Country Paper
While a major goal of this course is to illustrate the many ways in which the world is becoming more similar and interconnected, we also will examine the heterogeneity and disconnectedness that still exists around the globe. One way that we will illustrate this is through the country paper assignment.
Through this paper, you will explore how globalization has (or has not) affected El Salvador’s economic, political/regulatory, culture/communication, ecological and demographic environment and speculate (based on specific research you conduct) on globalization’s effect on the country’s future in the next 5-10 years.
El Salvador Research Paper
The paper will have SEVEN major sections:
- (1) Introduction– This section should identify your country ( El Salvador), its geographic location, and provide a thesis statement that frames the main
arguments of your paper.
- (2) Economic Dimension – This section should describe your country’s economy and economic institutions. For example, how effective are economic institutions such as the country’s stock market? How big is the economy? What does it produce? How wealthy is it (in quantitative terms)? How equal/unequal are incomes among the population? How much money does the country receive from foreign sources in the form of foreign aid, foreign direct investment, remittances from the diaspora, etc.? How globally connected is your country’s economy to other countries, and what factors have encouraged/discouraged that global integration? Would you conclude that the country has relatively high or relatively low transaction costs, and why? [In this section, and in most of the other sections, please compare your country to relevant other countries to make these numbers more tangible.]
- (3) Political/Regulatory Dimension – This section should describe the country’s political and regulatory system, including its political institutions. For example, how “free” is it? Is it considered a fragile or failed state (and on what basis)? How would you describe the strength of its regulatory system for doing business? How strong is the country’s Rule of Law? How much corruption is present? What are some of the factors that have shaped the political and regulatory system in this country?
- (4) Cultural/Communication Dimension – This section should describe the country’s national cultural norms and values. For example, what do the Hofstede measures tell us about culture and communication in this country? (Note that some countries may not have been studied using Hofstede’s dimensions; in this case, substitute other observations about the country’s culture.) How do people communicate in this culture? Are there particular ideologies that predominate? What factors have shaped the culture and communication environment in this country?
- (5) Ecology Dimension – This section should describe your country’s ecological strengths and challenges. For example, what factors have shaped the ecological assets in this country? Has globalization threatened these assets? If yes, why – and if not, why not?
- (6) Impact of Globalization on Workforce Demographics – This section should describe the age structure and migration experience of your assigned country. For example, how have the population pyramids changed for your assigned country between 1990, 2000, 2018? What is predicted for the country’s population pyramid for 2025? 2050? How many people are coming into this country versus migrating out of the country?
- (7) Globalization’s Future Impact – Based on your outside research about your country, how do you think globalization will continue to impact your country in the next 5-10 years? What will be some of the major trends to follow? How will this impact the world of work in your country? Use your creativity and critical thinking here and provide at least four specific conclusions about the impact of globalization on your country—now and in the future.
El Salvador country paper
Text. The country paper should comprise 20 pages of text (Times New Roman 12-point font double spaced, 1” margins). You may embed tables/figures/charts/photos in your paper, but the total text (minus these visuals) should equate to the 20 pages of text.
Cover Sheet. A cover sheet (that does not count toward the page limit) should be used and should include the student’s name, assigned discussion section number, assigned country, and the student’s own title for the paper.
Citation. All work that you use directly, or paraphrase must be cited explicitly. I care greatly that you reference your sources explicitly, but am flexible about which format you use, as long as you are consistent throughout the paper. However, you may use the citation method with which you are most accustomed.
Your paper should have a minimum of 10 sources cited beyond those resources assigned as required readings in this syllabus. (Many papers have many more sources than this.)