Most of us are comfortable with nationalism and its message of primary political loyalty to our nation and our state. Indeed, this political orientation is so familiar that most people find it difficult to imagine alternatives. This chapter challenges our traditional view by exploring such alternatives. Although they have long existed, they have been gaining strength in recent decades. As such, human interaction and political identification are moving beyond traditional national boundaries and creating myriad regional and global links. Keep your mind open to the possibilities of these different ways of connecting yourself to the political world, even if they seem far-fetched. Bear in mind that in Shakespeare’s time people believed, as he had a character exclaim in The Taming of the Shrew, “He that is giddy thinks the world turns round.” To simplify the complex changes that are occurring, it is possible to divide them into two related trends: globalization and transnationalism.

Globalization denotes the increasing integration of economics, communications, and culture across national boundaries. It is mostly the product of technological changes that have rapidly expanded the speed with which merchandise, money, people, information, and ideas move over long distances. Certainly people, money, culture, and knowledge have flowed across political borders since ancient times. What is different, though, is the speed at which globalization is now proceeding. Be it the Internet, jet travel, or some other advance, a great deal of this technological innovation is moving the world away from the national orientation that has dominated for several centuries and toward a growing global connectedness.

Transnationalism signifies social, economic, and political links among people and private organizations across national borders. It has both preceded and been spurred by globalization. The two terms are closely linked, but while globalization is a process and a state of affairs, transnationalism is attitudinal and includes a range of cross-border political identities and interactions. Transnationalism undermines nationalism (and its tangible manifestation, the national state) to a substantial degree by promoting cross-national political activity and even political loyalties.

The Web activities for this chapter will help you better understand and apply the concepts of globalization and transnationalism to world politics as well as the politics of your everyday life.