TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01 - TRADOC - U.S. Army

TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01While globalization is not a new phenomenon, the rapidly accelerated blending of business,technology, and culture coupled with near instant media coverage offers both opportunities andthreats for the future. Globalization enables and substantially shapes other major trends in theOE. Globalization can manifest itself in many ways, but primary ways include interdependenteconomies, the empowerment of non-state actors, porous international boundaries, and thedeclining ability of the nation-state to control fully its own territory and economy, and to providesecurity and other services. As globalization shrinks the world and forces the interaction ofdiffering societies and cultures on an unprecedented scale, it also drives changes in all three ofthe components of the human dimension. The exchange of information and the ability to travelquickly and inexpensively have made the interaction of differing cultures commonplace. Peoplemust adapt mentally and physically to a wide range of environments. While retaining allegianceto a nation, tribe, ethnicity, religion, or similar group, people are increasingly examining theirrole as a citizen of the world. They receive exposure to different societies and cultures whosemoral basis may differ from their own. People must cognitively understand these differences andadapt their behavior to compensate. Characteristics of the human dimension are the driving forcebehind globalization. In turn, globalization influences the components of the human dimension.Growth of the global marketplace and the increasing volume of international trade andcommerce characterize the economic aspects of globalization. Continuing internationalization ofmarkets will integrate geographically dispersed sets of customers and suppliers, creatingincreasingly interdependent economies. This exposes local markets to opportunities and risks asthe global economy fluctuates. There will be winners and losers in a global economy led bymarket forces, especially in the field of labor, which will be subject to particularly ruthless lawsof supply and demand. As international economic ties broaden and strengthen, the influence ofindividual nation states may decline. This decline in nation-state influence, coupled with the riseof economic influence, complicates statecraft and security. Economic interdependence will fostera corresponding political interdependence, strengthening regional and international organizations.The explosive growth of information technologies enables globalization. The proliferation oftechnologies has effectively leveled the playing field. Ubiquitous and cheap access to the WorldWide Web and telecommunications has made knowledge available to individuals andcommunities sometimes quicker than it is by governments. The rapid access to and exchange ofinformation has created communities of interest brought together for a mutual benefit. In somerespects, these communities might become more significant than nation states. Unfortunately,there is no guarantee that these communities will be benign to U.S. interests. Empowered nonstateactors who want to harm global economy will have many options available.While globalization can be beneficial, particularly economically, there is a potentialdownside. Globalization will in some areas increase the gap between the world’s “haves” and“have nots.” Ready access to information will increase the awareness of those left behind in theclimb toward global prosperity, in essence, creating a condition of global relative deprivation. Inaddition to this awareness of economic disparity, globalization will increase the interactionamong disparate cultures. The ubiquitous nature of U.S. and Western television and films servesto diffuse western culture throughout the world. In many cases, this creates a negative reactionfrom those objecting to the western influence and defending the purity of their own culture.31