How is global culture changing the world

What is Cultural Globalization?

The Cultural globalization Is the unification of diverse customs belonging to different communities. The term refers to the modifications experienced by different forms of lives of different peoples.

Due to cultural globalization, the customs, traditions and artistic expressions of different parts of the world have been adapted to the changes that have emerged from it.

The basis of this phenomenon is associated with the media, through which the cultures and customs of several countries merge.

In this line, thanks to globalization and the mass media, different societies come to interconnect, either by creating links and giving rise to a unity between them, or by emphasizing their diversity.

Cultural globalization implies the unification of diverse cultural identities, tending to the achievement of a homogeneity and being its main content underlying the cultural identity itself.

This internalization includes the connection between territories, nations and continents, and fuses the elements of the past and the present. From it the values ​​of the universal culture are socialized through the insertion of the global in the local.

What should I know about Cultural Globalization?

In order to understand cultural globalization, it is necessary to understand the relationship between globalization and culture.

On the one hand, globalization is a dynamic process where the economy, technology, politics, culture, social characteristics and ideological thoughts corresponding to each region, are interrelated at a universal level.

Historically, since the expansion of capitalism, globalization has produced major transformations worldwide.

Taking as central axes, to modernity and to the notion of progress, globalization is interpreted as a totalizing vision of reality, where there are tendencies towards the global development of society.

In this sense, the relationship between social and cultural, inherent in this dynamic process, is closely linked with capitalist relations of production.

From this capitalist perspective of globalization, from this one interconnects the social relations of production throughout the world-wide framework; Linking regional diversities in a heterogeneous world.

In this way, globalization can be understood as a commercial dependency between countries. They are in close relationship for the convenience of integrating their economies.

At the same time, it must be taken into account that globalization encompasses not only the economic. But it also produces a strong modification in all the everyday aspects of the life of a nation. As well as its environmental, political, social, etc. This is why globalization has its own global culture and politics.

Culture

It is the result of a conjunction of forms and expressions characteristic of a given society.

In it are embedded beliefs, codes, rules, rituals and common practices, predominant in people belonging to a society.

In this way, culture is the form of expression that individuals have of their own traditions.

In this way, culture encompasses the distinctive, affective, spiritual, material and intellectual traits that identify and characterize a society.

And it includes the ways of life, value systems, beliefs, rights and traditions of a specific population in a given period.

Through culture, the subject becomes aware of himself and the world around him, allowing man to find a way of expression to create works that transcend.

Cultural globalization is, therefore, a tendency towards homogeneity. A phenomenon that reflects a normalization of cultural expressions around the world. Implicit in it, the socialization of the values ​​of universal culture.

Influence of globalization on culture

With the advent of new customs and new ideas from different parts of the world, the characteristic culture of a region is influenced.

In this way, regional cultures begin to adopt cultural and consumer practices that are corresponding to other nations and generally of a capitalist nature.

It appears then in the regional customs the consumption of marks, of means, of symbols that are taken like representative icons of a society. Emerging in this way, a culture of a global nature.

As a result of the combination of different elements of different cultures, the expansion of cultural models corresponding to capitalist societies.

Thanks to mass media, countries are increasingly connected, from the economic, the technological and the cultural; Resembling each other more and more.

In this way the gap that differentiates the various cultures inherent in each society becomes increasingly close. However, there is a predominance of the cultures of the most economically powerful countries. As a consequence, cultural diversity is becoming smaller as a result of cultural globalization.

At the same time and as a consequence, certain social groups that have been excluded from the globalized world, unify to react against globalization. In order to reemerge the inherent values ​​inherent to local cultures, with the aim of revalorizing their own.

Influence of the media on globalization

Cultural globalization arises as a consequence of the process of communication between different parts of the world, and thanks to the different means of communication that exist today the different countries can communicate with each other.

As a result, different regions are able to link through a variety of global exchange networks. In this way, the contact and the relationship between different societies, with their peculiar cultural characteristics, are produced.

In this way, the media begin to play an important role in the development of cultural globalization.

Audiovisual media, for example, begin to be an important source of creation and transformation, becoming increasingly ubiquitous in the daily lives of people in general.

Thus, popular culture was born, which spread throughout the world, becoming like the dominant culture. From this, social groups identify with all those products present at the global level, enriching a collective imagination.

In this sense, the media is a tool to homogenize the global culture.

Cultural Globalization Today

At present, world society is immersed in a new cultural context, where globalization as a dynamic and continuous process has influenced culture in most of its aspects.

Cultural globalization has been and is a phenomenon that inevitably influences the different domains of daily life of the subjects living in a nation, presenting favorable and unfavorable effects.

The detractors of the process believe that there is an important difference between the rapid growth of some countries, with respect to the few or almost no others, implying a certain loss of sovereignty for the latter.

A priori, cultural globalization appears as a phenomenon that no society can escape since the mass media are present everywhere, as well as the stereotypes that can enrich, the styles of fashion that they spread, among others.

At present, all the countries of the world are immersed in all these global processes. But from an optimistic look, the world can be increased in all kinds of exchanges, capitals, goods and services, technologies, information and cultural guidelines.

However, the question of the concentration of wealth and social marginalization or the gap between developed and underdeveloped countries and how the process of cultural globalization affects the environment could open up.

cultural globalization

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Read a brief summary of this topic

cultural globalization, phenomenon by which the experience of everyday life, as influenced by the diffusion of commodities and ideas, reflects a standardization of cultural expressions around the world. Propelled by the efficiency or appeal of wireless communications, electronic commerce, popular culture, and international travel, globalization has been seen as a trend toward homogeneity that will eventually make human experience everywhere essentially the same. This appears, however, to be an overstatement of the phenomenon. Although homogenizing influences do indeed exist, they are far from creating anything akin to a single world culture.

Emergence of global subcultures

Some observers argue that a rudimentary version of world culture is taking shape among certain individuals who share similar values, aspirations, or lifestyles. The result is a collection of elite groups whose unifying ideals transcend geographical limitations.

“ Davos” culture

One such cadre, according to political scientist Samuel Huntington in The Clash of Civilizations (1998), comprises an elite group of highly educated people who operate in the rarefied domains of international finance, media, and diplomacy. Named after the Swiss town that began hosting annual meetings of the World Economic Forum in 1971, these “Davos” insiders share common beliefs about individualism, democracy, and market economics. They are said to follow a recognizable lifestyle, are instantly identifiable anywhere in the world, and feel more comfortable in each other’s presence than they do among their less-sophisticated compatriots.

The international “faculty club”

The globalization of cultural subgroups is not limited to the upper classes. Expanding on the concept of Davos culture, sociologist Peter L. Berger observed that the globalization of Euro-American academic agendas and lifestyles has created a worldwide “faculty club”—an international network of people who share similar values, attitudes, and research goals. While not as wealthy or privileged as their Davos counterparts, members of this international faculty club wield tremendous influence through their association with educational institutions worldwide and have been instrumental in promoting feminism, environmentalism, and human rights as global issues. Berger cited the antismoking movement as a case in point: the movement began as a singular North American preoccupation in the 1970s and subsequently spread to other parts of the world, traveling along the contours of academe’s global network.

Nongovernmental organizations

Another global subgroup comprises “ cosmopolitans” who nurture an intellectual appreciation for local cultures. As pointed out by Swedish anthropologist Ulf Hannerz, this group advocates a view of global culture based not on the “replication of uniformity” but on the “organization of diversity.” Often promoting this view are nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that lead efforts to preserve cultural traditions in the developing world. By the beginning of the 21st century, institutions such as Cultural Survival were operating on a world scale, drawing attention to indigenous groups who are encouraged to perceive themselves as “first peoples”—a new global designation emphasizing common experiences of exploitation among indigenous inhabitants of all lands. By sharpening such identities, these NGOs have globalized the movement to preserve indigenous world cultures.

Cultural Globalization (Examples, Pros, Cons) – AP Human Geo

Cultural globalization is the spread of the culture, customs, or ideas of a place or a people to the rest of the world.

The cultural globalization hypothesis argues that a global culture leads to the homogenization of the human experience. In other words, the con of cultural globalization is that there may develop one world culture (an Americanized world) rather than cultural diversity.

Cultural globalization theorists believe that globalization has picked up pace only over the last century. This is a result of unprecedented technological changes such as the internet and cheap international travel.

Peter L. Berger and Samuel P. Huntington have been among the most important theorists of cultural globalization.

Pros of Cultural Globalization

1. Standardization of Time and Space

Cultural globalization has allowed for uniformity of standards in measuring time and space.

For instance, historically different cultures had different calendars based on different determinants (solar, lunar, etc.). Once, the very sense of time differed across cultures, but now we all follow the same time norms and calendars.

Similarly, different units used to be used for measuring distance, mass, volume, etc.

Today, the Gregorian calendar and its months are followed in most of the world, while the metric system is used for measuring the space the world over.

This has allowed not just for ease of communication, but for greater scientific progress. It led to freeing up human resources from the cumbersome task of always having to convert from one system to another.

The British geographer David Harvey called this phenomenon, which is characteristic of postmodernity, a “compression of time-space” (Harvey, 1989).

2. It is a Catalyst for Positive Social Change

Cultural globalization allows for a spread of positive political and social values such as democracy.

This happens both through the use of mass communication as well as the physical movement of people across boundaries and the exchanges between diasporas and their homelands.

For instance, the spread of ideas such as freedom, democracy, secularism, feminism etc. has led to political movements in many parts of the world demanding greater rights for their people.

Twenty-first-century revolutionary movements such as the Arab spring, the orange revolution, etc. were fuelled by ideas born out of a culture of globalization that allowed liberal values to be widely disseminated and accepted in societies with traditionally autocratic political structures.

However, in recent years, the rise of nationalism and China’s defiance of democracy makes us wonder if this ‘pro’ is really happening at all.

3. Economic Growth

Cultural globalization creates greater opportunities for wealth creation as it allows businesses and people to move and operate across different geographies with greater ease.

For instance, the widespread use of the English language and American corporate culture in much of the world allows businesses to expand to virtually any geography without having to worry about linguistic and cultural barriers.

Similarly, familiarity with the English language allows people from poor third world countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Egypt, etc. to migrate to rich, first world Anglo-Saxon nations such as the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand etc. and afford a better standard of living.

4. Broadening the Human Perspective

Cultural globalization allows humans living in one part of the world to learn how other people experience life.

For instance, American culture has spread to much of the world, allowing people in China or Japan to experience the American way of life.

Similarly, the spread of Chinese cuisine or Latino music to America allows Americans to experience the way of life of other cultures.

All of this allows for a broadening of perspective of the people who come into contact with other cultures.

Cons of Cultural Globalization

1. Erosion of Local Cultures

Cultural globalization, while bringing people together, can also pose a threat to local cultures, languages, and traditions.

For instance, the widespread use of the English language is good for creating economic opportunities for people in the Third World. But, it also threatens their indigenous languages. The teaching of English in school is fast replacing local languages as the medium of instruction, thereby hampering the development of local languages. (Mikanowski, 2018)

Another example of erosion of local cultures is the disappearance of ancient cultures and customs due to technological changes brought by globalization.

For instance, camels were once an integral part of the cultures of people in the arid and semi-arid parts of South and West Asia, India, Pakistan, Iran and Saudi Arabia. Camels were used not just for transport but also for milk, making clothes, and even musical instruments using camel hair.

However, the advent of modern transport has made the camel virtually obsolete in modern life even in arid regions.

Unlike horses, camels have little value in sport, ceremony, or showmanship. This has led to not just a steep decline in camel numbers, but also a disappearance of cultures and peoples associated with camels (Sunder, 2021).

2. Widening of Inequalities

Cultural globalization allows for greater opportunities for wealth creation. But, it has been argued that it also makes some people wealthier and leaves other behind.

For instance, while cultural globalization allows businesses to offer more opportunities to English speakers in the third world, such opportunities are limited only to those who can afford to invest in acquiring expensive English language skills.

Similarly, in much of the third world, legal immigration to a first world country is an option available only to the relatively well-off because of the high costs involved in getting visas and the entry barriers (such as education or skill level) imposed by the destination countries.

3. Clash of Civilizations

Clash of Civilizations is a concept popularized by the American historian and political scientist Samuel P. Huntington (1927-2008).

Huntington argued that where cultural globalization on the one hand is bringing the world and its people together, this proximity can also generate friction as different cultures struggle to maintain their individual identities.

This can result in a conflict of values, and occasionally, violence (Huntington, 1996).

4. Ecological Impact

Cultural globalization can also have an adverse impact on the environment.

Cultural practices particular to one region may spread to others, irrespective of whether or not they may be suited to the ecology of the region.

For instance, in many parts of the world, food was traditionally consumed in organic, locally sourced containers such as those made from tree leaves, wood, or bamboo.

But the spread of fast foods and packaging has also meant the spread of plastics.

Another example are the feral camels of Australia that were first brought to the Australian continent by British colonialists from Asia.

While camels are becoming extinct in South and West Asia, threatening millennia old cultural traditions, their population has exploded in Australia, causing severe environmental degradation (Traill, 2017).

Table Summary: Pros and Cons of Cultural Globalization

Examples of Cultural Globalization

1. McDonaldization

McDonaldization is a term coined by the American sociologist George Ritzer to describe increasing cultural conformity.

Like a McDonalds outlet that offers the same hamburger in identical looking restaurants served by identically dressed employees all over the world, several products of cultural globalization are characterized by uniformity, efficiency, and predictability or what Max Weber called rationalization of the modern world. (Ritzer, 1993)

2. Spread of Evangelical Protestantism

Peter L. Berger described evangelical protestantism as another example of cultural globalization.

Berger compared it to Islamic resurgence, which was restricted to the Muslim world or among the Muslim diaspora.

By contrast, evangelical protestantism brought the protetant ethic to regions where it had never before existed, such as sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America.

Rooted in an American ethic, evangelical protestantism brings to the societies it spreads to a culture heavily tinged by American, protestant ethos. For instance, American gospel songs are sung by Mayan evangelicals in Mexico and Guatemala (Berger, 1997).

3. Spread of Foods and Dishes

Our grandparents likely remember a time when they didn’t eat a variety of different dishes from around the world.

But today, recipes and spices from around the world are commonplace in multicultural societies. We can eat Chinese, Indian, Japanese, and American foods from a range of restaurants in most world cities.

However, remember that food is just one part of culture. The deeper elements of cultures are the values and beliefs that cultural groups hold.

4. Spread of Fashion

In many nations, younger people are enjoying pop culture and fast fashion that comes from overseas.

This means you may go somewhere like Morocco and see a lot less of the traditional clothing as younger people are out and about wearing westernized fashions.

Similarly, French fashion has historically spread around the world quickly as people were influenced by big Parisian fashion designers.

5. Spread of Political Ideologies

Cultural globalization leads to the spread of ideologies and beliefs. Examples of ideologies include capitalism and democracy.

The best example of this is this is the 2011 Arab Spring, which was an example of the spread of democratic movements around the world. Some succeeded, while others were suppressed by dictatorships.

Similarly, in the early 2020s, there was a rise in authoritarianism in the United States and Eastern Europe. It’s likely that these cultural movements influenced one another thanks to technological globalization.

6. Davos Culture

Davos culture is a term used to describe the global business and political elites that attend the World Economic Forum summits at Davos in Switzerland.

The term “Davos Man” was coined by the American political scientist Samuel P. Huntington (Zanin, 2009).

The Davos Culture view of the world is one centered on the benefits of a globalized world, characterized by a preference for open markets and lower trade barriers, a positive view of competition, a healthy role for global finance, and so on.

Davos Culture is a classic manifestation of cultural globalization, in that the attendees at such global conferences, irrespective of their national, religious, linguistic, or ethnic origins share a similar outlook on political, economic, and social affairs, born out of their embeddedness in a globalized culture.

Table Summary: Examples of Cultural Globalization

Conclusion

Globalization has several interlinked aspects – including economic, political, and cultural.

While cultural exchanges have been occurring for millennia, cultural globalization refers specifically to the unprecedented acceleration of the transmission of cultural norms sparked off by technological changes such as the internet and cheap air travel. Cultural globalization can be a force for the good, as when it creates opportunities for economic growth and brings about positive change in societies. However, it can also have a darker side when it erodes cultures and creates deep income inequalities.

Related Globalization and Culture Articles

References

Berger, P. L. (1997). Four faces of global culture. The National Interest, 49, 23–29.

Harvey, D. (1989) The condition of postmodernity: An enquiry into the origins of cultural change. Blackwell.

Huntington, S.P. (1996) The clash of civilizations and the remaking of the world order Simon & Schuster.

Mikanowski, J. (2018) Behemoth, bully, thief: how the English language is taking over the planet The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/jul/27/english-language-global-dominance

Zanin, T. (2009). Samuel P. Huntington and the Ambiguities of American Power. International Journal, 64(4), 1109–1116.

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How Globalization Is Changing the World

May 24, 2000 • 5 min read

The protests that accompanied the 1999 World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle and the more recent International Monetary Fund meeting in Washington, D.C. highlighted very vividly the current debate over the merits of globalization. In an attempt to better understand the effects of globalization on economies, societies and political systems, Wharton management professor Mauro Guillen reviews existing literature on the subject, focuses on asking relevant questions and suggests, for now, that finding the right answers will be a complex and ongoing process.

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Globalization is the new fault line on the world’s ideological map: Most people seem to be either passionate supporters or violent opponents. There is virtually no middle ground.

The pitched street battles that were fought when the World Trade Organization (WTO) met in Seattle late last year and when the International Monetary (IMF) met in Washington D.C. this year are eloquent reminders of the passions that globalization has whipped up over the past few years.

Academic research and specialist writing on the subject too is deeply divided, though it is not necessarily accompanied by the thunder and fury that have followed in the wake of most public debates on globalization. Consensus is missing here as well.

Borrowing Albert Hirschman’s celebrated metaphors, Guillen argues that globalization is not a feeble phenomenon. It is changing the nature of the world. But it is neither invariably civilizing nor destructive. It is neither monolithic nor an inevitable phenomenon. So one has to be open minded about it.

Five critical questions have been raised that are designed to help produce a clearer understanding of globalization. Is it really happening; does it produce convergence in social, political and organizational patterns; does it undermine the authority of nation states; is globality different from modernity; and is a global culture in the making.

Guillen’s extensive review of the literature on globalization attempts to figure out where the balance of opinion on each of these five critical issues tilts. First, the most important question: Is it really happening? Most research either assumes or documents that globalization is indeed happening, though the time of its birth is still a hotly contested issue.

Data from the 1980-95 period shows the progress of globalization in terms of a number of parameters, from the increasing importance of direct foreign investment to the boom in international tourism to the rise in the number of international telephone calls to the increase in international criminal activity.

What you are reading right now on your computer screen is some sort of proof that globalization is for real. This article was written in Mumbai (Bombay), India, based on research carried out at a university in Philadelphia, Pa., and is perhaps being read right now by an Algerian management student studying in London.

Though globalization is definitely happening, most empirical studies — with the important exception of the world society approach — do not find convergence in political, social and organizational patterns as a result. The conventional view in the 1950s and 1960s was that the spread of markets and technology would ensure that different societies and economies would converge. In reality, such uniformity has not materialized. Diversity endures, a fact which is now being recognized in modern research on the effects of globalization.

Another conclusion which emerges from this review of contemporary writing and research on globalization is that it neither threatens the nation-state nor the welfare state. Both will survive into the future, and there is no better testimony of this than the fact that the number of members of the United Nations has increased from 157 to 184 between 1980 and 1995. The most commonly voiced fears about globalization could be exaggerated, if not unfounded.

Perhaps the most difficult debate surrounding globalization revolves around the question of whether it is merely a continuation of the trend towards modernity or the beginning of a new era. For sociologists, the relationship between modernity and globality is of central importance. There are more and better arguments to support the case for globality being different from modernity, says Guillen.

And, finally, the fifth issue: Is a global culture in the making? The idea dates back to the 1960s and Marshall McLuhan’s concept of the global village. However, though a few contemporary scholars maintain that a global consumerist culture is indeed on the rise, they are outnumbered by those holding the opposite view. Ultimately, the issue about the alleged rise of a global culture can be examined with a simple question: What is the global language? English is the obvious answer, but it is sobering to remember that its dominance is being threatened even in traditional strongholds like the U.K. and the U.S.

Thus the social science on globalization contains important theoretical and empirical disagreements. The complexity of the entire process, argues Guillen, suggests that additional research – leading to a comparative sociology of globalization – is needed. We are far removed from any final answers about globalization and its effects on economies, societies and political systems.

20 Global Culture Examples

The era of globalization has created a global culture where people around the world share experiences, ideas, norms, and symbols that unite them.

Music, movies, clothes, and phones in the era of globalization are designed to appeal to a global market. This has helped to create global interconnectedness.

Examples of global culture include Hollywood films, fast food restaurants, and pop music. These examples can be used in human geography studies.

Examples of Global Culture

1. Hollywood Film

Hollywood’s film industry produces movies that are watched around the world. These films consequently spread US culture and values far and wide.

Movies like the Marvel and DC film franchises make US culture and values known around the world. They idealize and promote an American way of life and are persuasive in getting youths around the world to embrace Western culture (Song, 2018).

2. English as the Global Language of Business

Each country has its own national language or mother tongue, but when the need for international communication arises, a common language has to be used.

Given the dominance of the United States in the 20 th Century, English has become the business world’s lingua franca.

Multinational companies like Samsung, Microsoft in Beijing, Renault, to name a few use English as the common corporate language.

Companies around the world have pivoted to English as their form of communication so they can break into the large US domestic market, attract American talent, and communicate seamlessly with US-based investors (Barancicova & Zerzova, 2015).

3. Fast Food Restaurants

When it comes to eateries, Fast food restaurants are very easy to spot in almost any developed and developing country.

Many people around the world are familiar with names like McDonald’s and KFC.

These fast-food restaurants have become a part of a modern lifestyle through their integration into societies around the world and it shows the scope of food globalization.

Even in societies that don’t have McDonald’s, the fast-food style eatery that was pioneered by the Mcdonald’s franchise has spread far and wide. This even has a name: McDonaldization.

Mcdonald’s started as a single restaurant in the United States of America but over the years it has become one of the biggest food chains in the world with over 39,000 locations in over 100 countries.

4. The Five Great Religions

The five religions of the world were some of the first examples of global culture – they all spread into nearly every multicultural country, influencing each country’s culture and development.

These religions are Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism.

These religions share many similarities and beliefs. All believe that God created the universe and all that exists in it. Another similarity is that they all emphasize the importance of ethical behaviors and a sense of community all over the world.

These religions share common practices too such as praying, fasting, and giving to charity.

During Ramadhan, Muslims all over the world get to celebrate. This is also the same during the Christmas season, where Christians all over the world get to celebrate. These holidays are similar because they foster the spirit of giving and sharing with the less fortunate in society.

5. The United Nations

The United Nations is a global body that all recognized nations of the world contribute to and, to one extent or another, most countries obey the UN charter and rules.

The UN was founded in 1945 as an International Organization. It is made up of 193 Member states and they are guided by the purpose and principles which are contained in the founding charter.

This International Organization has evolved over the years with its work to keep pace with a rapidly changing world.

The UN represents global culture inasmuch as all the world’s nations gather together to discuss common problems so as to try to seek solutions that can benefit all humanity.

It is also through the UN that we have the Sustainable Development Goals which unite us all. These Sustainable goals are a call for action by all countries poor, rich and middle income to promote prosperity while protecting the planet.

6. International Fashion Trends

Globalization has opened up a clothing market with a massive demand for fashionable and trendy clothes. The trends from Paris rapidly make their way to New York, London, and Tokyo.

Fashion images in magazines, music videos, the Internet, and television have helped create a global style across borders and cultures.

Across the world, from Europe to Africa, you will find people wearing jeans, designer sports shoes, T-shirts, and dresses.

Asian, African and Western fashion systems borrow style and textile elements from each other. Each consumer is catered for, different ages, gender, ethnicity, profession, and subculture in high tech bazaars.

World-known celebrities also play a role in spreading a particular fashion through Instagram.

Most emerging fashion trends emerge here where millennials and Generation Z are very much active. An example of a relatable fashion is the Yeezy shoes which have become a fashionable trend among youths around the world.

7. Pop Music

Pop music charts have clearly become more globally oriented since the 1960s. In addition to that, the arrival of music televisions such as MTV in 1981 helped music from different artists to be broadcasted across the globe.

Today, pop music is marketed through radios of different frequencies, and more TV shows have emerged internationally

The distribution of pop music has become easier than ever. We have online streaming platforms that have made the exchange of recorded music instant and weightless.

Today, music consumption globally is often through mobile phones, laptops, or sound playback systems in automobiles (Rojek, 2011).

Pop music brings different talented artists from all over the world through awards such as American Music Awards, MTV, and Grammy Awards which are loved across the world.

8. Football (Soccer)

Football/Soccer is the most loved sport globally because it brings people together from different nationalities. It is known as the “world’s game”.

Every four years nations get to compete on the playing field in the famous World Cup.

There are also the Premier Leagues that are played by Football clubs affiliated with English cities. Despite the fact these teams are English, they have followers all around the world.

These soccer clubs are also made of players from different countries and not natives only.

9. Online Identities

Online culture has allowed young people around the world to identify with their online communities rather than their local communities.

This has, in turn, helped to facilitate a move away from national identities and toward niche identities shared among disparate groups of people.

Put simply, a young person need not identify with their physical community anymore. If they don’t like or get along with people around them, they can turn to the internet to find people on the other side of the world who share their niche hobbies, interests, and passions.

Examples include gamer culture, Manga and Anime groups, YouTuber culture, and blogger culture.

10. Gamer Culture

One prominent online community that has become its own globalized cultural group is the gamer culture community.

South Korea has become a global center for online gaming and has simultaneously initiated and expanded into ancillary sectors such as E-sport and Pro-leagues around the world.

Players have cult followings and can earn up to US$1million by competing in publicly staged events (Hjorth, 2011). The public events are streamed globally.

This gamer culture has evolved because there are so many worldwide games online and very popular among young people.

Examples of games around which global groups of youths coalesce include Call of Duty, Halo, and World of Warcraft.

11. Consumer Culture

Global consumer culture has emerged during the previous few decades.

This culture has been promoted through the rise of standardized online shopping platforms like Amazon, as well as the spread of capitalism in the 20th Century.

Consumers no longer shop only locally and in-person. They also routinely buy things from other countries, both online and offline.

Many companies offer their goods all over the world. As a result, businesses are adjusting their marketing tactics to appeal to growing global customer segments who are interested in foreign and/or global market goods.

12. Formula 1 Car Racing

Formula One has become a global phenomenon, with fans from all over the world coming together to celebrate the world’s premier motor racing sport.

With the ease of television coverage and growing global fame, races from any country can be simulcast globally (Blake, 2015).

To cement its global appeal, Formula 1 races are hosted all around the world. There are circuits in Austin, Malaysia, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, and other global cities.

13. Tennis (Grand Slams)

Like Formula 1, tennis is now a truly global sport with fans from every country around the world.

The tennis grand slam circuit involves tournaments in 4 different nations (Wertheim & Bourkoff, 2017). The four competitions are the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. They are hosted yearly in Australia, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

14. Currency

The first-ever currency, the Mesopotamian shekel, was in circulation about 5000 years ago.

This currency rapidly spread through the Greek and Roman worlds until, today, every nation in the world relies on currency to operate their economies.

The use of coins, which is now the global standard for any economy, is an example of how good ideas spread throughout the world. Humans didn’t need the fast-paced internet and air travel to create a global culture: this example from ancient times shows how the globalization of culture has always been a part of our world.

15. Television

Television is a means by which culture spreads. Like film, people flock to television to see the latest and most entertaining shows.

And like film, the United States has been the dominant culture producer on the television medium.

A quintessential example is The Simpsons, a long-running cartoon that shows an average American family’s lifestyle. The Simpsons alone broadcasts into 52 countries worldwide. As it spreads, the show promotes American values, jokes, and culture to a global world.

16. Business Etiquette

To become successful multinational companies, businesses need to adhere to international norms of business etiquette.

Businesses, no matter which country they are from, need to be enculturated into the norms, customs, skills, and values necessary to participate in the global business community.

Examples of international business etiquette include the shaking of hands after striking a deal during contract negotiation, wearing western-style suits, and taking potential business partners out to dinner.

17. Philosophy and Enlightenment

Philosophy has been a pastime of nearly every culture throughout human history. Two prominent schools of philosophy – Eastern and Western – have each spread throughout the world.

But perhaps the most prominent and successful philosophy that led to an emerging global culture is the philosophy of humanism that underpins the enlightenment.

Humanism led to the rise of secularist states, the decline of Religious rule in nations throughout the East and West, and the liberalization of many parts of the globe.

Even without the enlightenment, however, it’s clear that the practice of philosophy is itself a cultural pursuit that transcends borders and could, therefore, be considered a global cultural phenomenon.

18. Birthday Celebrations

Birthdays have been celebrated for centuries. They were celebrated by the ancient Egyptians and the Greeks, who introduced candles to the occasion.

The “Happy Birthday” song was first composed in the 1800s, while there is some debate about who composed the melody and who owns the rights to it.

While it is customary to celebrate another amazing year, how individuals celebrate birthdays differs tremendously.

There are many unique birthday celebrations all around the world, from singing around a cake with candles in the United States to Ghanaians waking up their children with “oto,” a cooked sweet potato pancake, to commemorate their birthday.

Later in the day, the child throws a party for relatives and friends, where they consume kelewele stew (Meleen, 2021). Ampe, a popular birthday activity, is another option for kids.

Here, we see an example of a global cultural phenomenon (celebrating birthdays) mixing with localized traditions in a practice called glocalization.

19. The Olympic Games

The Olympic Games are a major global sporting event that is celebrated by almost every nation around the world. It draws large crowds of people from all nationalities.

The modern Olympic Games pique the attention of people of all ethnicities and ages globally.

Over 4.8 billion people, more than half the population of the earth, tune in to watch this important cultural and sporting event.

However, sport continues to be a tool for asserting and sustaining national identity. It is a symbol of pride to represent a country in world championships, particularly at the Olympic Games.

Again, here we see glocalization where global culture mixes with local cultures.

20. Democracy

One of the other benefits of globalization is that it has led to the cultural diffusion of democratic values across boundaries.

For theorist Arjun Appadurai, democracy is an example of ideoscapes – the spread of political ideas around the world.

The more democracies that surround non-democratic countries, the greater their prospects of a nation becoming democratic (Crockett, 2011).

As a result, democracy has spread to and liberalized a number of nations, including Iraq and several others in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Conclusion

Cultural globalization is controversial because it can have both positive and negative impacts. On the one hand, a global culture promotes understanding across cultural groups, leads to the sharing of good ideas, and more efficiency for businesses. But on the other hand, it may lead to cultural homogenization which will dilute local and indigenous cultures. It may break down the rich cultural tapestry of the world and lead to the loss of many of the unique cultures that make our world beautiful.

References

Barančicová, J., & Zerzová, J. (2015). English as a lingua franca used at international meetings. Journal of Language and Cultural Education, 3(3), 30-51. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1515/jolace-2015-0018

Blake, R. (2015). The globalization of formula 1: A new world. BAC Sport – Bespoke Sports Travel and Hospitality Packages. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://www.bacsport.co.uk/the-globalisation-of-formula-1/

Crockett, S. (2011, August 27). Has globalization spread democracy around the world? E-International Relations. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://www.e-ir.info/2011/08/27/has-globalization-spread-democracy-around-the-world/

Hjorth, L. (2011). Games and Gaming: An introduction to new media. Oxford: Berg.

Inglis, D., & Gimlin, D. (2015). The globalization of food. NewYork: Bloomsbury.

Meleen, M. (2021, September 21). Birthday traditions around the world: Celebrations of a lifetime. LoveToKnow. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://family.lovetoknow.com/cultural-heritage-symbols/birthday-traditions-around-world

OpenStax. (2018, September 20). The relationship between Business Ethics and culture. Business Ethics. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://opentextbc.ca/businessethicsopenstax/chapter/the-relationship-between-business-ethics-and-culture/

Poepsel, M. (n.d.). Preface and overview. Media Society Culture and You. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://press.rebus.community/mscy/front-matter/overview/

Rojek, C. (2011). Pop music, pop culture. London: Polity.

Song, X. (2018). Hollywood movies and China: Analysis of Hollywood globalization and relationship management in China’s cinema market. Global Media and China, 2018;3(3):177-194. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177%2F2059436418805538

Sweet, W., & McLean, G. F. (2013). Philosophy emerging from culture. Retrieved March 15, 2022, from http://www.crvp.org/publications/Series-I/I-42.pdf

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