Theories
Democratic peace theory is most closely associated with this approach.
What's liberalism
The right of a state to control affairs within its borders.
What is sovereignty?
Audie Klotz’s study of anti-apartheid shows the power of these in shaping international outcomes
What is norms
This level argues that authoritarian regimes are more likely to start wars than democracies.
What is state level
The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.
What is realism (Thucydides, Melian Dialogue)?
According to classical realism, states want this above all else
What is power?
The dominance of one state in the system is called this.
Unlike liberalism, realism downplays the role of these organizations in shaping outcomes
What is international institutions/IGOs
This level of analysis highlights the decisions and psychology of leaders
What is the individual level
Anarchy is what states make of it.
What is constructivism (Alexander Wendt)?
The European Union is often used as an example by this theory
What is liberalism
The expectation of repeated cooperation in the future
What is shadow of the future
Realists cite this dialogue as evidence that appeals to morality are weak compared to power in international politics.
What is the Melian dialogue
The Cold War rivalry between the U.S. and the USSR is often analyzed at this level
What is system level
"Democracies rarely, if ever, fight each other"
The idea that sovereignty itself is a socially constructed norm belongs to which IR approach
Pattern of rules and institutions that give stability to the anarchic system
What is order?
What was the broader system of cooperation and rules called that emerged after 1945?
What is liberal international order?
This level explains the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan by focusing on partisan divisions in Washington
What is state level
"The real danger is not sudden collapse, but gradual erosion of institutions as states turn inward."
What is liberalism (Nye)?
These scholars argue that the end of formal colonialism did not erase global inequalities, since colonial legacies still shape less developed countries.
What are post-colonial theorists?
Cooperation among multiple states
What is multilateralism?
Constructivists argue that nuclear weapons in the U.S. and in North Korea are perceived differently because of this.
What is identity?
This level argues that World War II was less about Hitler’s personality or German domestic politics, and more about how the collapse of the balance of power in the 1930s created structural incentives for expansion and war.
What is the system level?
“Theories of international relations present themselves as universal, yet they are rooted in histories of empire and exclusion.”
What is post-colonial / critical IR theory (Zvobgo & Loken)?