This book brings together some of the most influential new research from the world-systems perspective. The authors survey and analyze new and emerging topics from a wide range of disciplinary perspectives, from political science to archaeology. Each analytical essay is written in accessible language so that the volume serves as a lucid introduction both to the tradition of world-systems thought and the new debates that are sparking further research today.

Contributions by: Tim Bartley, Albert Bergesen, Terry Boswell, Christopher Chase-Dunn, Wilma A. Dunaway, Stephen W. K. Chiu, Colin Flint, Peter Grimes, Thomas D. Hall, Leslie S. Laczko, Joya Misra, Peter N. Peregrine, Fred M. Shelley, David A. Smith, Alvin Y. So, Yodit Solomon, Elon Stander, Debra Straussfogel, William R. Thompson, Carol Ward