Globalization is a process of integration and interaction of companies, individuals, nations and organizations. This process is mostly driven by things like international investment and trade and constantly aided by technological developments such as communication and information delivery. This means that globalization is more of a process than ‘means’. Regional economies, cultures and societies have become integrated through a global platform of political networks due to the ongoing patterns of globalization. This is achieved through transportation, trade and communication. Through migration, spread of technology and even military presence of foreign troops in foreign lands the international economy has become more integrated with the national economy. At the same time, for globalization to take effect, there are a number of factors that have to exist. These include political, economical, cultural and even technological factors. Hence this has led to the circulation of ideas, invention of new languages and even cultures.
Globalization and Loss of Identity
A person’s identity can be defined through his culture or societal background. We usually dfine culture as what people eat, how they dress, how they worship and even the activities that are practiced in their daily lives. That being the case, we should note that globalization tend to have negative effects on human culture. The process results in the integration of many different cultures which come together and form something totally different. A good example is the French cheese and fries which have more popular than even in their country of origin (Justin 2001). The Indian spices and curry have become the symbol of spicy foods. McDonald’s and Starbucks which are American companies are the best example of globalization with both companies having over 20000 outlets worldwide.
As well, globalization has a major association with youths. Currently, the youths are no longer familiar with their cultures, foods, art and even their native languages. Different societies have adopted new cultures practiced in other regions of the world. This is something that has been brought about by the increasingly negative impacts of globalization (Biplab, 2005). Therefore, through globalization some cultures have succeeded to dominate across the globe thus leading to the death of others. The internet has become the process of cultural and artistic globalization since it allows commuunication between people of different lifestyles and background.
Countries in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Pakistan and even Emirates were once traditional conservative Muslim states, but due to the increasing effects of globalization, these countries have started to lose their Islamic identity (Justin 2001). Women no longer follow the Islamic traditional dressing code; Men can be seen doing chores once believed that they can only be done by women only. These traditional cultures have been eroded slowly with time due to the availability of many tourist destinations. Things like pornography have taken toil into the society as well. It’s the same globalization that has led to income inequality and brain drain.
For every great invention there are some negative consequences that come with it. We have seen how people and countries who used to uphold their traditional values are been washed away by globalization. Famous African cultures like the Maasai of Kenya whose dressing code has started to be done away slowly. With this I can clearly say globalization has come at a high cost and it is the time some of the cultures were protected in order to preserve the identity of its people (Allan, 2002).