Network+Power+The+Social+Dynamics+of+Globalization


 * =Network Power: The Social Dynamics of Globalization= ||  ||
 * =David S. Grewal= ||  ||
 * December 2008 ||  ||
 * =Summary By Eddy-- > Tatiana Below= ||  ||
 * This piece is the text of a speech given by Grewal in late 2008.

He is introduced by Christian Barry, who defines out two key terms in Grewal's talk: Network: A group of people who are interested in coordinating with one another Standard: Certain types of terms on which members can communicate (such as language).

Grewal begins his talk with the example of people trying to meet up in NYC (prior to cellphones, etc.) He says that many people would go to Central Station at 12:00 even though they had no prior agreement to do so. This is known as a "logic of tacit coordination." Globalization is not a problem of geographical coordination, but of social coordination. In response to Friedman's "the World is Flat" Grewal responds that it is actually networked. In this networking the standards that are used are very important (ie. everyone has to learn English to participate).

Grewal denotes two competing views of globalization: 1) It increases human freedom (Friedman) 2) It is constraining, hegemonic, a new form of Empire (N. Kline, Hardt & Negri)

While these are two very different views, both describe the same activity.

In Grewal's view globalization does allow greater participation, but also locks in new dominant standards --- his question is are these new dominant standards a good thing? ||  || Central ideas  · “One is whether this process, this increased flow of goods, people, and ideas within a multilateral framework, is the result of choice, of free choice, of different participating agents, including nations and the national governments, or whether it's, rather, something which is being coercively imposed upon some by others.” (1) · The second is whether or not people are being made better off by this type of process or worse off. (1)
 * =Summary By Tatiana=

 · Globalization is a complex issue, a process that is both driven by free choices but also can be a coercive process for those who benefit much less from it.  · Network- which is a group of people who are interested in coordinating with one another.  · Standard- that is, certain types of terms on which members of this network can communicate. A standard can be a language, it can be a system of rules governing trade, and so on.  · By actually having common expectations-these higher-order expectations can actually generate social conventions that have enormous durability. (3) i.e. the fact that I can do business abroad and expect to use English, or assume that everyone will use Microsoft word.  · Critiques Thomas Friedman’s idea that “the world is flat- I it were, there would be a more level playing field upon which people could connect/ communicate. But this approach doesn’t take into account that there are pre-exiting rules from which people operate. (4). Instead He argues that is it “networked”. The standards used for communication are extremely important. It’s great b/c there is a single standard that can be used, but the drawback is that you HAVE to use the dominant standard if you want to be able to communicate.  · Generally, network power creates a problem concerning the distribution of power, which can become a political problem, even though it may emerge in spheres that haven't been thought of as political. So whoever has control of a dominant standard has a great deal of power over our social life generally, whether they intended to have that or not, and indeed whether the choices to put them in that position were freely made. This isn't just true internationally. It can be true domestically. (7) Is there human agency? Well it depends on who you ask. BY subscribing to the dominant standards there is agency in having access to the network. But it is also constraining if you do not want to connect in that way, there are not other standards that can be adopted by individuals and achieve the same interconnectivity. ** Discussion questions: ** How does one go about creating new conventions? Is that an area where individuals can experience greater agency? Even though English is the standard, what of efforts to learn other languages, and cultural business norms? Could one argue that there are many networks or simply one overarching network through which we relate and are connected? ||  || = = = = = = = = = = = =

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