• Completely revised and updated to include the latest developments in the field of global studies
• Shows how the transformative powers of globalization reach deeply into the political, cultural, technological, and ecological dimensions of contemporary social life
• Explores the ideological aspects of globalization - looking at political movements both for and against globalization
• Includes discussion of contemporary issues such as the rise of ISIL and related radical Islamist groups like Boko Haram, new waves of civil wars in Syria/Iraq/Yemen/Nigeria, and the EU fiscal crisis
• Part of the bestselling Very Short Introductions series - over eight million copies sold

New to this Edition:

• Considers the growing power of a 'women & education centered discourse' in the Muslim world embodied by Nobel Prize-winning activist Malala Yousefzai
• Analyses the intensification of surveillance and the Edward Snowden affair
• Discusses the so-called 'decline of the US' and the 'rise of the rest' (especially China and India)
• Includes a new section on the rise of robot technology and new war technology with civilian usage such as drones
• Considers the impact of social networking technology, and also new identity discussions around gender fluidity and sex change
• Analyses the Ebola crisis in West Africa

'Globalization' has become one of the defining buzzwords of our time - a term that describes a variety of accelerating economic, political, cultural, ideological, and environmental processes that are rapidly altering our experience of the world. It is by its nature a dynamic topic. This Very Short Introduction has been fully updated for a fourth edition, to include recent developments in global politics, the global economy, and environmental issues. 

Presenting globalization as a multifaceted process encompassing global, regional, and local aspects of social life, Manfred B. Steger looks at its causes and effects, examines whether it is a new phenomenon, and explores the question of whether, ultimately, globalization is a good or a bad thing. In this fourth edition Steger discusses some of the key features of recent years, such as the EU fiscal crisis, the rise of robot technology and new war technology with civilian usage such as drones, the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, and new identity discussions around gender fluidity and sex change in the media.