Trade and International Competitiveness	97	(37)
The Developing Economies and Globalization	134	(29)
The Asian Crisis	161	(2)
Can the Welfare State Survive Globalization?	163	(28)
Economic Governance Issues in General	191	(37)
The European Union as a Trade Bloc	228	(28)
Globalization, Governance and the Nation-State	256	(25)
Notes	281	(8)
References	289	(18)
Index	307