International Relations - Midterm study guide

Mercantilism

an economic doctrine based on the belief that military power and economic influence complement one another; applied through colonial empires; such policies favored the mother country over its colonies/competitors

Treaty of Westphalia

17th century settlement that ended the Thirty Years’ War; created the modern state system and the principles of sovereignty and non-intervention

Sovereignty

the expectation that states have legal and political supremacy — or ultimate authority — within their territorial boundaries

Hegemony

The predominance of one nation-state over others

Decolonization

The process of colonial possessions winning independence, especially during the rapid end of the European empires in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean between 1940s to 1960s

Anarchy

the absence of a central authority with the ability to make and enforce laws that bind all actors 

National Interests

Interests attributed to the state itself, usually security and power

Interactions

the ways in which the choices of two or more actors combine to produce political outcomes

Cooperation

an interaction in which two or more political actors adopt policies that make at least one actor better off relative to the status quo without making others worse off

Bargaining

an interaction in which two or more actors must decide how to distribute something of value. Usually increasing one actor's share of a good decreases the availability of the good for others

Coordination

a type of cooperative interaction in which actors benefit from all making the same choices and subsequently have no incentive to comply

Collaboration

a type of cooperative interaction in which actors gain from working together but nonetheless have incentives to not comply with any agreement

Public Goods

products that are non-excludable and non-rival in consumption

Ex. national defense, clean water, clean air

Collective Action Problems

Obstacles to cooperation that occur when actors have incentives to collaborate but each acts with the expectation that the other will pay the costs of cooperation

Free Riding

to fail to contribute to a public good while benefitting from the contributions of others

Iteration (in Game Theory)

repeated interactions with the same partner

Linkage

the linking of cooperation on one issue to interactions on a second issue

Power

The ability of actor A to get actor B to do something that B would otherwise not do; the ability to get the other side to make concessions and to avoid having to make concessions oneself

Coercion

a strategy of imposing or threatening to impose costs on other actions to induce a change in their behavior

Agenda Setting

actions taken before or during bargaining that make the reversion outcome more favorable for one party

Institutions

a set or rule, that are shared by a relevant community, that structure interactions in specific ways

Interstate War

a war in which the main participants are states

Civil War

a war in which the main participants are within the same state, such as a government and a rebel group

Security Dilemma

arises when efforts that states make to defend themselves cause other states feel less secure; can lead to an arms race and war for fear of being attacked

Crisis Bargaining

a bargaining in which at least one actor threatens to use force in the event that its demands are not met

Coercive Diplomacy

the use of threats to advance specific demands in a bargaining interaction

Bargaining Range

the set of rules that both parties in a bargaining interaction prefer over the reversion outcome. If the reversion outcome is war, this is the set of rules that both parties prefer over war 

Compellence

an effort to change the status quo through the threat of force

Deterrence

an effort to preserve the status quo through the threat of violence

Incomplete Information

a situation in which actors in a strategic interaction lack information about other’s interests/capabilities

Resolve

the willingness of an actor to endure the costs in order to acquire a particular good

Risk Return Trade Off

in crisis bargaining, the tradeoff between trying to get a better deal and trying to avoid a war

Credibility

believability; this type of threat is a threat that the target believes will be carried out. This type of commitment is a commitment/promise that the recipient believes will be honored

Brinkmanship

a strategy in which adversaries take action that the risk of accidental war, with the hope that the other will back down and concede

Audience Cost

negative repercussions for failing to follow through on a threat or to honor a commitment

Preventative War

a war fought with the intention of preventing an adversary from becoming stronger in the future. These arise because a state whose power is increasing cannot commit to exploit that power in future bargaining interactions

First-strike advantage

the situation that arises when military technology, military strategies, geography give a significant advantage to whichever state attacks first in a war

Preemptive War

a war fought with the anticipation that an attack by the other side is imminent

Indivisible Good

a good that cannot be divided without destroying its value (sometimes the value of the good is socially construed, thus the argument that it truly cannot be divided is misleading)

Ex. The city of Jerusalem (religious site)

Nationalism

a political ideology that prioritizes attachment to one’s nation, where nations are groups defined by common origin, ethnicity, language, or cultural ties

Bureaucracy

the collection of organizations — including the military, diplomatic corps, and intelligence agencies — that carry out most tasks of governance within a state

Interest Groups

groups of individuals with common interests that organize to influence public policy in a manner that benefits its members

Rally Effect

the people’s tendency to become more supportive of their countries government in times of dramatic international events, such as crises or wars

Diversionary Incentive

the temptation that state leaders have to start international crises in order to rally public support at home

Military-Industrial Complex

an alliance between military leaders and the industries that benefit from international conflict, such as arms manufacturers

Democratic Peace

the observation that there are few, if any, clear cases of war between mature democratic states

Democracy

a political system in which candidates compete for political office through frequent, fair elections in which a sizable amount of the adult population vote  

Autocracy

a political system in which an individual or small group exercises power with few constraints and no meaningful competition or participation by the general public 

Accountability

the ability to punish/reward leaders for decisions they make, as when frequent, fair elections enable voters to hold elected officials responsible for their actions by granting/withholding access to political office

Alliances

institutions that help their members cooperate militarily in the event of a war

Balance of power

a situation in which the military capacity of two states are roughly equal

Bandwagoning

a strategy in which states join forces with the stronger side of a conflict

Entrapment

the condition of being dragged into an unwanted war because of the opportunistic actions of an ally

Collective Security Organizations

broad based institutions that promote peace and security among its members 

Ex. League of Nations or United Nations

Genocide

intentional and systematic killing aimed at eliminating and identifiable group of people, such as an ethnic or religious group.

Humanitarian interventions

interventions designed to relieve humanitarian crisis stemming from civil conflicts or large scale human rights abuses, including genocides

UN Security Council

an operation in which troops and observers are deployed to monitor a ceasefire or peace agreement

The Permanent 5

the permanent members of the UN Security Council: the US, Great Britain, France, Russia, and China

Veto Power

the ability to prevent the passage of a measure through a unilateral act, such as a single negative vote

Peace-Enforcement Operation

 a military operation in which force is used to make/enforce peace among warring parties that have not agreed to end their fighting 

Peacekeeping Operation

an operation in which troops and observers are deployed to monitor a ceasefire or peace agreement