Hard and Soft Power - SUPERPOWERS

Question 1

Soft power

Answer 1

Power that arises from culture, political values, foreign policies and the power of persuasion.

Question 1

Hard power

Answer 1

Expression of a country’s will or influence through military force.

Question 2

What is a soft power index?

Answer 2

Compares the relative strength of countries though soft power resources. Assesing the quality of a country’s political institution and their cultural appeal etc.

Question 3

How effective is soft power?

Answer 3

-Mechanisms of maintaining power sits on a spectrum from hard-soft power which vary in effectiveness.
-soft power is less effective as it relies on a country having respected culture, values and policies. It is low cost be causing it is more about creating alliances and friendly relations.

Question 4

USA - ex of Hard power

Answer 4

• They have military weapons, political strength, size and are part of trade blocs such as NAFTA so trade restrictions involve economic influences

Question 5

Britain- ex of soft power

Answer 5

-They have universities such as oxford, Cambridge and BBC news, monarchy.

Question 6

What is the Mackinders geo strategic theory>

Answer 6

Also known as the heartland theory, introduced when it was believed it was crucial for a country to control a strategic area of land and this was identified as eastern Europe (from Russia to china) named heartland. This was argued as the key geo-strategic region in the world and to control it would mean control of most of the globe’s humans physical resources.

Question 7

China ex of hard power

Answer 7

• China is the Centre of global supply so nations can be held hostage and imports blocked in geo-political decision making.
• Donald trump proposed sanctions on china to reduce china’s influence on domestic manufacturing industry which included taxes on $1,500 billion worth of ‘made in China’ goods and rejection of Huawei