Assignment: Globalization based on understanding

Assignment: Globalization based on understanding

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Assignment: Is Globalization is based on understanding?

INTRODUCTION

We are living in the global era in which our lives are closely intertwined with each another. Our environment, economy, welfare, security, and future are closely interconnected. Although many people feel that globalization is a recent phenomenon, various forms of it have been with us for thousands of years. Two types of globalization can be identified in terms of its nature, process, and goal: unilateral and enlightened globalization. Unilateral globalization is based on the belief in the superiority of its own culture, values, and ideals and imposition of a single standard on all cultures. Historically, the unilateral globalization has been the typical mode, with one culture dominating and subjugating other cultures.

Enlightened globalization is based on understanding, dialogue, respect and integrating knowledge to foster cultural development. It recognizes that each culture has a different set of values, belief, skills, and resources and integrates diverse information to transform the world. In medieval Europe, for example, enlightened globalization freed Europeans from the grip of superstition, fear, and famines. During this time, civilization in other parts of the world flourished. Europeans were able to integrate this information to launch a new era known as the Renaissance.

With Marco Polo’s travel to Asia, Europeans awoke to new possibilities of wealth, knowledge, and technology. The West learned from China how to cultivate raw materials such as cotton, tea, spices, and paper. Paper allowed cheap and efficient distribution of information, which facilitated the rapid spread of knowledge. Cultivation of cotton, tea, and spices improved the quality of life. The desire to find a shorter route to the East led to the discovery of the Americas. Europeans came into contact with Muslim cultures and learned about Greek philosophy, democracy, mathematics, medicine, and science. The Enlightenment in Europe made modernization, democracy, and science possible, which in turn was made possible by the knowledge, technology, and resources obtained from the Middle East, Far East, Africa, and the New World (Kim, Aasen, & Ebadi, 2003).

The discovery and integration of knowledge during the Renaissance served as the foundation for the development of science, technology, and civil societies (Kim, Helgesen, & Ahn, 2002). The physical sciences (e.g., astronomy, chemistry, and physics) were first to develop. Newtonian physics provided a simple, elegant, and mechanical explanation of the physical world. Chemists discovered the basic elements, and these elements serve as building blocks for explaining the structure and formation of complex objects. Science provides the most accurate and universal understanding of the natural world, and this knowledge has been used to control and shape our environment.

Psychology developed in the late 19th century, attempting to emulate the success of the natural sciences. Psychology flourished as a discipline and became highly successful in terms of number of students, faculty members, research projects, funding, and professional organizations (Koch & Leary, 1985). In terms of its scientific status, however, U.S. psychology experienced a crisis in the early 1970s (Elms, 1975; Koch & Leary, 1985). During this time, scholars around the world questioned the universality of psychological theories, and many called for the development of indigenous psychologies (Kim & Berry, 1993; see , this volume, for a review of the international history of psychology).