Lecture 2 and Lecture 2 Terms Flashcards
Waltz’s levels of analysis
State behavior examined through levels of analysis:
- System level (i.e., structure - unipolar, bipolar, multipolar)
- State level (i.e., international politics - characteristics of a state [i.e., location, political system, etc,])
- Individual level (i.e., political leaders [i.e., Hitler, Trump, etc.])
Balance of power theory
States secure survival by preventing any one state from aggregating enough military power to dominate all other states.
Rationalist
- Middle ground b/w realism and internationalism.
- World gov. not feasible
- Belief in Int’l law, rule of law
- War due to anarchy
- War for prevention
- Utility of war
Power Transition Theory (PTT)
- Organski
- Lempke, regional level
- Rising power and sinking dominant power - “transition”, most unstable time
- Peace best preserved when their are power asymmetries.
3 components of PTT
- Power (e.g., military, GDP, etc.)
- Hierarchical order of states (e.g., rising challenging dominant)
- Satisfaction and status quo (i.e., stability if states are satisfied)
Examples that highlight PTT
- US-China
2. Iran-Saudi Arabia
Preventative war model
Go to war war with one state so they don’t go to war with another o r start a larger war down the road.
Power preponderance theory
Unipolar world (where one country dominates) is the safest model, dominant state is satisfied, although inferior states aren’t satisfied, they lack capacity to go to war, results in stability.
“Anarchic” nature of int’l system
No global enforcement body to regulate interactions between states or the actions (e.g., Annexation of Crimea, Rohingya crisis, )
PTT vs. Realism
PTT emphasizes structure with unofficial norms, Realists emphasize anarchy
IR theorist Joseph Nye Jr.
Geopolitics - military conflicts happen between neighbors
