Third, comparative sociologists have theorized about cross-national difference and similarity, and how they are affected by globalization. Sociologists, however, need to continue reading the important contributions that economic historians, management scholars, political scientists and anthropologists are making to the theoretical and empirical study of such a complex and multifaceted phenomenon as globalization. The analysis and critique presented in this essay indicates that globalization, far from being a feeble phenomenon, is changing the nature of the world. However, it is neither an invariably civilizing force nor a destructive one. Although further empirical investigation is warranted, there is already enough evidence available to reject both extreme positions.
Globalization is neither a monolithic nor an inevitable phenomenon.
Its impact varies across countries, societal sectors and time. It is fragmentary, contradictory, discontinuous, even haphazard. Therefore, one needs to be open-minded about its unexpected and unintended consequences, and to the role that agency, interest and resistance play in shaping it. Globalization does not necessarily pose a choice between condemnation and celebration. The complexity of globalization certainly invites additional research.