Introduction to International and Global Studies

by Shawn C. Smallman, Kimberley Brown (Contributor)

Shawn C. Smallman and Kimberley Brown's popular introductory textbook for undergraduates in international and global studies is now released in a substantially revised and updated third edition. Encompassing the latest scholarship in what has become a markedly interdisciplinary endeavor and an increasingly chosen undergraduate major, the book introduces key concepts, themes, and issues and then examines each in lively chapters on essential topics, including the history of globalization; economic, political, and cultural globalization; security, energy, and development; health; agriculture and food; and the environment. Within these topics the authors explore such diverse and pressing subjects as commodity chains, labor (including present-day slavery), pandemics, human rights, and multinational corporations and the connections among them. This textbook, used successfully in both traditional and online courses, provides the newest and most crucial information needed for understanding our rapidly changing world.

New to this edition:
*Close to 50% new material
*New illustrations, maps, and tables
*New and expanded emphases on political and economic globalization and populism; health; climate change, and development
*Extensively revised exercises and activities
*New resume-writing exercise in careers chapter
*Thoroughly revised online teacher's manual

Genres: Nonfiction

376 pages, Paperback

First published November 15, 2014

Reviews

[Faisal Husain · Rating 1 out of 5]

For a book about "International" and "Global" studies, this was rife with blatant occidental bias.

Smallman & Brown spare no words describing the problems, human rights abuses, and crimes of foreign countries and only ever barely mention in passing (if they bother mentioning it at all) the same crimes or complicity of the crimes of Western countries. If this happened once or twice, they could be excused, but it is a recurring theme throughout the book and sets a very particular tone.

Further, there were a few instances in which they would state something without providing any examples or evidence. Right or wrong (in one case they were demonstrably wrong), not backing up your points is poor writing and certainly not academic.

One of the biggest problems of the book is that S&B fail horrendously to adequately simplify complex problems. They frequently omit very important facts and points of view which create inadequate framing of the topics. For example, they spend an entire section talking about torture but frame it exclusively as a moral problem. Nowhere do they mention that it has been extensively documented that torture does not work. Inadequate framing like this will only make an uninformed person misinformed, rather than more informed.

Worst of all, in their misplaced obsession with providing a "balanced" view, they spend a significant portion of the "Environment" chapter rehashing anti-environment views, giving an unwarranted amount of space, time, and platform for views that demonstrably anti-science and not grounded in reality. A far better approach would have been to lay out the threats to the environment, and discuss the problems and short-comings of the current solutions, rather than just restating anti-environment propaganda and insufficiently countering it.

This is one of the worst non-fiction books I have ever read. If you know nothing about global issues you will come out more misinformed than you were before you read it.

[Hayat_212 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got this book because the professor asked us to.The book was barely useful in understanding globalization, as I was confused trying to understand concepts in some chapters.Having no background in international relations, i'd say this is not the book you'd want to buy in order to learn.

[Olivia]

dnf for international studies