Do you think that globalization results in only an aggressive consumer culture? Justify your answer.
Approach · directive: “do you think / justify”
What it asks · Take a position on whether consumerism is the sole social outcome of globalisation, weighing it against its other cultural, economic and social effects.
It asks 2 things — answer each
- Do you think: take a clear position on whether globalisation yields only an aggressive consumer culture
- Justify: evidence that it fosters consumerism, and evidence of its other cultural, economic and social outcomes
Open with · Globalisation has put malls, brands and one-click shopping at the centre of urban Indian life, yet NCERT also records glocalisation, the mixing of the global with the local; consumerism is a real but partial outcome.
Cover
- Position: no; aggressive consumerism is one real outcome, not the only one.
- For: advertising, EMI credit and fast fashion fuel status consumption, debt and waste; fear of 'McDonaldisation' and cultural homogenisation.
- Against: glocalisation, e.g. McDonald's in India sells no beef; foreign channels use Indian languages.
- Against: rights, gender equality and environmental awareness travel; IT and call-centre jobs; diaspora.
- Two-way flow: International Day of Yoga, proposed by India, endorsed by a record 175 UN members.
- Counter-current: Mission LiFE (20 October 2022) aims to mobilise at least one billion people for pro-planet lifestyles.
Close with · India's tradition of thrift, restated through Mission LiFE and SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production), offers the corrective: engage with the world, consume with restraint.
Add value (verified)
- An Indian proposal led the UN General Assembly to proclaim 21 June as the International Day of Yoga in 2014 — an example of culture flowing outward.International Day of Yoga — United Nations ↗“The draft resolution establishing the International Day of Yoga was proposed by India and endorsed by a record 175 member states.”
- Mission LiFE was launched at the Statue of Unity, Kevadia, Gujarat, on 20 October 2022.PM launches Mission LiFE at Statue of Unity in Ekta Nagar, Kevadia, Gujarat — PIB (PMO), 20 October 2022 ↗“PM launches Mission LiFE at Statue of Unity in Ekta Nagar, Kevadia, Gujarat”
- Mission LiFE aims to mobilise at least one billion Indians and other global citizens.Explainer: Mission LiFE — PIB (MoEFCC), November 2022 ↗“to mobilise at least one billion Indians and other global citizens to take individual and collective action”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2025, GS Paper I — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 16 Oct 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer· 224words · Minimalist IAS
Globalisation has put malls, brands and one-click shopping at the centre of urban Indian life, yet sociologists also see glocalisation, the mixing of the global with the local. In my view, aggressive consumerism is a real but partial outcome, not the whole.
Where the charge holds
- Manufactured wants: advertising, EMI credit and fast fashion fuel status consumption, debt and waste.
- Homogenisation: critics warn of the 'McDonaldisation' of the world, as cultures buy into a dominant American dream.
Why it is not the only outcome
Globalisation: consumerism; glocal culture; rights and ideas; new jobs; two-way flow
- Glocal adaptation: McDonald's in India sells no beef, and foreign channels broadcast in Indian languages.
- Ideas and rights: human rights, gender equality and environmental awareness travel through global networks.
- Opportunity: IT and service exports, call-centre jobs open to women, and a global diaspora raise incomes.
- Two-way flow: India proposed the International Day of Yoga, endorsed by a record 175 UN members in 2014.
- Mindful counter-current: Mission LiFE, launched on 20 October 2022, aims to mobilise at least one billion people for pro-planet lifestyles.
Verdict
- Consumerism is globalisation's loudest effect, not its only one; what a society absorbs depends on its own values and institutions.
India's tradition of thrift, restated through Mission LiFE and SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production), offers the corrective: engage with the world, consume with restraint.
Prepared by Minimalist IAS to the answer standard of Shivam Singh (mentor, 7 years) · facts checked against official sources (how we verify) · updated 16 Oct 2026. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.
