Transcript International Relations I

International Relations I
Session 3
Theories of IR
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Last Session Recap-I
• Why study theories?
• To understand political situations
• To predict future trends
• To solve historical puzzles
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Last Session Recap-II
• Major theories discusses
• Liberalism
» The belief that human nature is altruistic, and thus
morals and ethical values influence decision making
which makes cooperation easier and peace
inevitable. ALSO, international organizations play a
major role in maintenance of peace.
» Rise (post WW1)
» Critical Juncture (onset of WW2)
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Last Session Recap-III
• Realism
» Believes human nature is essentially selfish. States
are major actors in international politics which act in
national interest. Power has primary importance and
gaining and retaining power are the primary goals of
states. International organizations are defunct and
irrelevant. Cooperation is not possible due to mistrust
of other states.
» Rise (post WW2)
» Critical Juncture (Cold War)
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Today’s Session
• Revisions to Realism
• Neo-realism and Neo-traditional Realism
• Revisions to Liberalism
• Neo-liberalism
• Other Important theories
• Complex Interdependence
• International Regimes Theory
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Revisions to Realism
1. Neo-realism
•
States behavior is determined by their relative
power instead of other factors such as values,
types of government, or domestic scenarios.
•
Exclusive focus on the global level of analysis.
•
Important neo-realists are Waltz and Ruggie.
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Neo-realism-I
1. Anarchy is the most important and most enduring
feature of the international system.
2. States are the primary actors in world affairs.
3. Balances of power form automatically whether or
not states consciously aim to establish it.
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Neo-realism-II
4. Power is very important- however, power is not
the end but the means to survival.
– Means are of two kinds
» Internal efforts- moves to increase military
strength, economic capability, and develop
cleverer strategies.
» External efforts- moves to strengthen and
enlarge ones own alliances, and weaken
and shrink opposing alliances.
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Neo-realism-III
5. Domestic politics does have some bearing on
how states act but this is insignificant when
compared to the structural constraints on
shaping the behavior of states.
6. Cooperation between states is difficult to sustain.
7. Relative gains are more important than absolute
gains.
8. While economic prosperity is deemed to be
important more emphasis is placed on security.
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Neo-realism-IV
9. Believe that international institutions like the
United Nations are arenas where states carry out
their traditional competition and political rivalry
for increased influence.
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Neo-traditional Realism
2. Neo-traditional Realism
•
Foreign behaviors of states depends on leader’s
perceptions of national interests and capabilities
instead of constraints imposed by the global
structure.
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Neo-traditional Realism
• Thus looks at statesmen and not the
global anarchic conditions to theorize
about/predict state behavior
• Does not abandon Waltzian insights about
the global structure but adds domestic
politics to the analysis to better understand
foreign policy making.
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Differences b/w Neo-Realism and
Neo-traditional Realism
Neo-realism
• States behavior is determined by their relative
power instead of other factors such as values,
types of government, or domestic scenarios.
• Exclusive focus on the global level of analysis
Neo-traditional Realism
• Foreign behaviors of states depends on leader’s
perceptions of national interests and capabilities
instead of constraints imposed by the global
structure.
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Neo-liberalism
Reasons for the rise of Neo-liberalism.
• The failure of realism and neo-realism to provide
theoretical grounding for the peaceful end of the
Cold War.
• The failure of realist theories to provide
explanations for the growing economic
interdependence in the world.
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Neo-liberalism
• A perspective that accounts for the way
international institutions promote global
change, cooperation, peace, and
prosperity through collective action.
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Neo-liberalism
Focuses in particular on ways in which
influences such as democratic
governance, public opinion, mass
education, free trade, collective security,
multilateral diplomacy, etc. can improve
the quality of life on earth.
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Neo-liberalism
1. Neoliberals believe that anarchy in the
global system can be solved through
international institutions.
2. Neoliberals believe that since cooperation
has high dividends for those cooperating,
cooperation can be expected between
political entities.
3. Neoliberals believe that absolute gains are
important and not relative gains.
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Neo-liberalism
4. Neoliberals believe the state places greater
importance on economic prosperity as
opposed to military strength.
5. Have deep rooted faith in the ability of
international institutions to maintain order,
stability and promote cooperation and
peace.
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Neo-liberalism
• This perspective has become very
important as a result of endorsement by
big players in the political arena such as
Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Kofi Anan.
• Neo-liberalism’s prescriptions for the real
world are:
• Privatization
• Deregulation
• Free trade
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Coherence??
• Neo-realism and neo-liberalism do not
represent a coherent school of thought.
Both perspectives have different groups
operating on different assumptions.
» Examples: Some neoliberals give more importance
to international organizations and their role in
fostering cooperation, while some give more
importance to processes that make cooperation.
Some neorealists concentrate on the kinds of
domestic sub units existing while some focus on the
statesmen.
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Complex Interdependence
1. Basis for neoliberalism
2. Rose up in the 1970s to critique the realist
assumption of the primacy of states as
actors in international relations.
3. Clarification:
 CI does not altogether reject realism but tries to see
which assumptions of realism need to be re-evaluated
(and supplemented with newer assumptions) and which
still stand.
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Complex Interdependence
4.
5.
6.
Presents a holistic conception of the world as a sum of
its interacting parts.
It emphasizes on the importance of non state actors
(MNCs, IOs, NGOs) and highlights the multiple
channels through which both state and non state
actors engage in transnational interaction.
Complex Interdependence also questions the centrality
of issues of national security in realist thought. In the
face of increasing diversity in states’ foreign policy
agendas (such as trade, environment, etc.) CI aims to
better understand foreign policy imperatives of states
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Complex Interdependence
7. Predicted the impending importance of
globalization.
8. Has great relevance in today’s globalized
world- to interpret cooperative
agreements b/w states.
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International Regimes
• Perspective that explains the benefits of
actors supporting particular set of rules
which regulate a specific international
activity, such as monetary rules. These
rules help bring order and contain
anarchy. Players subscribing to these
rules play according to these rules, thus
prospects for cooperation are increased.
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International Regimes
• A regime is an institutionalized or
regularized pattern of cooperation in a
given issue area governed by international
rules.
• Such as WTO regime, HR regime.
• More in the arena of low politics*
* global issues related to the economic, social,
demographic and environmental aspects of
interactions b/w government and people.
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International Regimes
• Regime creation has been fostered
through globalization as more rules are
required for a greater number of issue
areas.
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Summing Up
Basis of
Comparison
Neo-liberalism Neo-realism
Complex
Interdepende
nce
International
Regimes
Meaning of
Anarchy
No central
agency is
available to
enforce
promises
No central
agency is
available to
enforce
promises
No central
agency is
available to
enforce
promises
No central
agency is
available to
enforce
promises
Core interest
of state
To advance
cooperation
because it is
conducive to
prosperity for
all
To enhance
prospects for
survival
To advance
cooperation
because it is
conducive to
prosperity for
all
States not
importantregimes try to
bring about
some order to
the anarchy
Basic
Character of
State
Rational
Egoist
Defensively
positional
Linked
transnationall
y
Not important,
regimes are
linked and
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rational
Basis of
Comparison
Neo-liberalism Neo-realism
Basic goal of
state
Greatest
possible gain
Greatest gain Greatest
+ smallest
possible gain
gain for others
Greatest gain
for members
of regime
Range of
uncertainties
associated
with
cooperation
Partner’s
compliance
Compliance +
relative gains
+ benefits to
others
Displacement
of regime +
partners
compliance
Risks
associated
with
cooperating
To be cheated Cheating and To be cheated
and receive a decrease in
and receive
lower pay-off
relative power lower pay-off
vis others
gain
Barriers to
compliance
Concern
about
partners
compliance
Partner’s
compliance
and partners
relative gains
CI
International
Regimes
Partners
compliance
-
Cheating
destabilizing
the integrity of
the regime
Enforcement
problems in
the regime
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Conclusions
•
•
•
•
Again, theories are perspectives.
No right theories
Incoherence within perspectives
Any takers on acceptable theories?
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