Midterm Vocabulary Flashcards
Rational Model (Decision-Making)
Based on a series of actions including generating possible solutions and evaluating their pros and cons;
Bureaucratic Politics Model
The fight over trade policy formation that takes place within the government between the ministries of agriculture, industry, and labor;
Anarchy and Security Dilemma
Two states are defensive realist states that do not intend to threaten each other’s security; result in an arms race
Power Transition Theory
Suggests that war is most likely when a challenger to a dominant state approaches parity in its level of power and is not satisfied with the current system;
Prospect Theory
People are risk-averse regarding gains, but risk-acceptance regarding losses;
Bounded Rationality
Cost of seeking and processing information to find the best option;
Groupthink
Tendency for groups to reach decisions without accurately assessing the consequences;
Bargaining and War: Commitment Problem
Credibility regarding not to use force to revise the terms of the settlement at a later date;
Bargaining and War: Private Information
Incentive to misinterpret information;
Balancing vs. Bandwagoning
Balancing - concerns regarding its survival and more autonomy/influence
Bandwagoning - states join forces with those who are stronger in a conflict;
WWI and WW2: Offense-Defense Balance
The ratio of the cost of the forces the attacker requires to take territory to the cost of the forces the defender has deployed;
WWI and WW2: Alliance Behavior in Multipolarity
Chain-ganging and buck-passing - chained into others behavior and passing down the responsibility to others;
Issues Regarding Alliances
Alliance Cohesion - diverse interest and identities
Burden Sharing - share a lot more burden –> give them money
Credibility (Willingness/Capability) - whether the country would come in times of need
Entrapment - chained into others behavior
Buck-passing - passing down the responsibility to others;
Prisoner’s Dilemma
A situation where two parties separated and unable to communicate, must each choose between cooperating with each other or not;
Democratic Peace Theory
“Democracies never go to war with each other.”
Diversion Strategy
Takes people’s attention away from problems like economic troubles or scandals by creating a crisis;
Rally Effect
People tend to become supportive of their government where there is a dramatic international event, like a war;
Nuclear Weapons: Second-Strike Capability
Some of your weapons survive and you still have some weapons to retaliate;
Nuclear Weapons: Non-proliferation treaty
Treaty that took effect in the 1970s that was signed by major nuclear and non-nuclear powers to help spread nuclear technology; recognized five nuclear powers
Ethnic Conflicts: Why do they happen?
Ethnocentrism - thinking of something positively, while others will think negatively
Conflicts of Interest - economic exploitation
Opportunities - weak governments
Manipulation by greedy politicians/leaders
Ethnic Conflicts: How to end them (evaluations)
Military Victory - one side dominance
Partition - each group holds its own sovereign state
Power-sharing institutions - successful for long lasting conflicts with few casualties
Ethnic Conflicts: Rwanda Case
Genocide case where more than 800,000 Rwandans were brutally killed by fellow citizens targeting the Tutsi ethnic group
Terrorism: Causes
Urbanization: easy and accessible targets and anonymity
Development of transportation and communication: mobility and publicity
Globalization: rapid and widespread movement of people, money, technology, ideas
Social facilitation: making it morally and politically justifiable
Political factor: government’s inability or willingness
Grievances of subgroups
Lack of opportunity for political participation
Terrorism: (Immediate) purposes
To gain recognition or attention: advertisement of the cause
To affect the public attitude
To disrupt and discredit the government: weakening it administratively
To provoke a counter-reaction from the government
Terrorism: Regime type implications (Democracies vs. Authoritarian regimes)
Publicity
Repression/retaliation
Getting information (about terrorist groups/plans)
Legal process/human rights
The public influence on the government
Cost tolerance
Easier targets
