Classical and Structural Realism
Describe the security dilemma
the steps taken by one state to guarantee its own security simultaneously menace other states and make them more insecure
What is the key factor influencing states' likelihood to involve themselves in institutions?
A mutuality of interests
In the international system, what is the highest form of organization?
States
According to constructivists, what influences state behavior?
Ideas, biases, perceptions, identities
What do individual level theories claim?
That individuals' biases/interests/ideas/misperceptions affect state behavior
How is power conceptualized differently by classical and structural realists?
Classical Realists - absolute, unlimited power - see power as the ultimate end (the purpose of IR is to accumulate as much power as possible, for power's sake)
Structural Realists - relative, limited power (slices of a pie) - see power is the means to achieve security/survival, which is the end
What is the ultimate conclusion of liberal institutionalists?
States mitigate the conditions of anarchy, but cooperating in institutions
Define Sovereignty
complete authority within a given territory
How do constructivists conceptualize anarchy?
"Anarchy is what states make of it" -- self help and power politics do not flow logically or causally from anarchy
Describe Great Man Theory and give an example
"history turns on gigantic figures"
Describe Ken Waltz' three characteristics of systems.
1) Ordering Principle (anarchy or hierarchy)
2) Character of Units (states)
3) Distribution of Capabilities (unipolar, bipolar, multipolar)
(Distribution of capabilities is the only characteristic that changes)
What are ways that states cooperate thru institutions?
- Share information
- Reduce misperceptions & incentives to cheat
- Create issue linkages
- Set standards of behavior
Define Anarchy
the absence of a sovereign authority in the international system
Explain what constructivists mean when they say that states' interactions are shaped by ideational, not just material fact
Example: Kim Jong Un and King Charles
bureaucracies within a state affect decision making
What assumptions do all realists share?
That power is coercive and conflict will never be eliminated from the international system
Give one example of a liberal institution in the world today and how it is working to facilitate cooperation between states in this anarchical world.
Can be anything
What event marked the origin of the nation-state system?
The Treaties of Westphalia that ended the 30 years war in 1648
Describe what constructivists mean when they say states' interactions are shaped by ideational, not just material fact (draw the diagram and explain)
Example - you will shape your school just as your school shapes you
Rational Choice Theory: leaders are rational
Prospect Theory: leaders are not rational
Describe the melian dialogue
- Athenians provide an ultimatum to the Melians: serve as our slave-soldiers or we will kill you
- Melians make 4 appeals: the gods, law, justice, and neutrality
- the Athenians retort: "the strong do what they can, while the weak suffer what they must"
Describe Liberal Hegemonic Theory.
After the Cold War, the US emerged as a benign hegemon, deliberately restraining itself thru institutions.
First Image - human nature
Second Image - within the state
Third Image - nature of the international system
Which level of analysis is Constructivism?
Third Image
Provide a critique of Great Man Theory?
Not generalizable -- can apply to certain events but not all of them