Liberalism Intl Relations

What are the components of the liberal intl order?

Economic Interdependence, insitutions, democratic governance and human rights, collective defense and security guarantees

What are the pillars of the Kantian Triangle?

Democracy, economic integration (trade), intl law and organizations

What do the factors of the Kantian Triangle lead to when all met?

Zone of Peace

Why does Jean Jacques Rousseau think about human nature?

Human nature isn’t bad, it fluctuates and can be good too

What tests did Jean Jacques Rousseau do to argue human nature isn’t bad?

1. Pity (humans express pity for others)

2. Institutions and education are the problem

What are the failings of the liberal order?

1. Unequal benefits and rising inequality

2. Institutional Weaknesses

3. Challengers from rising powers

4. Erosion of domestic support (populist movements eroding liberal democracy)

What can be done to fix the liberal world order?

1. Institution reform

2. Strengthen economic safety nets

3. Include rising powers

4. Recommittal to liberal norms

What is the argument for why the liberal order may persist?

• The liberal order has resilence because of intl institutions, economic intregration and norms

• Rising powers like China benefit from this stability

• Adapatation and reform sustain it rather than collapse

What is the realist counterargument to whether the liberal order will persist?

1. Power matters, not rules - realist argue states will follow their own interest, not norms and institutions

2. Decline of U.S. hegemony - without a dominant power, order is fragile

3. Conflict is inevitable - economic interdepedence dosent prevent war if a power shift threatens a states security

4. Institutions used by the powerful - institutions reflect U.S. dominance and can crumble if other powers challenge them

Why are maritime claims a threat to regional and intl security?

They involve sovereignty, resources, and strategic trade routes; disputes can escalate into conflict. Example: South China Sea disputes

What is cooperation in international relations?

When states work together for mutual benefit, e.g., joint resource management or negotiated maritime boundaries to reduce tensions.

What is a public good?

A good that is non-excludable and non-rivalrous; everyone can use it without reducing others’ benefit.

Examples of public goods?

Clean air, national defense, public parks, international security, disease eradication

What is a collective action problem?

When a group would benefit from cooperation, but individual incentives prevent contribution, risking failure of the collective goal

What is the free-rider problem?

Individuals or states benefit without contributing, reducing resources for cooperation and potentially causing failure

How can the collective action problem be solved?

Selective incentives, institutions with rules and enforcement, small groups for easier monitoring.

What are institutions?

Rules, norms, and organizations that structure interactions between states (e.g., UN, WTO, NATO).

How do institutions facilitate cooperation? (also address anarchy)

1. Rules/norms

2. verification

3. enforcement

4. acts as 3rd party mediator

5. reducing transaction costs

6. iteration

7. information hub

8. issue linkage

Who benefits from institutions?

All members gain stability and predictability; stronger states gain influence, weaker states gain protection.

What is democratic peace theory?

Democracies rarely fight each other due to shared norms and institutional constraints.

What factors explain democratic peace?

Norms (compromise, negotiation), institutions (checks and balances), plus other factors like trade and alliances.

Policy implications of democratic peace?

Promote democracy abroad, support democratic institutions, encourage transparency, but avoid forced interventions.

What are regimes?

Systems of formal and informal rules that determine how power is exercised in a state.

Main types of regimes?

Democracy (people rule), authoritarian (power concentrated), hybrid/semi-democracy (mixed features).

Problems in defining regimes?

Grey areas exist; rapid changes or misclassification possible.

Trends in regime types over time?

Increase in democracies post–1945 and after Cold War; recent backsliding in some regions.

Are regimes clustered regionally?

Yes: Democracies—North America, Western Europe; Authoritarian—Middle East, Central Asia, parts of Africa.

What explains variation in regimes?

History, economy, inequality, external influence, culture, and social factors.

How can cooperation reduce maritime tensions?

Through joint resource management, shared security, and negotiated dispute resolution.

How well have the authors’ 1999 predictions about the enduring liberal international order held up?

Partially true: The order has persisted due to institutions, rules, and interdependence, but challenges like rising populism, regional conflicts, and weakening U.S. influence stress the system.

Could an argument using realist theory lead to the same outcomes?

Realists might predict order persists if the hegemon (U.S.) remains powerful; outcome similar in stability, but for different reasons—power, not institutions or norms.

What is security co-binding?

When a hegemon’s security is tied to the security of other states through alliances or institutions, incentivizing it to maintain the order.

What is a penetrated hegemon, and how does it differ from other types of hegemony? Why does it lead to stability?

A hegemon embedded in and constrained by the international order it supports; differs from unilateral hegemon. Leads to stability because institutions and rules reduce conflict and create predictability.

What is a great power?

A state with significant military, economic, and political capabilities capable of influencing global or regional outcomes.

Who are semi-sovereign and partial great powers, and how do these differ from traditional concepts? Why important?

Semi-sovereign: states with constraints on autonomy; Partial great powers: states with some but not full influence. Important for understanding gradations of power and participation in the liberal order.

How does economic openness lead to cooperation and stability in the international system?

Trade and interdependence raise the costs of conflict, create incentives for cooperation, and make the system more stable.

What is civic identity? Is the argument about civic identity and stability convincing?

Civic identity: shared identity based on political principles and norms. Convincing because it fosters trust and cooperation, supporting stability, though other factors also matter.

What are the core assumptions of liberalism

1. Human nature is inherently good, or at least not bad

2. Anarchy

3. Rational Actors

4. Level of analysis - liberalism recognizes indidvual and organizations, states are no longer rational actors

What are the key idea of Wilsonian Liberalism?

Peace aviechable via intl law, treaties, institutions and collective security

Assumptions of Moravcsik Liberialism?

1. Primacy of societal actors

2. representation of state preferences - The state is a tool belt where groups and indidviduals can attain their interest

3. Interdependence of the intl system - States eek their own preferences compared to the preferences of other states. State preferences are neither cooperative or conflictual

4. Policy interdependance - Describes intl constraints and opporunities described above

What are the 3 variants of Moravcsik Liberialism?

1. Ideational: focuses on the impact of ideas and values on state goals

2. commerical: focuses on how global markets affect state interest

3. republican: Focuses on how domestic political instiutuins shape preferences

What are the 5 ideas by Deudney and Ikenberry of the liberal explanation of stability in the post cold war era?

I. Security Co-binding II. Penetrated hegemony III. Semi-sovereignty / Partial great powers IV. Economic openness V. Civic identity

What are the assumptionsd of Neoliberal Instiutionalism?

1. There is a large degree of room for intl cooperation

2. denies the state-centric view of realism, other actors play a vital role

   • called complex interdependemnce

   • IGOs, NGOS, norms, etc.

3. Motivations for state behavior can be both high (security) and low (economic and social) politics

4. Shares many realist assumptions

How do institutions help the state?

• providing information

• reducing transaction costs

• facilitation of reciporcity

• providing focal points for policy coordination

• issue linkage

Institutions can overcome relative gains problems when

• Relative gains become less important when there are more states in the equation

• When absolute gains are very large, relative gains become less important