Paper 4 — The Global Economy
Topic Brief: Globalisation
Compiled 2026-09-29. Grounded in research/veridian/WEC14-verified-facts.md — its "4.3.1 Causes
and effects of globalisation" section and its "Series coverage log" — cross-read against the two
existing WEC14 documents that already cover this topic from other angles, so this stays additive:
content/veridian/technique-hub/wec14/codex-deep-dive-globalisation.md (the full citation-level
audit, read in full — its Part 2 inventory table and Part 4 synthesis are not reproduced here) and
signal-frequency-and-boundaries.md (the whole-paper frequency table, one row per topic — its
"5 of 14" figure for 4.3.1 is discussed, not repeated, below). content/veridian/curriculum/wec14/ globalisation.ts and content/veridian/question-bank/wec14.ts were also checked; neither carries
a document of this shape. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Pearson Edexcel.
SIGNAL Topic Master Brief — Globalisation (WEC14, spec 4.3.1)
What this adds
The CODEX deep-dive already holds the full bullet-by-bullet citation audit for this spec point. This is the shorter, revision-facing companion: which real series tested it, at what tariff, in what recurring shape, and what to expect if it turns up — plus one genuine discrepancy this brief found by comparing the two existing documents against each other, which neither states on its own.
Every real series checked, graded by how firmly each is anchored
| Confidence | Series | Question | What's actually confirmed |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | January 2022 | Q8 — 20 marks, Section C "Evaluate factors that have contributed to increased globalisation" | Full causes essay, KAA + Evaluation bullets independently re-verified |
| High | October 2022 | Q9 — 20 marks, Section C "Evaluate whether the benefits of globalisation outweigh the costs" | Full benefits/costs essay, KAA + Evaluation bullets independently re-verified |
| High | June 2025 | Q7(a)/(b) — 2 + 8 marks, Section B | Trade-as-%-GDP statistic (20%→26.3%, 1980–2020) plus transport/communication-cost causes and their reversal |
| Medium | October 2024 | Source booklet (question number not stated in the facts bank) | FDI reasons (spec 4.3.1.2b) — Vietnam/Japan, $3.4bn — a real figure, but not tied to a named question |
| Low | June 2022 | Q1 — Section A MCQ | Examiner report states only that the topic "performed best"; the question's own content is not in the facts bank |
| Low / thematic | October 2021 | Source booklet context (Zambia's copper dependence) | Real context, but the one specific question this course's research traced from that booklet (Q7(d)) is graded by codex-deep-dive-globalisation.md as anchored to spec 4.3.6, not 4.3.1 |
June 2025 sits outside the archive's main 14-series sweep — only this one topic-targeted check was made of that series, not a full read (see the facts bank's own "Series coverage log").
Frequency, stated honestly rather than rounded to one number. At high confidence alone, this
topic is seen in 3 of 14 fully-read series (January 2022, June 2022, October 2022). Counting
October 2024's medium-confidence FDI citation brings that to 4 of 14. signal-frequency-and- boundaries.md states "5 of 14," additionally counting October 2021 — this brief does not adopt
that fifth series on its own evidence, because the specific question this course's research traced
from that booklet lands on a different spec point (4.3.6), a discrepancy worth knowing rather than
silently resolving one way. Adding June 2025's targeted, high-confidence check outside the 14-count:
this topic has been checked for, and confirmed found in, at least 4 and at most 5, of the 15
series this course's research has looked at across both passes.
The real mark-tariff pattern
Confirmed citations cluster at two tariffs, with a real gap between them:
- 20-mark Section C "Evaluate" essay (12 KAA + 8 Evaluation, country-of-choice gated) — January 2022 Q8 and October 2022 Q9, the topic's two richest citations.
- Section B data-response, small marks — June 2025's 2-mark calculation plus an 8-mark "examine two factors" part (K2/AP2/AN2/EV2).
- Section A MCQ — confirmed to occur (June 2022 Q1) but its content is not confirmed.
The facts bank's own general note adds that this topic "folds into Section B Q7(e) 14-mark 'discuss' questions" when the source booklet covers a globalising economy — but no citation in either existing WEC14 document actually names a 14-mark Q7(e) instance for this spec point. Treat that middle tariff as a stated pattern, not a confirmed one, until a matching question turns up.
The recurring context and angle
Every confirmed or medium-confidence country example for this spec point sits outside Western Europe and North America: China (June 2025), Vietnam (October 2024, FDI), and, at the weaker thematic level only, Zambia and Turkey. No confirmed citation for this topic uses a developed Western economy as its worked example — a pattern in what has actually been checked, not a claim about what a future paper will set.
The single most examiner-reported error is naming causes and describing effects instead (January 2022's report) — or the reverse on the effects essay, where candidates drifted into reasons rather than costs (October 2022's report). Both essays also share a structural quirk worth knowing before planning an answer: October 2022's mark scheme explicitly lets a candidate write benefits as the Evaluation band and costs as KAA, or the standard way round — marks track whichever side is actually developed with reasoning, not a fixed assignment. And both essays' Evaluation bands reward a reversal point against the essay's own KAA claim: reshoring/"peak globalisation" against falling transport costs, and the Doha round stalling or a trading bloc exit against trade liberalisation and trading blocs as unconditional goods.
If this topic appears — what to expect
- Section C essay: most likely framing is "evaluate causes" or "evaluate benefits vs costs," country-gated, 20 marks. Plan a reversal point into the Evaluation band before writing — this topic's essays are specifically evaluated on catching an unconditional claim.
- Section B: expect a small calculation (percentage-of-GDP style, back out a total from a part and a percentage) paired with a short "examine"/"analyse" part, not a full essay.
- Section A: possible, but under-evidenced — don't over-weight MCQ drilling for this topic relative to comparative advantage or terms of trade, which the paper-wide frequency table shows tested far more often at Section A.
- Country context: expect a developing or newly-industrialising economy, not a Western one.
- The one error to actively guard against: answering the causes question with effects content, or the effects question with causes content — the archive's single most repeated note on this topic, in both directions.
Sources checked: research/veridian/WEC14-verified-facts.md (the "4.3.1 Causes and effects of
globalisation" section and the "Series coverage log," including its June 2025/Summer 2025 addenda);
content/veridian/technique-hub/wec14/codex-deep-dive-globalisation.md (read in full, for its
citation-confidence grading and to avoid restating its Part 2/Part 4 content); signal-frequency- and-boundaries.md (read in full, for its 4.3.1 row and denominator note); content/veridian/ curriculum/wec14/globalisation.ts and content/veridian/question-bank/wec14.ts (checked directly;
neither holds a document of this shape to duplicate).