POSC- midterm 1

Mercantilism

an economic system (Europe in 18th C) to increase a nation's wealth by government regulation of all of the nation's commercial interests

Sovereignty

the supreme and absolute authority within territorial boundaries

hegemony

leadership or dominance, especially by one country or social group over others.

Pax Britannica (1815-1914)

"British Peace," a century-long period beginning with Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo in 1815 and ending with the outbreak of World War I in 1914 during which Britain's economic and diplomatic influence contributed to economic openness and relative peace.

Gold Standard

A monetary system in which paper money and coins are equal to the value of a certain amount of gold

Treaty of Versailles

The peace treaty between the Allies and Germany that formally ended World War I on june 28, 1919

League of Nations

A collective security organization founded in 1919 after World War I. (Was replaced be the United Nations)

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

a group of 28 countries that has agreed to protect each other in case of attack; founded in 1949
(an attack to one counts as an attack to all.

Decolonization

the action of changing from colonial to independent status

Warsaw Pact

An alliance between the Soviet Union and other Eastern European nations. This was in response to the NATO

Bretton Woods System

Named for a conference held at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, in 1944, this system provided the foundation for postwar economic globalization, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund; based on the promotion of free trade, stable currencies, and high levels of capital investment.

Peace of Westphalia

the peace treaty that ended the Thirty Years' War in 1648; included concepts of sovereignty and nonintervention.

Interests

What actors want to achieve through political action

3 categories of group interests

power or security, economic, or material welfare, and ideological goals

Actors

the basic unit for the analysis of international politics; can be individuals or groups of people with common interests

State

A central authority that has the ability to make and enforce laws, rules, and decisions within a specified territory.

Sovereignty

Ability of a state to govern its territory free from control of its internal affairs by other states.

Anarchy

total absence of rule or government; confusion; disorder

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

A type of interaction involving two or more actors working together to achieve a preferred outcome.

Bargaining

interactions in which actors must decide how to distribute or divide, something of value.

Coordination

a type of cooperative interaction in which actors benefit from all making the same choices and subsequently have no incentive to not 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 nonexcludable and nonrival in consumption, such as national defense

Collective Action Problem

obstacles to cooperation that occur when actors have incentives to collaborate but each acts in anticipation that others will pay the costs of cooperation

Free ride

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

Iteration

Actors can prevent one another from cheating by threatening to withhold cooperation in the future.

Linkage

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

compulsory power

the ability of one actor to compel another, to act in certain ways

reversion outcome

the outcome that occurs when no bargain is reached

coercion

the threat or imposition of costs on other actors to reduce the value of the reversion outcome (no agreement) and change their behavior. ex: military force

outside options

the alternatives to bargaining with a specific actor

Agenda setting

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

institutions

sets of rules, known and shared by the community, that structure political interactions in specific ways.
Ex: NATO and League of Nations

state

A central authority with the ability to make and enforce laws within its boundaries

Members of NATO (big 5)

China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.

Selective incentives

benefits that are available only to group members as an inducement to get them to join

incomplete information

"A situation in which parties in a strategic interaction lack information about other parties' interestsand/or capabilities."

crisis bargaining

a bargaining interaction 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 influence the outcome of a bargaining interaction

Compelence

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

War

An event involving the organized use of military force by at least two parties that reaches a minimum threshold of severity

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 the government and a rebel group.

Security Dilemma

A dilemma that arises when efforts that states make to defend themselves cause other states to feel less secure; can lead to arms races and war because of the fear of being attacked.

Crisis Bargaining

A bargaining interaction 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 deals that both parties in a bargaining interaction prefer over the reversion outcome. When the reversion outcome is war, the bargaining range is set of deals that both sides prefer over war.

Compellence

An effort to change the status quo through the threat of force.

Detterence

An effort to preserve the status quo through the threat of force.

Incomplete Information

A situation in which actors in a strategic interaction lack information about other actors' interests and/or capabilities

Resolve

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

Risk-return trade off

In crisis bargaining, the trade-off between trying to get a better deal and trying to avoid a war.

credibility

Believability. A credible threat is a threat that target believes will be carried out. A credible commitment is a commitment or promise that the recipient believes will be honored

Brinksmanship (semi-attack)

A strategy in which adversaries take actions that increase the risk of accidental war, with the hope that the other will lose its nerve first and make concessions.

Audience costs

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

preventive war

A war fought with the intention of preventing adversary from becoming stronger in the future

first-strike advantage

The situation that arises when military technology, military strategies, and/ or geography give a significant advantage to whichever state attacks first in a war.

preemptive

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

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 their members.

rally effect

People's tendency to become more supportive of their country's government in times of dramatic international events, such as crisis.

Diversionary incentive

The incentive 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 a 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 portion of the adult population can 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.

Alliances

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

Balance of power

A situation in which the military capabilities of two states or groups of states are roughly equal

Bandwagoning

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

Entrapment

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

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

An alliance formed in 1949 among the United States, Canada and most of the states of Western Europe in response to the threat posed by the Soviet Union. "An attack on one is an attack on all"

United Nations

an organization of independent states formed in 1945 to promote international peace and security

Collective Security Organizations

Broad-Based institutions that promote peace and security among their members. ex: League of nations and the UN

Genocide

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

Humanitarian Interventions

Interventions designed to relieve humanitarian crises stemming from civil conflicts or large scale human rights abuses, including genocide.

UN Security Council (UNSC)

The main governing body of the UN, which has the authority to identify threats to international peace and security and to prescribe the organization's response, including military and/or economic sanctions.

Permanent five (P5)

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council: the United States, Great Britain, France, Russia ( formerly the Soviet Union), and China.

Veto power

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

Peace-enforcement operation

A military operation in which force is used to make and/or 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 cease-fire or peace agreement

Civil war

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

terrorism

The use or threatened use of violence against noncombatant targets by individuals or nonstate groups for political ends

Asymmetrical warfare

Armed conflict between actors with highly unequal military capabilities, such as when rebel groups or terrorists fight strong states.

Separatist

An actor that seeks to create an independent state on territory carved from an existing state

irredentist

An actor that seeks to detach a region from one country and attack it to another, usually because of shared ethnic or religious ties.

Proxy Wars

Conflicts in which two opposing states "fight" by supporting opposite slides in a war, such as the government and rebels in a third state

Insurgency

A military strategy in which small, often lightly armed units engage in hit-and-run attack against military, government, and civilian targets.

Extremists

Actors whose interests are not widely shared by others; individuals or groups that are politically weak relative to the demands they make.

provocation

A strategy of terrorist attacks intended to provoke the target government into making a disproportionate response that alienates moderates in the terrorists' home society or in other sympathetic audiences

Spoiling

A strategy of terrorist attacks intended to sabotage a prospective peace between the target and moderate leadership from the terrorists' home society

Outbidding

A strategy of terrorist attacks designed to demonstrate superior capability and commitment relative to other groups devoted to the same cause