Chapter 9 : Global Inequality

As you have learned in Chapter 9, the nations of the world are not all equal when in comes to wealth. Regardless of the terms used, we can divide the world into three sub-groups depending on how wealthy individual nations are. As your text has pointed out, the contemporary globalization has not only created opportunities for great wealth, it has also produced widespread poverty and suffering. One important consequence of this is that the gap between the richest and poorest nations of the world continues to grow.

Part I:

Complete the following steps in order to collect the necessary information for this exercise:

1. Referring to the global map in Chapter 9, Rich and Poor Countries: The World by Income , select two low-income nations, one lower middle income nation, one upper middle income nation, and two high income nation. Write your country selections in Table 1, provided below.
2. Go to the United Nations' CyberschoolBus webpage . Select the "Basic" version of "Info Nation" listed in the left-hand bar.
3. On the InfoNation Basic page, you will see a section labeled "Select Individual Countries" with six different alphabetical and color-coded boxes provided. Using the pull-down menus in each of the six boxes, beginning with box A and continuing to box F, highlight and click on the nations you selected in step 1. Note: Before continuing you must click the box labeled "GO."
4. After you have clicked the "GO" button, you will see, just below the "Countries Selection" section, a section labeled "Select Data"; in this section there are six separate graphs, each of which has two small boxes labeled "Select Category" and "Select Statistic." You will notice that there are 6 different characteristics listed across the top of Table 1. To find out this information do the steps below. (1) Select Category - ECONOMY; Select Statistic - GDP per capita
5. Select Category - POPULATION; Select Statistic -- Urban Growth Rate
6. Select Category - ECONOMY; Select Statistic - Educational Expenditure
7. Select Category - HEALTH; Select Statistic - Undernourished
8. Select Category - TECHNOLOGY; Select Statistic - Motor Vehicles
9. Select Category - ENVIRONMENT; Select Statistic - Commercial Energy Consumption

Writing Assignment 1:

Enter the values presented for these six characteristics for each of the six countries you chose. If you have access to a printer, you can print off the charts generated by the program. When you have finished, stop and take a look at what you've uncovered. How do these factors differ among the nations you've selected? In what ways do you think that factors two through six are related to the differences in GDP per capita? Were any of the patterns a surprise to you? In what ways do they contribute to continuing differences in wealth between nations of the world?

Part II:

Your textbook presents several different theories about why there are economic gaps between different nations. Review those theories and then go through the five categories included in the InfoNation Basic program again (Population, Economy, Health, Technology, and Environment), but this time pick other statistics that you think might be related to levels of economic development. Enter the information on Table 2 as well.

Writing Assignment 2:

When you have collected all of your data, examine the numbers carefully and decide which of the twelve characteristics you've researched appear to be most closely linked to differences in levels of economic development and global stratification. You may want to repeat the exercise with six new countries, drawn from the three national income categories, to see if the same patterns persist.

Writing Assignment 2:

As you look over the table, what factors might explain these views? What were the views of the majority of Americans back in 1996? What do you think their views would be if they were asked the same question today?

To further explore Americans’ attitudes, we can look at some different social factors. First, let’s see whether there might be regional differences in attitudes. If immigrants are clustered in certain parts of the country, maybe people living in those regions will feel differently towards immigration than people in other regions. Before we take a look at the survey results, let’s go briefly to the U.S. Census website. Using information from the 2000 U.S. Census, we can learn more about regional patterns of immigration.

Go to the main page for the U.S. Census Bureau and then follow these steps in order to view a map of the U.S.:

1. At the American Fact Finder page, click on the button labeled “People” located along the left side of the page.
2. On the People page, scroll down until you see the category “Origins and Languages” and then select the “Percent of People who are Foreign Born by State, Map.”

Writing Assignment 3:

The map displays the percentage of each state’s population that is foreign born. Once the map is up on your screen, take a look at where immigrants are living. Which states have the largest percentage of foreign-born residents? Which have the least? If you were to divide the states up into regions (New England, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Midwest, Southwest, and West), what do you think the views of people living in those different regions would be? Can you develop a hypothesis that would express these differences?

Now, let’s take a look at the survey responses by region of the country, presented in Table 2.

Writing Assignment 4:

What does this table suggest about regional differences in attitudes towards immigration? As you can see, the Chi-square test for a relationship between region and attitudes was significant, providing support for the claim that there are regional differences in attitudes. Where do you see the strongest support for reducing immigration? How can you use the previous information on residential patterns of immigrants to develop a sociological explanation for these results?

Another factor that may contribute to differences in attitudes is social class. To investigate this, we need to also identify the respondents’ social class. In the GSS, respondents were asked, “If you were asked to use one of four names for your social class, which would you say you belong in: the lower class, the working class, the middle class, or the upper class?” What differences in attitudes towards immigration do you think there will be between these social classes? Will people who are lower or working classes be more or less opposed than people from the middle or upper classes? What would a research hypothesis be?   Table 3 provides the results of cross-tabulating social class and attitudes towards immigration. 

Writing Assignment 5:

Again, as you can see, the Chi-square test for a relationship between social class and attitudes towards immigration was significant, providing support for the claim that there are significant differences in attitudes. Where do you see the strongest support for reducing immigration? How can you use the sociological perspective to develop an explanation for these results?

Part III:

In this final part of the exercise, you will learn more about immigration in your state and local community. Go to the main page for the U.S. Census Bureau and then follow these steps:

• At American Fact Finder http://factfinder.census.gov/, click on the button labeled “People” located along the left side of the page.
• On the People page, In Box 1 (“To Change Geography”), click on the State Box and scroll down until you find your state (you do not need to fill in any other information at this point). Then, scroll down until you see the category “Origins and Languages” and click on “Citizenship, Year of Entry, and Region of Birth.”

Spend a bit of time and explore the information that is in Table QT-P14.

Writing Assignment 6:

What percentage of your state’s total population was foreign born at the time the census was taken? From what regions of the world did people come from? In what ways have these new arrivals contributed to your state? What challenges have they presented, because of cultural differences?

Now, return to the Census page.

• At American Fact Finder http://factfinder.census.gov/, click on the button labeled “People” located along the left side of the page.
• On the People page, in Box 1, enter the name of both your local community and your state. Then scroll down and once again click on “Citizenship, Year of Entry, and Region of Birth.”

Writing Assignment 7:

What percentage of the population living in your local community is foreign born? From what regions of the world did people come? In what ways have these new arrivals had an impact on the local culture? How does your community compare to your state or the United States as a whole?

Part IV:

Writing Assignment 8/Essay:

In this exercise you have learned a lot about immigration, both the history and current patterns of immigration to the United States. For this final part of the exercise write a reflection essay in which you discuss how immigrants not only enrich our culture, but also provide challenges. Use the knowledge you gained from the articles, the GSS, and the U.S. Census in your reflection.