Statistical Analysis of International Interdependencies

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael D. Ward
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Statistical Analysis ◽  
International Relations ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Strategic Decision ◽  
Systematic Data ◽  
Causes Of War ◽  
The University ◽  
Interdisciplinary Study ◽  
Violent Conflicts

The origin of the statistical analysis of international relations can be traced back to 1920s with the work of Quincy Wright, who founded the University of Chicago’s Committee on International Relations. He led an interdisciplinary study of war that provided a first compendium of what was then known about the causes of war. Wright's studies and those that came after them were based on the assumption that systematic data were required to advance our knowledge about the causes of violent conflicts, and that an analysis of the dynamics of strategic decision making were essential; in short, systematic data coupled with a theoretical framework that focused on the decision-making calculus. However, debates soon raged over whether this scientific approach was better than the classical approach, which was based on philosophy, history, and law, and did not conform to strict standards of verification and proof. Since then, the literature has evolved into studies with a strong theoretical motivation, often expressed via game theoretical analytics, examined empirically with statistical frameworks that are specifically sculpted to probe those strategic dependencies. As such, existing models have resolved the levels of analysis problem that appeared daunting to earlier generations by actually focusing on the modeling of aspects of world politics that enjoin many different levels simultaneously.

scholarly journals Politics, policy-making and the presence of images of suffering children

2020 ◽  
Vol 96 (3) ◽  
pp. 593-608
Author(s):  
Helen Berents
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Policy Decision ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Visual Politics ◽  
Policy Decision Making ◽  
Political Dimensions

Abstract In 2017 Trump expressed pity for the ‘beautiful babies’ killed in a gas attack on Khan Shaykhun in Syria before launching airstrikes against President Assad's regime. Images of suffering children in world politics are often used as a synecdoche for a broader conflict or disaster. Injured, suffering, or dead; the ways in which images of children circulate in global public discourse must be critically examined to uncover the assumptions that operate in these environments. This article explores reactions to images of children by representatives and leaders of states to trace the interconnected affective and political dimensions of these images. In contrast to attending to the expected empathetic responses prompted by images of children, this article particularly focuses on when such images prompt bellicose foreign policy decision-making. In doing this, the article forwards a way of thinking about images as contentious affective objects in international relations. The ways in which images of children's bodies and suffering are strategically deployed by politicians deserves closer scrutiny to uncover the visual politics of childhood inherent in these moments of international politics and policy-making.

Conclusion

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Renshon
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
International Relations ◽  
International Politics ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Escalation Of Commitment ◽  
Open Questions ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Relationship

This book has examined the importance of status in world politics. It has introduced the status dissatisfaction theory and applied it directly to the realm of international relations. It has tested the theory using a variety of approaches, including network analysis, by investigating the relationship between status dissatisfaction and war, if and how status concerns motivated German decision making during the Weltpolitik era, and the link between heightened status concerns and the escalation of commitment. The book concludes by discussing four broad lessons that can be drawn from the findings as well as the open questions that remain: status is local; there are many paths to status; status concerns are what count and not status itself; and status dissatisfaction leads to escalation and conflict. It also considers the policy implications of the theories of international politics.

scholarly journals From Moral to Political Responsibility in a Globalized Age

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Beardsworth
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Political Leadership ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Political Interest ◽  
Political Responsibility ◽  
Moral Argument ◽  
Global Public Goods ◽  
Political Duty ◽  
Made In

Responsibility for the provision of global public goods is generally couched in moral terms: terms that, to one side of the important moral argument, signal the deficit of global collective action despite recent engagements in the normative concept of “sovereignty as responsibility.” In this context the article seeks greater emphasis, in morally informed reflection on world politics, on political responsibility. The argument is made in two steps. The article considers first the specificity of moral responsibility and the inextricability of moral and political interest in international relations. Having situated both with regard to the decision-making structures of national government, the article argues, second, for a normative reconfiguration of political duty in terms of task-efficacy, republican legitimacy, and political leadership. As a result, a badly needed marriage between national priorities and global threats and challenges is made possible.

scholarly journals Chaos Theory: The Case of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Wuhan, China from the perspective of international relations

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (68) ◽  
pp. 369-384
Author(s):  
Natalia Vladimirovna Kovalevskaia ◽  
Iuliia Alexandrovna Fedoritenko ◽  
William Leahy
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Chaos Theory ◽  
Balance Of Power ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Critical Essay ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
Current State ◽  
The World ◽  
Basic Concepts ◽  
Interdisciplinary Study

The objective of the article was to reveal the international imbalances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic through the coordinates of chaos theory. Methodologically it is a critical essay based on documentary observation. To understand the current state of world politics and the balance of power in international relations, it is appropriate to use chaos theory. At the beginning of the article, the origins of chaos theory are an interdisciplinary study, and its basic concepts are introduced. The value of using chaos theory and its great potential for analysis and applications in the study of international relations is shown in the example of the 2019-2020 events in Wuhan is the capital of Hubei Province in the People's Republic of China (PRC). associated with the onset of a COVID-19 viral infection that has spread around the world. At the end of the article, conclusions are drawn and the strengths and weaknesses of the use of chaos theory in dialectical relation to international relations are revealed, both as a field of study and at the same time as geopolitical reality.

scholarly journals Supporting strategic decision-making on the future campus with space utilisation studies: a case study

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bart Valks ◽  
Elizabeth Blokland ◽  
Catelijne Elissen ◽  
Iris van Loon ◽  
Danko Roozemond ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Space Use ◽  
Strategic Decision ◽  
Space Utilization ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Student Council ◽  
Actual Use ◽  
Strategic Role ◽  
The University

PurposeAcross the world, many universities are dealing with a pressure on resources, caused by both organisational developments and ageing campuses. Space utilization studies have a strategic role, providing information on how space is being used, thereby informing decisions about the type and scale of facilities that are needed.Design/methodology/approachThis study reports on the space use measurements conducted at TU Delft over the past five years, complemented by their use to make decisions about the university's real estate portfolio.FindingsThe education spaces of the university are found to perform well in terms of frequency rates and can be improved in terms of occupancy rates. The information helped to support short- and long-term decision-making. The study places of the university have a satisfactory occupancy in some types of study places, while in others there is room for improvement. More research is needed here to understand the relationship between space norms and space use.Practical implicationsThe space utilization studies have supported discussions with the student council and decision makers on which interventions are required and which current facilities meet students' needs best.Originality/valueNot much space utilisation studies are reported in the academic literature, and those that do have several limitations. This study may serve as a best practice for benchmarking by other universities and as evidence in other research for the planned and actual use of university facilities.

scholarly journals SYSTEM OF ANALYTICAL PROCESSING OF INTERNATIONAL INFORMATION

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olena Parshyna ◽  
Margaryta Parshyna ◽  
Tatiana Chumak
Keyword(s):  
International Economic ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Scientific Basis ◽  
Strategic Decision ◽  
Strategic Decisions ◽  
Economic Relationships ◽  
Information Research ◽  
Analytical Processing

In the current context of globalization, the problem of ensuring the effectiveness of information and analytical activities in international relations is becoming increasingly important. The solution of this problem requires systematic approach, which will be able to form the scientific basis for making strategic decisions to manage the efficiency of analytical processing of international information. In order to solve this problem, it has been proposed to determine the dominant factors of influence on the effectiveness of international relations, to establish trends in the development and formation of a strategy aimed at increasing the effectiveness of international relations in the long term. The article is devoted to solving the problem of forming a system of analytical processing of international information. Research about the scientific approaches and the comprehension of the conceptual apparatus related to the terms «system» and «system approach» by modern scientists has been conducted. The structure of the system of analytical processing of international information has been offered. The proposed system consists of subsystem for the formation of organizational and analytical framework, subsystem for determining relationships, subsystem for modeling and subsystem for strategic decision-making. The formation of analytical information is based on the proposed system of indicators. The subsystem of determining the relationships combines a set of multifactor mathematical models which are formed as a result of determining dominant factors, influencing the international relationships. The subsystem of modeling the efficiency of the international relationships is based on the developed conceptual model and involves the use of the proposed system of indicators and methodology of fuzzy modeling. The subsystem of decision making is based on the formation of decisions to increase the international economic relationships. The use of the proposed system allows forming the analytical basis for substantiation of management decisions to improve the international economic relationships.

Conceptual Index

1972 ◽  
Vol 24 (S1) ◽  
pp. 248-266
Author(s):  
Stephen M. Shaffer
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
International Relations ◽  
International Relations Theory ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Free Riders ◽  
Conceptual Schemes ◽  
Supplementary Issue

Approaches to the study of international relations employ a wide variety of concepts and indicators. The interrelationships among these concepts often are specified in conceptual schemes, models, or theories. This supplementary issue of World Politics presents several approaches to international relations theory which utilize familiar concepts, such as decision-making, crisis, and interdependence, and also concepts (frequently borrowed from other disciplines) that are less familiar, e.g., entrepreneurial and consumer roles, free riders, and externalities. The diversity of approaches and the variety of models specified by the contributors led the co-editors to commission an index focusing on concepts and the variables used to tap the concepts (indicators) rather than a more traditional listing of names, places, and events.

War and Religion: An Overview

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Klocek ◽  
Ron E. Hassner
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
International Relations ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Strategic Decision ◽  
Strategic Decision Making ◽  
Social Force ◽  
Religious Identities ◽  
Unit Organization

Although largely ignored by international relations scholars until the 21st century, religion has been and remains a pervasive social force both on and off the battlefield. It affects how combatants mobilize and prepare for war. It regulates how they fight, including unit organization and strategic decision making. In addition, religious identities, beliefs, practices, and symbols shape how and when combatants pursue peace. The study of religion and war seeks to discover and understand these varied influences, even when religion is not the pretext for fighting.

Identity in International Relations

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felix Berenskoetter
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
International Relations ◽  
International System ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Causes Of War ◽  
New Perspective ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
Do So

The identity perspective first emerged in the international relations (IR) literature in the late 1980s and early 1990s as a result of two overlapping trends. First, the postmodern Zeitgeist encouraged the questioning of accepted and “naturalized” categories associated with modernity. Embracing diversity and committed to an agenda of emancipation, postmodern thinking was to bring about the “death of meta-narratives” and to unravel assumptions which had come to be taken for granted and justified with, for instance, the need for parsimony. In IR, this meant “fracturing and destabilizing the rationalist/positivist hegemony,” including its ontology of the international system, to establish a new perspective on world politics. The readiness to do so was aided, second, by the end of the Cold War and changing structures of governance. The dissolution of seemingly stable political entities such as the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia raised questions about the volatility of borders, loyalties, nationalism(s), and the ability to manipulate them. Simultaneously, the phenomenon of “globalization” and processes of European integration undermined the conception of the Westphalian state as the fixed/dominant entity in world politics. Against this backdrop, many IR scholars searching for new conceptual vocabulary turned to “identity” to highlight the socially constructed nature of the state and its interests, and to explain the causes of war and the conditions for peace.

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