Final answer:
World-systems theory categorizes global economy into core, periphery, and semi-periphery. Core countries are highly industrialized, while periphery countries are less developed and exploited for resources. Semi-periphery countries serve as a middle ground.
Step-by-step explanation:
World-systems theory, proposed by Immanuel Wallerstein, divides the world's economy into three strata: the core, the periphery, and the semi-periphery. The core refers to dominant capitalist countries that are highly industrialized and technologically advanced. They tend to have significant resources and power. On the other hand, periphery countries are less developed and often exploited for their labor and resources by core countries. Lastly, the semi-periphery acts as a buffer zone and encompasses countries that are not as powerful as core nations but are more developed than periphery countries.
This hierarchy forms the basis of global stratification and is integral to understanding economic inequality on a global scale. Modernization and dependency theories are two perspectives sociologists use to analyze this issue. Dependency theory critiques the historical exploitation of periphery countries by core countries, sustaining a cycle of dependence. In contrast, modernization theory suggests that industrialization and technology are keys to a country's economic development.