why is the term first world contentious 
 first world is a problematic term because it is outdated first coined during the cold war it referred to countries that were allies of the united states mostly other westernized countries as opposed to countries that aligned with the former soviet union because the economic indicators used to define the first world vary by their perspective the first world can represent an opaque concept of a country s economic stature for instance despite saudi arabia having per capita income that is nearly equal to portugal s it is often considered a second world nation the bottom linefirst world nations are those described as highly developed industrialized technologically advanced educated and wealthy in contrast to developing second world and less developed third world countries the first world is seen to enjoy many benefits such as a relatively high quality of life and prosperity the phrase first world country was popularized in the 1950s and 1960s during the cold war to describe developed countries considered to have the power to influence international politics through their economic technological and military strength the term was not explicitly political it described a grouping based on aggregate wealth or perceived power rather than an ideological outlook first world countries included australia canada france germany italy japan new zealand norway the united kingdom and the united states among others today the term has fallen somewhat out of favor as critics argue it is an outmoded model for understanding national development 