industrialized countries

Examples of industrialized countries in the following topics:

• Industrializing Countries

  • Industrializing countries have low standards of living, undeveloped industry, and low Human Development Indices (HDIs).
  • An industrializing country, also commonly referred to as a developing country or a less-developed country, is a nation with a low standard of living, undeveloped industrial base, and low Human Development Index (HDI) relative to other countries.
  • Industrializing countries have HDIs between the most and least industrialized countries in the world .
  • For example, India is considered a industrializing country.
  • Explain why some scholars use the term 'less-developed country' instead of 'industrializing country'

• Least Industrialized Countries

  • The Pacific island country of Samoa illustrates the distinction between least industrialized countries that receive international aid from the UN and industrializing countries that do not necessarily receive significant assistance from the UN.
  • In contrast to industrialized and industrializing countries, the world's least industrialized countries exhibit extremely poor economic growth and have the lowest Human Development Index (HDI) measures in the world.
  • To be considered a least industrialized country, or least developed country (LDC) as they are commonly called, a country must have a small economy and low standards of living .
  • Thus, the definition of LDCs is more rigid than the definition of developing/industrializing and developed/industrialized countries .
  • Countries in the 1–10,000 international dollar range roughly correspond to least industrialized countries.

• Industrialized Countries

  • Industrialized countries have greater levels of wealth and economic development than less-industrialized countries.
  • In countries such as the United States, with well-developed industries, residents have consistent access to electricity, roads, and other infrastructure that improves their standard of living.
  • An industrialized country, also commonly referred to as a developed country, is a sovereign state with a highly developed economy relative to other nations.
  • In terms of global stratification, industrialized countries are at the top of the global hierarchy.
  • Developed countries, which include such nations as the United States, France, and Japan, have higher GDPs, per-capita incomes, levels of industrialization, breadth of infrastructure, and general standards of living than less developed nations.

• Global Aging

  • Global aging differs depending on the access to economic and social resources; thus, industrialized countries tend to have older populations.
  • However, while the trend of a growing older population appears world over, people in industrialized nations are older than people in non-industrialized nations.
  • Easier access to pervasive biotechnology in industrialized nations means that people live longer.
  • Unfortunately, in some countries HIV/AIDS has ravaged the population to the point where the average life expectancy drops.
  • Most of these countries have lower levels of development and industrialization.

• Industrialization and the Graying of the Globe

  • Most Western countries industrialized by the nineteenth century but the Industrial Revolution is still occurring around the world.
  • One schematic by which one can divide the world is between industrialized and non-industrialized countries.
  • Industrialized countries are defined by measures of economic growth and security.
  • Countries that score poorly on these scales are considered to be non-industrialized, though it should be noted that non-industrialized countries are undergoing the process of industrialization.
  • Thus, while people in all countries are living longer than prior generations, people in industrialized nations live longer than people in non-industrialized nations.

• World-Systems Theory

  • India is an example of a semi-peripheral country -- it is largely dependent on foreign investors for capital, but has a growing technology industry and emerging middle class consumer market.
  • Core countries (e.g., U.S., Japan, Germany) are dominant, capitalist countries characterized by high levels of industrialization and urbanization.
  • Peripheral countries (e.g., most African countries and low income countries in South America) are dependent on core countries for capital and are less industrialized and urbanized.
  • Peripheral countries generally provide labor and materials to core countries.
  • Semiperipheral countries exploit peripheral countries, just as core countries exploit both semiperipheral and peripheral countries.

• Global Inequality

  • In addition, economic relationships between countries tend to benefit the wealthier countries.
  • Core countries (e.g., U.S., Japan, Germany) are dominant capitalist countries characterized by high levels of industrialization and urbanization.
  • Peripheral countries (e.g., most African countries and low income countries in South America) are dependent on core countries for capital, and have very little industrialization and urbanization.
  • Semiperipheral countries generally provide labor and materials to core countries.
  • Semiperipheral countries exploit peripheral countries, just as core countries exploit both semiperipheral and peripheral countries.

• Deindustrialization

  • Deindustrialization occurs when a country or region loses industrial capacity due to relocation or increased efficiency.
  • But after free-trade agreements were instituted with less developed nations in the 1980s and 1990s, Detroit-based manufacturers relocated their production facilities to countries where wages were lower.
  • Deindustrialization occurs when a country or region loses industrial capacity, especially heavy industry or manufacturing industry.
  • Deindustrialization is, in a sense, the opposite of industrialization, and, like industrialization, deindustrialization may have far-reaching economic and social consequences.
  • This graphic shows the decline of the manufacturing industry relative to other industries over the course of the past sixty years.

• Composition of the Older Population

  • The elderly proportion of the population is growing around the world, but it is greater in developed countries.
  • In industrialized nations, life expectancy has increased consistently over the last decades.
  • While the trend of an older population appears worldwide, people in industrialized nations are older than people in non-industrialized nations.
  • While people in almost all countries are living longer than prior generations, people in industrialized nations still live longer than people in non-industrialized nations.
  • Examine the sociological factors that allow people to live longer lives in industrialized versus non-industrialized nations, such as better access to health care

• Disinvestment and Deindustrialization

  • Deindustrialization refers to the process of social and economic change ignited by the removal or reduction of industrial activity/capacity in an area that was formerly supported by the manufacturing industry.
  • It is the inverse process of industrialization—the process of social and economic change that began in the eighteenth century, transforming agrarian societies into industrial ones.
  • Third, deindustrialization can be marked by a balance of trade deficit, or a situation in which a country imports more manufactured products than it exports.
  • In this model, daily operation occurs overseas, including the hiring of foreign workers in the country where the manufacturing operations are now based.
  • Rather, it redistributes industrialization to India.