What is International Relations  In turn, IR affects the daily lives of college

students. The prospects of getting jobs after

 International Relations or IR is the study
graduation depend on the global economy
and practice of political relationships among
and international economic competition.
the world’s nation- states, especially their
 The rules of the world trading system affect
governments.
the goods that students consume, from
 International relations may also refer to the
electronics to clothes.
interactions between nongovernmental
 The existence of war (as an IR
groups, such as multinational corporations
phenomenon) also affects daily life.
(companies that operate in many countries)
 Children play with war toys; young people
or international organizations such as the
go to military service; TV and films
Red Cross or the United Nations (UN).
reproduce and multiply the images of war;
 International relations is a broad and
many people suffer and are displaced; and
complex topic both for countries engaged in
the world economy is restructured.
relationships with other nations, and for
observers trying to understand those
International relations as a field of study
interactions.
 As a part of Political Science, IR is about
 These relationships are influenced many
international politics – the decisions of
variables.
governments concerning their actions
 shaped by the primary participants in
towards other governments.
international relations, including national
 It is interdisciplinary – international politics
leaders, other politicians, and
to economics, history, sociology, etc.
nongovernment participants, such as
 One kind of politics that has an
private citizens, corporations, and
international character is not generally
nongovernmental organizations.
included in the field of IR: the DOMESTIC
 also affected by domestic political events
POLITICS of foreign countries which is a
and nonpolitical influences, including
separate field of political science called
economics, geography, history, and culture.
comparative politics.
 Despite all of these other influences, the
 IR as a field avoids issues that concern
primary focus of international relations is
domestic policies of countries except to the
on the interactions between nation-states.
extent that they affect international politics.
 The scope of the field of IR may also be
defined by the subfields it encompasses.
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND DAILY LIFE
 Traditionally, the study of IR has focused on
 The choices we make in our daily lives questions of war and peace – the subfield of
ultimately affect the world we live in. international security studies.
 College students and other citizens  International security involves:
participate in international relations every - crafting of treaties and alliances
time they vote in an election or work on a - development and deployment of
political campaign, every time they buy a military capabilities
product, and every time they watch the - regional conflicts receiving more
news and share on social media. attention
- ethnic conflicts becoming more
prominent
 Economics became central to international
relations. The subfield of international
political economy (IPE) grew and became
counterpoint to international security
studies.
 Scholars of IPE study trade relations and
financial relations among nation-states and
try to understand how nation-states have
cooperated politically to create and
maintain institutions that regulate the flow
of international economic and financial
transactions.
 IPE cover topics such as
- international institutions that oversee
world trade and finance
- relations among the world’s richer
nations
- global North-South relations between
poor and rich nations
- international environmental
management
- global communications, transportation,
information technology
WORLDVIEWS
 Three broad theoretical perspectives ,
which are called the CONSERVATIVE,
LIBERAL, and REVOLUTIONARY
WORLDVIEWS, refer to the lens through
which the world looks different.
A conservative worldview generally values
maintenance of the status quo and discounts
the elements of change in IR.
Characteristics of the conservative worldview:
- the logic of military power
- focus of the laws of power politics
- states as the most important actors
(controlling the armies)
- order is valued
- war as the natural order of things, a
necessary evil for which one should be
prepared
- international trade as a potential source
of national power (mercantilism –
accumulation of national war chests or
equivalent through control of trade)
A liberal worldview value reform of the status
quo through an evolutionary process of
incremental change.
Characteristics of a liberal world view are:
- mutual benefits in IR through
interdependence and reciprocity
- gaining wealth
- freedom is valued, especially free trade
and exchange of ideas
- the most fertile ground is in IPE subfield
because of the potentials for mutual
gain in trade and exchange
- war not as natural tendency but as a
tragic mistake that can be prevented or
at least minimized by international
agreements and organizations
Revolutionary worldview values transformation
of the status quo through revolutionary and
rapid change.
Characteristics of a revolutionary worldview:
- focus on the unfair and exploitative
aspects of international relationships
- evident injustice of grinding poverty of
majority of the world’s people (North-
South relations and third world
development)
- justice is valued
- war as a product of underlying
exploitative economic relationships
- changes in economic relationships as
the key to solving the problem of war
ACTORS IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
 The participants in international relations,
often called actors, have great influence on
the relationships between nation-states and
on world affairs.
 The major participants include the state
actors (the state/nations themselves; the
leaders of those nations) and the nonstate
actors (groups or organizations within a
nation).
State Actors
- A state is territorial entity controlled by
a government and inhabited by a
population
- state government answers to no higher
authority; it exercises sovereignty over
its territory – to make and enforce laws,
to collect taxes, and so forth.
- sovereignty is recognized or
acknowledged by other states through
diplomatic relations (management of
communication and relationships) and
usually by membership in the United
Nations (UN).
- Most important individual actor within
a nation-state is the top leader of that
country. The top leader is the person
who has the primary political power of
authority in country.
- single individual who acts in the name
of the state is referred to as the state
leader. Often, he or she is the head of
government and/or the head of state.
Nonstate Actors
- Nonstate actors’ condition, constrain,
and influence the national government.
- They can be substate actors and
transnational actors.
Substate actors also include groups that can
influence a nation’s foreign policy in several
ways, such as by lobbying political leaders,
donating money to political candidates or
parties, or swaying public opinion on certain
issues.
Transnational actors operate across state
borders.
- They often have specific interests in
international issues that differ from
those of any nation-state.
- Include multinational corporations
which operate worldwide.
- They also include nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs), such as Red Cross
and Green Peace, which promote their
interests across international borders.
- are also intergovernmental
organizations (IGOs) which are groups
whose members are national
governments. Examples of
intergovernmental organizations
include the European Union (EU) and
the ASEAN.
Intergovernmental organizations are usually
created to promote cooperation between
different nations on a particular issue or in a
particular geographic region.
Nongovernmental organizations and
intergovernmental organizations together are
called international organizations.
EVALUATING THE LEVELS OF INFLUENCEOF
ACTORS IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
There are three widely used levels of analysis:
(1) individual level
(2) domestic level
(3) interstate level
Some scholars also study a fourth category of
analysis, (4) global level.
The individual level of analysis, scholars study
the concerns, perception and choices of the
individual people involved—great leaders, crazy
leaders, activists, or individual citizens.
The domestic level of analysis, scholars look at
how international relations is influenced by
domestic actors, including special interest
groups, political organizations, and government
agencies.
- Scholars study how different kinds of
societies and governments behave,
such as democracies versus
dictatorships.
- the domestic level of analysis, scholars
also look at the politics of ethnic conflict
and nationalism, both of which can lead
to international conflict and war.
- The domestic level of analysis is also
called the state or societal level.
In the interstate level of analysis, scholars focus
on the interactions of states themselves,
without regard to their internal makeup or the
individuals who lead them.
- For realists, the interstate level is the
most important level because it looks at
how a nation-state’s relative power
compared with other nations affects its
behavior.
- interstate level of analysis is also called
the international or systemic level of
analysis.
Some scholars also look at the global level
of analysis. this analysis, scholars study how
global trends and forces, such as
technological change and the global
environment, affect international relations.
- They also study how the lingering
effects of colonialism influence
international relations.
Level of Analysis
Individual level
Great leaders, Crazy leader, Decision making in
crises, psychology of perception and decision,
Learning, Assassinations; accidents of history,
Citizens participations (voting, rebelling, going
to war, etc)
Domestic Level
Nationalism, Ethnic conflict, type of
government, Democracy, Dictatorship,
Domestic coalitions, Political Parties and
elections, Public Opinion, Gender, Economic
sectors and industries, Military- Industrial
complex, Foreign policy bureaucracies
Interstate Level
Power, Balance of power, Alliance formation
and dissolution, Wars, Trades, Trade
agreements, IGOs, Diplomacy, Summit
meetings, Bargaining, Reciprocity
Global Level
North- South Gap, World regions, European
Imperialism, Norms, Religious fundamentalism,
Terrorism, World Environment, Technological
change, Information revolution, Global
Telecommunication, worldwide scientific and
business communities