Liberalism Flashcards
What is the international context of liberalism as a theory of IR?
Inter-war liberal internationalism discredited by WW1- dominance of realism
1970s and onwards: liberal critique of realist assumptions about power and war and increase in interdependency, transnational actors, regional integration, cooperation
Post-old War: ideological competition to liberal democracy ended, political and economic liberalisation in Eastern Europe
U.S.- led liberal international order and challenges to it
What are the key tenets of liberalism?
Rationality- defining and universal characteristic of humanity
People rationally pursue their own interests but there is a potential harmony of interests between people
Cooperation is central to all human relations, including international relations
Government is necessary but the centralisation of power is bad
Individual liberty is of supreme political importance
What are the key tenets of republican liberalism?
Utopianism, idealism, inter-war liberal internationalism
Kant: Peace not just an ideal; self-interested, rational individuals will prefer it over conflict
Peace as normal state of affairs
War is unnatural and irrational, not a product of human nature
War can be overcome through changes in domestic and international institutions and structures of governance
What are the three components of the ‘Kantian triangle’ and what did Kant mean by the term ‘perpetual peace’?
Democracy, international organisations, and economic interdependence
Kant: republican constitutions, commercial exchange and a system of international law among republics governed domestically by the rule of law will provide the basis for sustained peace.
What is democratic peace theory?
Republican liberalism articulated by Doyle in ‘Democratic Peace Theory’
Democracies are more peaceful in their relations with other democracies
Although they fight wars with non-democracies, they are more peaceful than their non-democratic counterparts, less likely to initiate the use of military force (Russett)
What are the key tenets of complex interdependence liberalism?
Increasing links between states and unprecedented interdependence
Skilled labour force, access to info
Financial capital key to greatness, not natural resources or territory
Functionalism: technocratic cooperation, solutions to common problems
Away from ‘the conquest state’ to ‘trading state’
Transnational actors
Welfare, not security, as the primary goal and concern of states
What are the key tenets of neo-liberalism/ liberal institutionalism?
International institutions encourage and enable cooperative behaviour, monitor compliance, sanction defectors
Peace is not automatic and requires planning and negotiation
It is naïve to think that free trade automatically breeds peace, it provides incentives for cooperation but does not guarantee it (not idealist/utopian)
In what aspects do neo-realism and neo-liberalism both agree?
States are rational and operate in an anarchic system
How does neo-liberalism differ from neo-realism?
Progress and collective benefits possible through better application of human reasoning
Norms regulate the international system more than realists would have us believe
What is the liberal view on economic interdependence?
It ties states closer together
What is the ‘zone of peace’?
Liberal democracies overcame war and conduct relations in new and more cooperative ways
What is the liberal view of anarchy
It exists, but anarchy does not mean complete absence of legitimate and effective authority in the international system
How do some liberals believe international relations have changed?
International relations changed irreversibly, no going back to territorial conquest to generate wealth (?)
What are some critiques of liberal IR theory?
Better than realist theories to study change and progress, but not prepared to understand ‘lack of progress’
International institutions have no independent effect on state behaviour
States cooperate when it is in their interest, and can defect from international commitments
Certain international institutions reinforce unjust structures, e.g. international financial institutions.
