Globalization, growth models, and democracy in East Asia

Over the past three decades, there has been a rapid expansion of the free flow of goods, capital, personnel, and information around the world. ¹ Compared with other regions, East Asia has a particularly high level of trade dependency and regional division of labour in the production process. Globalization increases the international division of labour and the ensuing specialization and competition between countries. Many countries struggle to climb up the ladder of the division of labour as those at the top want to retain their positions. In this chapter, we review the theoretical and empirical debates concerning the links between globalization, growth, and democratization in East Asia.