Power
Power in Global Politics
Definition:
Power is the ability to influence others to achieve desired goals (e.g., political, military, social power). It shapes how groups in world politics pursue their interests within social relations.Actors Exercising Power
State Actors: Recognized sovereign entities (countries like France, Japan, military forces, government agencies, governments).
Non-State Actors: Entities that influence politics but aren't states, multinational corporations. (Google, Apple)
Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs): Non-profit groups, civil society groups (ex. Amnesty International, Red cross, UNICEF)
Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs): Organizations formed by states (ex. UN, WTO, NATO)
Types of Power
1. Hard Power
Achieving aims through coercion or force.
Example: State A forces State B to comply, with State B aware of this coercion and less powerful.
Cases: Islamic State, US coalition in Iraq, NATO in Libya.
2. Soft Power
Achieving aims through persuasion or influence, sometimes without the other party realizing.
Defined as “power to get others to want what you want” (Joseph Nye).
Tools: culture, ethical foreign policy, political values (democracy, rule of law).
Cases: USAID in Afghanistan, China’s investments in Africa, Olympic Games.
3. Smart Power
Combination of hard and soft power.
Uses coercion plus persuasion for desired outcomes.
Cases: Iran nuclear deal (P5+1), Hezbollah, Obama’s Cairo speech.
Forms of Power
Military Power
Based on size, technology, and effectiveness of armed forces.
Debate: Is military power declining in importance?
Measured by military size, spending, and success in conflicts.
Economic Power
Measured by GDP, GDP per capita, and economic growth rates.
Can be a standalone goal (Germany, Japan).
Used as hard power via sanctions (cutting trade).
Essential for strong military power.
Structural Power
Influencing global political ideas, structures, and systems.
Promoting favored models (democracy, capitalism).
Examples:
US influence in IMF and World Bank.
China’s control of global manufacturing and supply chains.
Includes: security, production, and financial structures.
Relational Power
Power exercised through relationships with other states.
Examples: US-EU, US-Israel, Russia-Syria.
Three elements:
Commanding change (forcing behavior change).
Establishing preferences (getting others to want what you want).
Controlling agendas (shaping issues so other preferences seem irrelevant).
Social and Cultural Power
Exporting culture globally through brands and media.
Examples: Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Starbucks, popular movies/TV.
Impact varies for nation-states.
Cyber Power
New form of power via the internet and digital platforms.
Includes cyber attacks, misinformation, social media influence.
Actors: states, non-state groups, individuals.
Examples: Wikileaks, Facebook, Twitter, troll farms.
AI expected to increase influence.
Distribution of Power:
Unipolar: One dominant global power (ex. post-Cold War USA)
Bipolar: Two dominant powers (ex. Cold War: USA vs USSR)
Multipolar: Several influential powers (ex. pre-WWI Europe or today’s emerging multipolarity)
Critical Theories Cheat Sheet
Neo-Marxism
Foundational Roots: Neo-Marxism builds on Karl Marx’s theory that the mode of production—how goods are produced, distributed, and consumed—shapes social relations, especially between the bourgeoisie (owners) and proletariat (workers).
Global Class Conflict: Unlike traditional Marxism, which focuses on class struggle within nations, neo-Marxism examines class conflict on a global scale, emphasizing the international capitalist system.
Core vs. Periphery: Neo-Marxists argue that global capitalism has created an economic core (wealthy states) and an economic periphery (poorer states), with the core exploiting the periphery through historical imperialism and ongoing economic structures.
Imperial Legacy: Colonial powers restructured local economies (e.g., in Uganda and Kenya) to serve their own interests, replacing subsistence agriculture with export-oriented crops like tea and coffee.
Dependency Theory: A key neo-Marxist concept, it suggests that powerful countries maintain dominance over poorer ones through control of international institutions, development aid, and unfair trade practices.
Role of Elites: Neo-Marxists highlight how elites in poorer countries often align with global elites, prioritizing their own interests over those of their populations, which fosters corruption and mismanagement.
Critique of MNCs/TNCs: Multinational and transnational corporations are seen not as neutral actors but as tools of exploitation, influencing state policies to maximize profits at the expense of local populations.
Normative Focus: Neo-Marxism is not just descriptive—it has a normative dimension, advocating for how the world should be, emphasizing justice and equity over mere explanation.
Critique of Realism: Neo-Marxists reject realism’s emphasis on military power, arguing that economic power is the true driver of global politics.
Critique of Liberalism: While liberalism sees global interdependence positively, neo-Marxists argue that this interdependence is exploitative and unequal, reinforcing global hierarchies.
Post-colonialism
Colonial Legacy: Postcolonialism emphasizes that the effects of colonialism are ongoing and deeply embedded in global politics, shaping how the world is understood and governed.
Western Discourse Dominance: It critiques how Western ways of thinking and speaking (discourse) dominate global political narratives, marginalizing non-Western perspectives and knowledge systems.
Critique of Sovereignty: Postcolonial theorists challenge traditional concepts like sovereignty, arguing they are rooted in Western discourse and were imposed on colonized societies through imperialism.
Race over Class: Unlike Marxism, which centers on economic class, postcolonialism often sees race as a more decisive factor in understanding global inequality and power dynamics.
Orientalism and 'Othering': Drawing on Edward Said’s concept of Orientalism, postcolonialism explores how the West constructs the non-West as exotic, irrational, and inferior—reinforcing a binary worldview.
Dehumanizing Colonial Narratives: Thinkers like Frantz Fanon highlight how colonialism created patronizing relationships, portraying colonized peoples as childlike and in need of Western guidance.
Discourse and Global Inequality: Postcolonialism examines how global poverty is framed through racialized narratives, often depicting non-Western societies in stereotypical and demeaning ways.
Critique of Western Hypocrisy: Scholars like Shampa Biswas use postcolonial theory to expose double standards in global politics, such as the racialized framing of nuclear threats from non-Western states.
Decolonization Movements: Postcolonialism informs contemporary efforts to challenge Western narratives, including protests against colonial monuments and campaigns to decolonize education and language.
Value in Questioning Norms: Though it may raise more questions than answers, postcolonialism’s strength lies in its ability to critically interrogate dominant theories and offer alternative perspectives on global politics.
Feminism
Critique of Traditional Theories: Feminism challenges liberalism and realism for excluding women's experiences and for reinforcing male-dominated perspectives in global politics.
Focus on Patriarchy: Feminist theory highlights patriarchy—the systemic privileging of men—as a key force shaping political institutions and excluding women from power.
Intersectionality: Feminism emphasizes intersectionality, recognizing that women's experiences vary based on race, class, geography, and other social identities, not just gender.
Visibility and Representation: Feminists point to the underrepresentation of women in global leadership roles, diplomacy, and military decision-making, despite women comprising half the global population.
Masculine Norms in Politics: Feminist theorists argue that global politics often valorizes masculine traits like aggression and violence, which influences foreign policy and is reinforced by male-centric theories like realism.
Gender-Based Violence: Feminism brings attention to gendered violence—from domestic abuse to wartime sexual violence—as a global issue often ignored by traditional IR theories.
Continuum of Violence: Jacqui True and others argue that violence against women spans private and public spheres, challenging the binary of war vs. peace and showing how gendered violence is systemic.
Structural Inequality: Feminist theory reveals how global political structures perpetuate gender inequality, making women less visible and less powerful in both domestic and international contexts.
Legal Gaps and Enforcement: Despite progress in legislation against gender-based violence, many countries lack laws or fail to enforce them, reflecting deeper systemic issues.
Transformative Potential: Feminism adds value to IR by raising critical questions, challenging dominant narratives, and advocating for more inclusive and equitable approaches to global politics.
Constructivism
Challenge to Traditional Theories: Constructivism critiques realism and liberalism by arguing that global politics is shaped more by social constructions than by objective material realities.
Social Constructions Defined: A social construction is a concept or understanding created through human interaction, not something that exists independently in the physical world.
Meaning Over Matter: Constructivists argue that meanings assigned to objects or actions—like military power or nuclear weapons—depend on social context, not just their physical existence.
Wendt’s Contribution: Alexander Wendt famously stated that “anarchy is what states make of it,” meaning that the international system is shaped by states’ perceptions and interactions, not by inherent structures.
Material vs. Ideational Structures: Constructivism distinguishes between material structures (e.g., weapons) and ideational structures (e.g., meanings and beliefs), emphasizing that the latter define political behavior.
No Fixed Reality: Constructivists reject the idea of a single, objective reality, arguing instead that global politics is fluid and shaped by evolving social norms and beliefs.
Identities and Interests: States’ identities—how they see themselves—are formed through interaction and determine their interests and actions in global politics.
Norms Shape Behavior: Social norms, such as those against slavery or offensive war, are constructed through state behavior and help define what is considered acceptable in international relations.
Self-Creating System: The international system is not fixed; it is created and recreated by the very actors within it through their interactions and shared understandings.
Radical Perspective: Constructivism offers a transformative lens for understanding global politics, emphasizing perception, meaning, and interaction over material power and static institutions.
Liberalism:
Core Assumptions:
Cooperation is possible and beneficial between states.
The international system is not inherently conflictual; peace and progress are achievable.
States are rational actors but can be influenced by international law, norms, and institutions.
Democratic states are less likely to go to war with each other (Democratic Peace Theory).
Key Concepts:
International Institutions and Organizations (e.g., United Nations, World Trade Organization):
Facilitate cooperation.
Reduce uncertainty and mistrust.
Create rules and norms to govern behavior.
Interdependence:
States rely on each other economically, environmentally, and politically.
This mutual dependence makes war less attractive because it would be costly.
International Law and Norms:
Shared expectations help shape behavior.
Law can constrain state actions and promote peaceful resolution of disputes.
Human Rights and Global Governance:
Emphasizes protection of individual rights beyond state borders.
Promotes global justice and humanitarian intervention when necessary.
Strengths of Liberalism:
Explains growth of international organizations.
Highlights role of non-state actors (NGOs, multinational corporations).
Offers optimism about peace and progress.
Criticisms:
Seen as too idealistic—ignores power politics and conflict.
Overestimates influence of institutions.
Assumes all states have similar values and interests.
Realism:
Core Assumptions:
The international system is anarchic (no central authority).
States are the primary actors and act in pursuit of their national interest, mainly security and survival.
Power (usually military) is the main currency.
Conflict is inevitable due to competition for power.
Trust is limited; states must rely on self-help.
Key Concepts:
State Sovereignty and Security:
States must protect themselves first and foremost.
Survival is the highest priority.
Balance of Power:
States form alliances to prevent any one state from dominating.
Stability comes from power equilibrium.
Security Dilemma:
When one state increases its security (e.g., arms buildup), others feel threatened and respond similarly, leading to arms races.
Power Politics:
States use diplomacy, military force, and alliances to maximize power.
Morality and ideology are secondary to interest and survival.
Classical Realism:
Rooted in human nature—humans are inherently selfish and power-hungry.
Figures: Thucydides, Machiavelli, Hans Morgenthau.
Structural Realism (Neorealism):
Focuses on international system structure rather than human nature.
States behave similarly because of the anarchic system.
Figures: Kenneth Waltz.
Strengths of Realism:
Accounts for power struggles, conflict, and competition.
Explains why cooperation is difficult and often temporary.
Practical and grounded in historical experience.
Criticisms:
Too pessimistic about cooperation and change.
Ignores the role of ideas, identities, and institutions.
Neglects non-state actors and global interdependence.
Interdependence:Interdependence: mutual reliance between states, idea that states and their fortunes are connected to each other
What happens in one state can have an affect on another
Complex Interdependence: Interdependence between IGOs, NGOs, states
Multiple channels, multiple issues
Sovereignty:
Sovereignty: Supreme authority over a territory.
Types:
Internal Sovereignty: State's authority within its borders.
External Sovereignty: Recognition of a state by others.
4 Characteristics of a Sovereign State:
Defined territory
Permanent population
Government
Capacity to enter relations with other states
Origin of the state system:
Treaty of Westphalia (1648):
Ended the 30-year war in Europe
Befined and shifted some European boundaries
Established a common agreement about who was sovereign
Theoretical Views on Sovereignty:
Liberalist View:
Sovereignty is evolving; states share power via cooperation and institutions (e.g., EU).
Interdependence strengthens peace and collective action.
Realist View:
Sovereignty is absolute.
States prioritize survival and autonomy in an anarchic world.
Critical Theories (Constructivist, Feminist, Postcolonial, Neomarxist):
Sovereignty is a social construct or historically imposed concept.
Emphasize inequality, identity, marginalization, and the role of dominant powers in shaping sovereignty.