Theory of International Relations

Syllabus

prepared by Dr. Vyachaslau Paznyak

Assistant Professor,

Department of Political and Administrative Science,

European Humanities University

Minsk, Belarus


 
 
 
 
  1. Methodological schools, theories and concepts
  1. Introduction. The subject-matter of the theory of IR
The development of the contemporary IR theory. Three ideological traditions and three paradigms of IR theory. Conservatism, liberalism and radicalism. Realism, transactionism and globalism. The interwar crisis. IR theory after WW-II. Behaviorism, structuralism and evolutionism. Behaviorism. G. David Singer. Decision-making process. Rational choice theory. System theories and system rationality. Structuralism. Morton Kaplan, Richard Rosecrance. Evolutionism. Robert Gilpin, George Modelski. The French School of IR. Raymond Aron, ?. Merle, J.-B. Durocelle. The English school of IR. Martin White, Hedley Bull, Barry Buzan. Radicalism. Marxism. Globalism. Postpositivism and IR theory.
 
 

2. Realism and neorealism

Classical realism. Thomas Hobbes, Reinhold Niebuhr, Hans Morgenthau. Anarchy as the prevailing state of the international system. Distribution of power in the international system. Balance of power theory. Realism in the US "cold war" policies. George F. Kennan and the policy of containment. Realism and d¾ tente. Henry Kissinger. Neorealism. Structure of the international system. Three dimensions of the political structure. Kenneth Waltz. The critique of neorealism by neoliberal and poststructuralist schools. The critique of neorealism by neoliberal and poststructuralist schools.
 
 

3.Liberalism and neoliberalism

Classical liberalism of John Lock, Adam Smith, Jeremy Bentham and John S. Mill and neoliberalism. Principal divergence with realism. Transnationalism. Proliferation of international actors. Functionalism and neofunctionalism. Theory of interdependence. Robert Keohane and Joseph Nye. Liberal institutionalism. Interaction and learning. Epistemic communities. International regimes. Stephen Krasner. Peter Haas. Ernst Haas. Robert Jervis. The critique of neoliberalism by neorealist and poststructuralist schools.
 
 

4.Constructivism: in between the global and domestic politics?

Postmodernism and poststructuralism as philosophical grounds for the critique of rationalist and positivist concepts of IR. Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, Roland Barthes, Jean Baudrillard. Deconstruction. Intertextualism. Sociological/social psychological version of the system theory. The problematique of identity and interest formation in IR theory. Reflectivist/constructivist approach to the study of IR. Alexander Wendt, James Der Derian, Richard Ashley et al. Cognitivists, feminists, structurationists. Postmodernist critique of neorealism and neoliberalism.
 
 

  1. Introduction to FPA
  1. Levels and units of analysis
Basic notions and categories. World politics, foreign policy, international relations. Foreign policy process: structure and functional links. The systemic context. The global system, international (sub)systems, transnational actors, states. Transnational theories and ideologies. Domestic environment. State and non-state actors.
 
 

6.International system

Historical international systems. Ancient China, Classical Greece, Europe. System characteristics: actors, poles, concentration and distribution of power resources, behavioral norms, geographical properties, scope and levels of interaction. Evolution of the contemporary global system. Its characteristics, structure, forms of interaction among elements, "rules of the game." "System images" in IR theory. Unipolar, bipolar, tripolar, multipolar and poliarchic international systems.
 
 

  1. The State and substate international actors


    2. Interests: individual, group, government, state, national, global. The state, nation and the government. Substate actors: political leaders, bureaucracy, the legislature, political opposition, interest groups, the populace. Public opinion. The domestic context of foreign policy: the political system and political culture. Individual factors in the formulation and implementation of foreign policy. Decision-making process. A model of foreign policy decision-making (K Holsi, 1992). Role factors and collective behavior. Personality. Political and individual biography. The world of policy maker: purposes, interests and choices. Perceptual and attitudinal influences on policy making.
     
     

  2. Instruments of foreign policy in a changing world
Power, resources and capabilities of a state to influence other international actors. Modern diplomacy and its functions. Rules, techniques and forms of diplomacy. Purposes of diplomatic communication (negotiations). Multilateral, parliamentary and people-to-people diplomacy. Propaganda: techniques and efficiency. Economic instruments: rewards and coercion. Economic "warfare." Foreign economic aid. Military sales and transfers. Clandestine actions and military intervention. Weapons as instruments of policy. Deterrence as a form of inter-nation influence.
 
 

9. Forms of interaction between states

Conflict and conflict resolution. Characteristics of conflict, crisis, and competition. Structural and contextual approaches. The possible outcomes of international conflict. Institutions and procedures for resolving international conflicts. The UN, OSCE, NATO and the CIS in conflict resolution. Peacekeeping operations. The politics of international cooperation. The sources, forms and formats of cooperation. Contemporary international law. Legal norms and restraints and nonlegal obligations in foreign policy.
 
 

10. International security

Individual, national and international security. The state as an object of security. National insecurity: threats and vulnerabilities. Security and the international political system. Regional security. Security dilemma. The traditional and new notions of national security: beyond the national borders. Military-political, economic, internal, economic and other dimensions. Systems of collective security and defense alliances. International organizations in charge of security issues.
 
 

11. Arms limitation and disarmament

The main treaties, agreements and fora on arms control and disarmament. Nonproliferation regimes. The Non-Proliferation Treaty and other arrangements. The problem of the abolition and liquidation of the weapons of mass destruction. Nuclear weapon-free zones. Conventions on the prohibition of chemical and biological weapons. Limitation of conventional weapons. The CFE treaty. Arms trade and export control regimes. Disarmament issues and the Republic of Belarus.
 
 

12. International organization and world order

The roots and evolution of international organization. Types of international organizations Growth of IGO's and NGO's. IGO structure. Goals of international organization. The UN. Membership, representative bodies, administration and financing. The system of the UN. Current problems of the UN. Major regional IGO's. The European Community and supranationalism. The end of the "cold war" and world order theories. New dilemmas and tensions in world politics and IR theory.
 
 


Course Literature (abridged):

Aron, Raymond. Paix et Guerre entre les Nations. Paris: Callman-Lé vy, 1962.
 
 

Ashley, Richard K. Living on Border Lines: Man, Poststructuralism, and War. In: International/intertextual Relations. Postmodern Readings of World Politics. Ed. By James Der Derian and Michael Chapiro. N.-Y.: Lexington Books, 1989. Pp. 259-322.
 
 

Der Derian, James. The Boundaries of Knowledge and Power in International Relations. In: International/Intertextual Relations. Postmodern Readings of World Politics. Ed. By James Der Derian and Michael Chapiro, N.-Y.: Lexington Books, 1989. Pp. 3-10.
 
 

Gaddis, John Lewis. International Relations Theory and the End of the Cold War. International Security. Winter 1992/3, Vol. 17, No. 3. Pp. 5-58.
 
 

Hughes, Barry B. Continuity and Change in World Politics: Competing Perspectives. Third edition. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1997.
 
 

Huntington S. The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order. N. Y., 1996.
 
 

Kennedy, Paul. The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000. New York: Vintage Books, 1989.
 
 

Keohane, Robert O. and Martin, Lisa. "The Promise of Institutionalist Theory," International Security 20, No.1. P. 39.
 
 

Knutsen, Torbjorn L. A History of International Relations Theory. Manchester and New York: Manchester University Press, 1992.
 
 

Merle M. Sociologie des Relations internationales. 1988 Dalloz.
 
 

Ruggie, John Gerard. "Continuity and Transformation in the World Polity: Toward a Neorealist Synthesis," World Politics 35, No.2 (January 1985). P. 272.
 
 

Ruggie, John Gerard. "The False Premise of Realism," International Security 20, No.1. P. 62.
 
 

Waltz, Kenneth N. Man, the State and War: A Theoretical Analysis. New York: Columbia University Press, 1959.
 
 

Watson, Adam. The Evolution of International Society. London and New York: Routledge, 1992.
 
 

Wendt, Alexander. "Anarchy is What States Make of It: the Social Construction of Power Politics," International Organization 46, No.2. P. 391.
 
 

Wendt, Alexander. "Constructing International Politics," International Security 20, No.1. P. 71.
 
 

Whose World Order? Uneven Globalization and the End of the Cold War. Ed. Hans-Henrik Holm, Georg Sorensen 1995.
 
 

back to project-homepage