The Anti-Globalization Backlash: Comparing Rich and Poor Nations

• In Event: Analyzing the Anti-Globalization Backlash: the Role of FDI

Abstract

Why has the anti-globalization backlash occurred in some countries, but not in others? Both rich and poor countries have been opening up to international markets; yet support for globalization in many parts of the developing world remain persistently higher than it does in advanced democracies, especially in recent times. This is puzzling because skill premiums and income inequality have been increasing in both sets of countries alongside globalization. Drawing from A. Hirschman’s seminal work, we present and test the novel hypothesis that less-skilled worker’s high expectations of future mobility in once-stagnant economies increases support for globalization regardless of their actual mobility; conversely, once mobile groups in richer economies (i.e., less skilled workers) resist globalization because they associate it with lower future income expectations. We test our hypothesis using both cross-national survey data and a survey experiment in India that applies foreign direct investment as our proxy for globalization.

Authors

• Stephanie J. Rickard, London School of Economics

• Nita Rudra, Georgetown University