Ch. 2- Realism Flashcards
The ability or potential to influence others’ behavior, as measured by the possession of certain tangible and intangible characteristics
Power
A broad intellectual tradition that explains international relations mainly in terms of power
Realism
An approach that emphasizes international law, morality, and international organization, rather than power alone, as key influences on international relations
Idealism
The use of geography as an element of power, and the ideas about it held by political leaders and scholars
Geopolitics
In IR theory, a term that implies not complete chaos but the lack of a central government that can enforce rules
Anarchy
The shared expectations about what behavior is considered proper
Norms
A state’s right, at least in principle, to do whatever it wants within its own territory; traditionally, it is the most important international norm
Sovereignty
A situation in which actions that states take to ensure their own security (such as deploying more military forces) are perceived as threats to the security of other states
Security dilemma
The general concept of one or more states’ power being used to balance that of another state or group of states
Balance of power
Generally, the half dozen or so most power states
Great powers
States that rank somewhat below the great powers in terms of their influence on world affairs
Middle powers
A version of realist theory that emphasizes the influence on state behavior of the system’s structure, especially the international distribution of power
Neorealism
An international system its typically five or six centers of power that are not grouped into alliances
Multipolar system
A theory that the largest wars result from challenges to the top position in the status hierarchy, when a rising power is surpassing the most powerful state
Power transition theory
The holding by one state of a preponderance of power in the international system so that it can single-handedly dominate the rules and arrangements by which intl. political and economic relations are conducted
Hegemony
The argument that regimes are the most effective when power in the intl. system is most concentrated
Hegemonic stability theory
The ease with which the members hold together an alliance; it tends to be high when national interests converge and when cooperation among allies becomes institutionalized
Alliance cohesion
The distribution of the costs of an alliance among members; the term also refers to the conflicts that may arise over such distribution
Burden sharing
A US-led military alliance, formed in 1949 with mainly West European members, to oppose and deter Soviet power in Europe
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
A soviet-led Eastern European military alliance founded in 1955 and disbanded in 1991. It opposed NATO
Warsaw Pact
A bilateral alliance between the US and Japan, created in 1951 against the potential Soviet threat to Japan. The US maintains troops in Japan and is committed to defend Japan if that nation is attacked, and Japan pays the US to offset about half the cost of the troops
US-Japanese Security Treaty
A movement of third world states, led by India and Yugoslavia, that attempted to stand apart from the US-Soviet rivalry during the Cold War
Nonaligned movement
The threat to punish another actor if it takes a certain negative action
Deterrence
The threat of force to make another actor take some action
Compellence
A reciprocal process in which two or more states build up military capability in reposnse to each other
Arms race
Actors conceived of as single entities that can “think” about their actions coherently, make choices, identify their interests, and rank the interests in terms of priority
Rational actors
The interests of a state overall (as opposed to particular parties or factions within the state)
National interest
A calculation of the costs incurred by a possible action and the benefits it is likely to bring
Cost-benefit analysis
A branch of math concerned with predicting bargaining outcomes. Games such as Prisoner’s Dilemma and chicken have been used to analyze various sorts of intl. interactions
Game theory
Situations in which one actor’s gain is by definition equal to the other’s loss, as opposed to a non-zero sum game, in which it is possible for both actors to gain
Zero-sum game
A situation modeled by game theory in which rational actors pursuing their individual interests all achieve worse outcomes than they could have by working together
Prisoner’s Dilemma
