poli sci final

levels of analysis

1. individual

2. state/unit

3. system

democratic peace

democratic countries are less likely to go to war with eachother (both generally and against one another)

state

a territorial entity controlled by a government and inhabited by a population, and has the capacity to enter relations with states

nation

a large body of people united by common descent, history, culture, or language, inhabiting a particular country or territory

nation-state

a sovereign state whose citizens or subjects are relatively homogenous in factors such as language or common descent

nationalism

the belief that the state and nation should be congruent

collective action

the provision of public goods through the collaboration of two or more actors

public goods

non-excludable and non-rival goods

the free rider problem

one can’t be prevented from consuming a public good, even if they don’t contribute to the production of that good

realism

theory that emphasizes power, is pessimistic, assumes states are unitary actors, and assumes anarchy and rationality

power

the ability to get someone to do something they would not otherwise do

anarchy

absence of sovereign arbiter to solve disputes, allocate resources, or enforce agreements

security dilemma

attempts at increasing your own security will, instead, erode it

unitary actor assumption

states are the primary actors in ir and they all act essentially the same, so domestic politics don’t really matter

the rationality assumption

realists and liberals assume that states and their leaders are rational actors

deterrence

the policy of persuading an adversary, through the threat of military action, that the costs of an action will outweigh the benefits

liberal institutionalism

theory stressing the importance of how international institutions can limit conflict

liberal internationalism

theory stressing the importance of domestic politics, because not all states behave alike

international cooperation

mutual policy adjustment

international regime

a set of rules, norms, and procedures around which the expectations of actors converge in a certain issue area

international organizations

formal international institutions