How many cycles does the world go through in its development? This article is related to the topic of the cyclical development of the world economy and of society in general.
One may say that many historians and other social scientists argue that the general idea that history goes in cycles or circles is neither genuine, nor true. So, first of all, a discussion about growth cycles needs more context. Second, it needs more corroboration by facts. And third, it needs more understanding of the general aspects of cyclical development.
Here I would argue that there are at least several types of cycles that the world societies or civilizations go through. Due to the lack of space, I will just name the most prominent cycles leaving a more thorough discussion for later articles.
First of all, there are the demographic cycles. Naturally, the cycles of births and deaths are related to the demographic composition of the society, the share of women and men, general economic development, and many other factors. Furthermore, it is a widespread mainstream opinion among contemporary demographic scientists that there are several types of demographic development stages.
I would also add that the dynamics of the migration cycles are usually related to demographics. Obviously, migration flows are in many cases connected to some global catalyst events: like regional natural catastrophes or major global climatic events. Sometimes it is related to conquests or wars that result in large people movement from some parts of the world to the other.
The second type of cycles are technological cycles. Many articles and ideas have been published on the technological development stages and the several technological revolutions that humankind has gone through in its history. So I will refrain from writing further about this topic here.
Third are the economic cycles. Most countries and civilizations go through economic development ups and downs. For example, China and India were the major economic powers until the early 1500s. Then European countries rose to economic power. Notice that there are several sub-types of economic cycles:
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In conclusion, these are just some examples of the types of cycles that world societies go through. Many more can be named, but in terms of our further discussion, I would like to stress that the types of cycles listed above are hugely related to the strategic or policy choices that professionals and executives, companies and businesses, as well as governments, make.