Globalization and heterogenization: Cultural and civilizational clustering in telecommunicative space (1989-1999)

摘要

The globalization of telecommunicative ties between nations is studied from a heterogenization perspective. A theoretical model inspired by Appadurai's "disjuncture hypothesis," which stipulates that global flows of communication are multidimensional and reinforce regional/local identities, is tested empirically on an international voice traffic dataset. Spatial-statistical measures (global and local versions of Moran's I) indicate that countries that share the same linguistic (English, Spanish, or French) or civilizational (Catholic, Protestant, and Buddhist-Hindu) background are more likely to be each other's "telecommunicative neighbors" and that this tendency has increased over time (1989-1999).