The handbook of globalisation Globalisation is an issue that has been high on the research agenda for several years spawning a vast and at times unwieldy literature. A concept often ill defined it has generated a plethora of unresolved and fiercely contested questions the nature of which depends on which side of the ideological divide one stands. The 2008 global credit crunch which in 2009 created the first global recession since the 1930s demonstrated that the ‘capitalism unleashed’ model of globalisation which had been promoted from the 1980s onwards was both damaging and unsustainable. With contributions from the leading commentators in the field and an over arching introduction from the editor the concerns of this updated and revised handbook are two fold. Firstly to redefine the concept of globalisation and dispel the haze that surrounds it through a systematic and thorough examination of the debate. Secondly to advance the frontiers of current critical thinking on the role and impact of globalisation on the winners and losers in the process and on the implications for society the economy and governance. Offering a genuinely inter disciplinary perspective this Handbook represents the definitive guide to what is an all pervasive issue. It should be on the bookshelves of all postgraduate and advanced undergraduate students in economics business international studies and related fields as well as scholars and policymakers with an interest in the global economy and in the functioning of an increasingly globalised world.