Introduction: Globalization between Theories and Daily Life Experiences

Though a wide range of scientific studies have been published on the topic of globalization, seemingly analyzed to the smallest detail, discussion of this issue is neither commonplace nor easy. Analysis of globalization is never done, as the process is undergoing continuous transformation along development trends that are neither linear nor predictable in advance. In addition, analysis of it is not easy, given that the term globalization has been used with different meanings in several frameworks, both scientific and otherwise (Fiss and Hirsch 2005). But, even considering a single discipline such as sociology, we find that it has not assigned a univocal meaning to the topic, and analyses of the underlying processes of globalization are conducted according to radically different perspectives and interpretations. Hence, there is no general consensus on the concept’s definition, its confines, and even, at least in part, its basic characteristics. Finally, as underscored by Scholte (2005: 46) with a good dose of irony, “the only consensus about globalization is that it is contested”.