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The terms "globalization" as understood by the layperson and "globalization theory" as understood by social scientists and academics are profoundly different. However, the fundamental idea that the world is becoming unified in some way (whether for good or bad) is central to both, and the term "globalization" is tossed about quite loosely in the media, among government pundits, and in popular consciousness. "Globalization theory" is a scholarly construct that became predominant in the 1990s. It is widely used in academia and profoundly affects disciplines like International Relations, to the chagrin of Justin Rosenberg who finds multiple faults and failures in this "Johnny come lately" social theory. Rosenberg is a senior lecturer in International Relations at the University of Sussex, so he is well acquainted with globalization theory, its affect on the social sciences, and real world applications.
Follies is an in-depth and biting critique of globalization theory and theorists. Rosenberg sounds the alarm that globalization theory is slipping into the "central thematic" for...