This book offers students a general introduction to issue of the global distribution of wealth and power throughout the world today. The Second Edition has been revised and updated and examines a wide variety of topics, from global economic trends to ethnic conflicts, in four major regions: Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas. The book provides a theoretical framework that helps readers understand the regions better. Every region has its unique features, but each also exhibits features that are common across regions, countries and cultures. The book: - Presents a global view of stratification in a theoretical framework, made accessible to undergraduate students by using an effective combination of academic works, lively stories and news reports - Helps to educate students about social and cultural differences across the world, outlining our growing global interdependence and explains how this is connected to contemporary social problems.