Summary of part 2 of the course core module international relations specialisation course of the bachelor political science . Summary of all the key aspects of the lectures + assigned readings.
Multi-level politics is the main contextual framework used to understand IR as a true global political
Assumptions in the model:
- Decision making takes place at different levels of collectivity
- Actions undertaken at one level, influence outcomes at other levels
- Incentives for strategic behaviour
- Different levels and forms of publicness, formality, hierarchy, and means of political
influence.
- ‘Perennial debates’ – hard to resolve, keep occurring and returning (macro perspectives)
o All encompassing and paradigmatic (provide explanations for basically everything)
- As opposed to ‘mid-level’ debates
o Context-specific, problem-specific, partially resolvable through empirical research
Positivism – observable through own observations and scientific research (facts)
Post-positivism – focused on interpretations, subjectivity, and social and historical context, aware of
the bias of the observer.
The main political perspectives:
- Liberalism – focused on private property, individual rights, liberty, and equality. Limited
government intervention, free market, and the protection of civil liberties and property at its
core. Individuals should pursue their own interests and minimum intervention to reach their
goals. Government is there to uphold the law and order.
- Neoliberalism – eradicated in the 1980s and based on liberalism but more an economic
perspective. It is more focused on privatization, deregulation and the importance of
economic efficiency, competition, and individual responsibility. In favor of globalization and
free trade.
- Realism – pure focus on power dynamics among states, zero-sum game, balance of power,
and self-interest. Everything beside state interaction is secondary. IR is primarily focused on
competition on security and power. Conflict is inevitable.
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, - Neorealism – comes from realism. State behavior is more shaped by the international system
than individual characteristics of states. Neorealism analyzes how the structure of power
shapes state interaction and decision-making processes.
- Constructivism – focused on the role of ideas, norms, and social constructions in shaping
political behavior. It argues that shared beliefs, norms, and identities influence states’ actions
and the formation of international institutions. Key aspects are the importance of social
interactions and the construction of meaning in shaping political outcomes.
- Post-structuralism – challenges traditional concepts of power, identity, and knowledge.
Power relations are not fixed but constructed and maintained through discourses and
language. Cultural aspects and language are key in shaping political reality. It challenges
everything that is established and dominant narratives.
- Neo-colonialism – indirect control and influence exercised by formal colonial powers or
dominant countries over less developed countries. it suggests political, economic, and
cultural dominance is still acted upon these nations after independence. Key aspects are
exploitation, unequal power relations and cultural influence over weaker nations.
Idealist or rationalist/realist perspective:
Idealism (positivist view) Realism (pessimistic view)
Goals of Normative goals Positive goals
theorizing A better world is possible. Subjectivists, describing the world as it
Use knowledge to come up with a solution really is. How states interact with each
to war/underdevelopment/climate change other, what is there and how things work.
Relationship Ethics > politics Politics > ethics
ethics – politics View of the world influences politics Political circumstances and structures
influence ethics.
Human (and Fundamentally good Self-interested and power-seeking
state) nature Humans are inherently good, states can be Humans are inherently bad, they will start
inherently good. fighting/killing each other if there is no
supernational authority (anarchy)
Unit of analysis Individuals, groups, states, international States and their leaders
organizations
Domestic politics Domestic politics affect foreign policy Domestic politics of secondary
and IR What happens within a state, influences importance
how a state behaves on an international State centred: they do not look at political
level processes inside the state that influence the
international behaviour
Possibility of Possible through democracy and Unlikely, balance of power will be
progress international institutions disrupted by wars
Positive view Progress is unlikely, states will be in conflict
with other states for survival, history will
repeat itself
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, Kaldor: New and old wars
Key elements New and old wars & globalization, identity politics
core New type of organized violence developed, especially in Africa and
Eastern Europe, which is one aspect of the current globalized era.
The new wars are characterized by distinct features (see below)
and focusses on identity politics, globalization and the impacts of
new wars and economic factors on contemporary conflicts.
Theoretical perspective Liberalism/ constructivism
Globalization – the intensification of global interconnectedness (political, economic, military, and
cultural) and the changing character of political authority. Rooted in modernity, the revolution in
information technologies and dramatic improvements in communication and data processing from
the 1980s. Globalization in terms of warfare describes the various changes that characterize the
changes in social relations and are influenced by, and make use of, new technology. The impact of
globalization is visible in many of the new wars.
War – is organized violence carried out by political units against each other. Substantial in combat
involving in substantial fatalities (1000 death in 12 months, according to Singer and Small, 1972). It is
centralized and hierarchic mobilization of men for the purpose of inflicting violence.
Internationalized armed conflict – virtually no armed conflict remains confined to the territory of one
state, free from foreign involvement.
Old wars – focus on regular armed forces, with geopolitical or ideological (democracy/communism)
interests. With clear cut military objectives aimed at capturing territory through military means,
payed by states. State interest became the legitimate justification for war, supplanting concepts of
justice jus ad bellum (reasons to go to war). Warfare is a socially sanctioned activity, it requires
rules. jus in bello (rules of war).
New wars – involve a blurring of the distinctions between war (usually defined as violence between
states or organized political groups for political motives), organized crime (violence undertaken by
privately organized groups for private purposes, usually financial gain) and large-scale violations of
human rights (violence undertaken by states or politically organized groups against individuals). The
rise of the modern state is interconnected to war. Focused more on national, ethic, religious
identities (identity politics), and use violence against civilians to control territory. Payed through
looting, the diaspora, and smuggling.
In the new wars the mode of warfare has changed. The mode of warfare – the means through which
the new wars are fought out, 2 types:
- Guerrilla warfare - territory is captured through political control of the population rather
than through military advance.
- Counter -insurgency – controlling the population by getting rid of every one of a different
identity (and a different opinion) and by instilling terror.
Identity politics – the claim of power on the basis of a particular identity. Two aspects of the new
wave of identify politics related to the process of globalization:
- Local and global (diaspora communities whose influence is greatly
enhanced by the ease of travel and improved communication).
- New technologies (The speed of political mobilization is greatly increased by the use of new
media).
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