East Asia and Globalization: Challenges and Responses

This article provides an overview of how East Asia is coping with the forces of globalization. The first of three sections critically appraises the key features of the theoretical debate over globalization in order to develop an alternative conceptual framework that will encourage a more synthetic assessment of the thinking and practices of globalization in East Asia, especially in eight countries that have been selected as representative of the region. The second section considers some major questions about how globalization is actually conceived of and addressed by key decision makers in East Asia. The final section looks at the impacts and implications of globalization for East Asia and the global community so as to broaden the empirical referents and base of study in coming years.