A sociologist and theorist of globalization. His theories have focused significantly on a more phenomenological and psycho-social approach than that of more materialist oriented theorists such as I. Wallerstein or Fredric Jameson. For Robertson, the most interesting aspect of our globalized (post?)modernity is the way in which, for people around the world, a global consciousness has evolved. He lays down a progression of "phases" that capture the central aspects of different eras in global history. He asserts that we have entered the 6th phase, that of Global Uncertainty. Globalization describes the changes in societies and the world economy that result from dramatically increased international trade and cultural exchange. ... Immanuel Wallerstein (born 1930) is a U.S. sociologist. ... Fredric Jameson (b. ...

His main works are Globalization: Social Theory and Global Culture and the edited volume Global Modernities. His contributed article in the latter introduced the Japanese business term glocalization into Western social science discourse. Glocalization, a neologism and portmanteau of globalization and localization, entails one or both of the following: The creation or distribution of products or services intended for a global or transregional market, but customized to suit local laws or culture. ...

-JRS McIntyre Cornell Universtiy Dept of Anthropology