Lecture 2 Flashcards
What are some of the challenges of investigating IR?
-The study of IR requires taking into account every factor that influences human behavior
-Challenges are complex (cynefin)
-People have the tendency to resist new information and ideas
-mirror imaging
-Heuristic (short-cuts, rules of thumb)
How Do Perceptions Influence Reality?
-Nature and Nurture
-Predisposition
-Experience, education, self-study do not give omniscience (infinite awareness, understanding, etc)
-perspective shapes belief, understanding, assumptions → Identity is socially constructed
Political Mapping Examples
-World Map
-Nations
-Military Alliances
-Population size
-Economics
-Economic Center of Gravity
-Networks of scientific cooperation
-Strategic culture
Types of World Maps
Mercator
—-It mapped the earth without distorting direction. However distances were deception, placing europe at the center of the world and exaggerating to the continents importance relative to other land masses
Peter’s
—-Each landmass appears in the correct proportion in relation to all others, but it distorts the shape and position of the Earth’s landmasses.
Upside down
—–gives a different perspective on the world, with the Global South positioned above the Global North. The map challenges the modern “Eurocentric” conceptualization of the positions of the globe’s countries and peoples by putting the Global South “on top.”
Economic Center of Gravity
-Calculated by weighing locations by GDP in 3 dimensions and projected to the nearest point on the earth’s surface.
-The surface projection of the center of gravity shifts north over the course of the century, reflecting the fact that 3-dimensional space america and asia are not only next to each other, bot also across from each other
-GDP per capita isn’t a perfect proxy for living standards (it doesn’t consider inequality, weather, etc- but it’s the best quick summary measure of economic capacity )
Strategic Culture Types
-Physical
-Political
-Social/Cultural
-Environment
Strategic Culture, Physical
Geography, climate, natural resources, demographic changes
Stategic Culture, Political
history/historical experience, political system/ government, elite beliefs, public opinion
Strategic Culture, Social/Culture
Myths and symbols, historical narrative, defining identity
Strategic Culture, Enviroment
Religion, security, alliances, budgets, economy
Who won/who Lost WW2?
Allies
—Soviet union, china, poland, france, UK, etc
Axis
—Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Fascist Italy.
How did we win the Cold War?
(Soviet Union and USA/Period of geopolitical tension)
- Economic (capitalism vs communism)
- Military (nato)
- Information (free world vs totalitarian world)
- Domino theory (proxy wars, Truman Doctrine)
- Nuclear stalemate (MAD)
- Regan - “tear down this wall”, military spending SDI
- Gorbachev - perestroika, (restringing away from state owned economy), glasnost (openness-free speech, etc)
- By not fighting it (containment)
Cognitive Challenges
- Schematic reasoning
- Cognitive dissonance
- Mirror images
- Enduring rivalries
- Appeasement
Cognitive Challenges, Schematic Reasoning
The process of reasoning by which new information is interpreted according to a memory structure, a schema, which contains a network of generic scripts, metaphors, and simplified characterizations of observed objects and phenomena.
Cognitive Challenges, Cognitive dissonance
The general psychological tendency to deny discrepancies between one’s preexisting beliefs (cognitions) and new information.
