1. International Relations Theory and the Middle East

World Politics ◽

Power Cycle Theory ◽

This chapter examines the different theories and approaches that characterize the study of international relations, along with their application to the Middle East. International relations theory takes many forms and presents a variety of challenges that can be addressed using Middle Eastern cases. The field of international relations is dominated by structural realist theory. The chapter considers the assumptions of structural realism, neoliberal institutionalism, the English School, historical sociology, international society, constructivism, and relational contracting, along with post-structuralism and post-modernism. It also discusses political culture and statistical studies of world politics. In particular, it analyses some key findings from quantitative research in international relations. The chapter concludes with an assessment of power transition theory and power cycle theory, along with conceptual contributions from regional specialists.

1. International Relations Theory and the Middle East

International Relations of the Middle East ◽

10.1093/hepl/9780198809425.003.0001 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 21-38

Author(s):

Fred H. Lawson

Keyword(s):

Middle East ◽

International Relations ◽

Crucial Role ◽

Structural Realism ◽

English School ◽

Alternative Perspective ◽

The Many ◽

High Degree ◽

This chapter discusses the different theories and approaches that characterize the study of international relations. Mainstream theories focus on the ways that states interact with one another in circumstances where no overarching authority governs their behavior — in other words, under conditions of anarchy. These theories include structural realism, neoliberal institutionalism, and the scholarship on relational contracting. An important alternative perspective — the English School — argues that, even under anarchic conditions, there is a high degree of orderliness in world affairs. Meanwhile, proponents of constructivism assert that states take shape in specific historical contexts, and that the conditions under which states coalesce and become socialized to one another play a crucial role in determining how they conceive of themselves and formulate their basic interests. Scholars of the Middle East have so far addressed only a fraction of the many theoretical debates and controversies that energize the field of international relations.

It takes all types: social psychology, trust, and the international relations paradigm in our minds

International Theory ◽

10.1017/s1752971909990121 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 1 (3) ◽

pp. 345-380 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Brian C. Rathbun

Keyword(s):

Social Psychology ◽

International Relations ◽

Structural Realism ◽

Preliminary Evidence ◽

World Politics ◽

Levels Of Analysis ◽

Different Types ◽

Multiple Levels ◽

The insights of social psychology are not thoroughly integrated into international relations theory, yet social psychology has much to offer. Social psychology provides a conceptualization of a number of varieties of trust – moralistic, strategic, and generalized – and their opposites that implicitly drive the logic of major works of international relations. It also reveals the empirical presence of a number of different types of trusters who make different assumptions about the trustworthiness of others and consequently show markedly different propensities towards cooperation. The rough correspondence between these different ‘social orientations’ and the logics of the three approaches of structural realism, neoliberal institutionalism, and constructivism suggest that individuals carry a crude paradigm in their minds. Metatheoretically, the implication for international relations theory is that scholars capture a part but not the totality of world politics, the behavior of those who trust (or do not trust) in a particular way that matches the logic of their paradigms. Theoretically it suggests a research agenda at multiple levels of analysis, utilizing all of the types of trust and trusters. I review the work of others that offers some preliminary evidence for its plausibility, suggest some hypotheses of my own, and address potential theoretical objections.

Introduction: Sources and Theory

Reign of Arrows ◽

10.1093/oso/9780190888329.003.0001 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-26

Author(s):

Nikolaus Leo Overtoom

Keyword(s):

Middle East ◽

International Relations ◽

Political History ◽

Middle Eastern ◽

Theoretical Framework ◽

Alexander The Great ◽

Realist Theory ◽

Literary Sources ◽

Hellenistic World

This chapter discusses the neglect of the Parthians in the ancient sources and in modern historiography, while introducing the application of international relations theory to help provide a fuller appreciation of the geopolitical developments of the Parthian state and to help overcome some of the limitations of our sources. Although the Parthians are a part of the long tradition of strong Middle Eastern empires and the Hellenistic world created by the conquests of Alexander the Great, no other major world empire has been more overshadowed, misunderstood, or ignored. There have been relatively few comprehensive studies of the formation, growth, and international relations of the Parthian state. Most studies of this sort are either outdated, cursory, or, in the case of numerous recent attempts, of limited or questionable academic merit. No account of the Parthians’ history survives from their perspective. In reconstructing Parthian history, we must maneuver through Greek and Roman literary sources that dominate the narrative and often treat the Parthians hostilely or cursorily and mostly from a foreign perspective, and therefore, recent work in archaeology and numismatics is invaluable to the historical reconstruction of the Hellenistic Middle East. With the sometimes severe limitations of our available sources in mind, the potential insights that the theoretical framework of modern international relations theory, especially Realist Theory, offers to the study of Parthian political history are quite exciting, and this study is the first comprehensive attempt to apply modern international relations theory to the interpretation of Parthian expansionism and interactions with neighboring states.

Absolute and Relative Gains in International Relations Theory

American Political Science Review ◽

10.2307/1963947 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 85 (4) ◽

pp. 1303-1320 ◽

Cited By ~ 162

Author(s):

Robert Powell

Keyword(s):

International Relations ◽

Simple Game ◽

Structural Realism ◽

Theoretic Model ◽

Special Cases ◽

Game Theoretic ◽

Game Theoretic Model ◽

Relative Gains ◽

The problem of absolute and relative gains divides neoliberal institutionalism and structural realism. The former assumes states focus primarily on their absolute gains and emphasizes the prospects for cooperation. The latter supposes states are largely concerned with relative gains and emphasizes the prospects for conflict. Existing work in international relations theory generally traces the differences between these two theories to different assumptions about states' preferences. Using a simple game-theoretic model, this essay offers a reformulation of the problem of absolute and relative gains that links changes in the states' behavior, the feasibility of cooperation, and especially the states' concern for relative versus absolute gains explicitly to changes in the constraints facing the states. Many of the differences between neoliberal institutionalism and structural realism appear as special cases of the model.

International Relations theory and the Middle East

The Middle East in International Relations ◽

10.1017/cbo9780511790829.002 ◽

2005 ◽

pp. 21-40

Keyword(s):

Middle East ◽

International Relations ◽

International Relations Theory

Middle East Dilemma: Pakistan’s Role as Mediator for Conflict Resolution

Liberal Arts and Social Sciences International Journal (LASSIJ) ◽

10.47264/idea.lassij/3.1.2 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 9-18

Author(s):

Zikriya ◽

Naushad Khan ◽

Asif Salim

Keyword(s):

Foreign Policy ◽

Conflict Resolution ◽

Middle East ◽

International Relations ◽

Middle Eastern ◽

Research Approach ◽

East Region ◽

Analysis Technique ◽

Middle East Region

The development of International relations together with forces like globalization and technology has brought the world closer to each other. Friendly ties and relations with states create massive challenges during times of conflict. The focus of the paper is on the crisis evolving in the Middle East region and the role of Pakistan in solving those crisis considering relations with its closest allies, political and financial circumstances, and its foreign policy principles. A qualitative research approach with desk analysis technique has been applied to analyse the role of Pakistan as a mediator for the conflict resolution among Middle Eastern countries. The research highlights how the disputes created great problems for Pakistan but it is still striving to resolve conflicts among Middle Eastern countries because maintaining peace and prosperity in the Muslim world has always been a top priority of Pakistan’s foreign policy.

The Noble American Science of Imperial Relations and Its Laws of Race Development

Reconsidering American Power ◽

10.1093/oso/9780199490585.003.0001 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 3-42

Author(s):

Robert Vitalis

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

International Relations ◽

International Law ◽

Evolutionary Biology ◽

Historical Sociology ◽

The United States ◽

Social Scientists ◽

American Science ◽

The Way

We now know that the ‘birth of the discipline’ of international relations in the United States is a story about empire. The foundations of early international relations theory are set in not just international law and historical sociology but evolutionary biology and racial anthropology. The problem is the way in which scholars today deal with the place of race in the thought of John Hobson, Paul Reinsch, and virtually all other social scientists of the era. The strand of thought that still resonates in our own time about empire, states, and the like is raised up and depicted as the scientific or theoretical core in the scholars’ work, while the strand that involves now archaic racial constructs is downgraded and treated instead as mere ‘language’, ‘metaphors’, and ‘prejudices’ of the era. To undo this error and recover in full the ideas of early international relations theorists it is necessary to bring the work of historians of conservative and reform Darwinism to bear on the first specialists and foundational texts in international relations.

5. Oil and Political Economy in the International Relations of the Middle East

International Relations of the Middle East ◽

10.1093/hepl/9780198708742.003.0006 ◽

2016 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Giacomo Luciani

Keyword(s):

Political Economy ◽

Middle East ◽

International Relations ◽

Domestic Politics ◽

Middle Eastern ◽

Rentier State ◽

Eastern State ◽

Used Oil ◽

Foreign Policies ◽

Middle East Policy

This chapter examines the impact of oil and political economy on the international relations of the Middle East. It begins by discussing the relationship between oil and the consolidation and evolution of the modern Middle Eastern state system, noting that, while outside powers have invariably used oil in their calculations of Middle East policy, oil has figured less prominently in the foreign policies of Arab states. As regards domestic politics, the rentier state paradigm shows how oil has conditioned economic and political outcomes in both oil-rich and oil-poor states, slowing down the prospects for reform. The chapter proceeds by assessing the influence of oil on inter-Arab relations and concludes with some reflections on the regional and international environments as well as the political order in the Middle East.

Sustainable International Relations. Pope Francis’ Encyclical Laudato Si’ and the Planetary Implications of “Integral Ecology”

Religions ◽

10.3390/rel10080466 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (8) ◽

pp. 466 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ferrara

Keyword(s):

International Relations ◽

Holistic Approach ◽

World Politics ◽

Development Economic ◽

Ethical Challenges ◽

Pope Francis ◽

Call To Action ◽

Contemporary World ◽

Integral Ecology

This paper analyzes the theoretical and pragmatic implications for international relations and world politics of the new holistic approach to climate change articulated by Pope Francis in the Encyclical Laudato Si’, particularly through the notion of “integral ecology”. It is not my intention to offer an exegesis of the Papal document. I will rather try to illustrate and discuss its planetary hermeneutics. I emphasize that the Encyclical’s perspective is not exclusively normative, and that, within the dynamic interplay between social structure and human agency, it can also be considered as a call to action. In this context, I suggest that both International Relations Theory and global politics have much to learn from the fundamental claims of contemporary religions in relation to climate disruption. In particular, Pope Francis’ document, far from being just a new chapter in the unfolding process of the “greening” of religions, raises the issue of the sustainability of the present world system. Therefore, I contend that the perspective of the Encyclical calls for a radical transformation of international relations, since it emphasizes the deep implications of environmental issues on the entire spectrum of security, development, economic and ethical challenges of contemporary world politics. Against this backdrop, my objective is to connect the main tenets of the Encyclical to the environmental turn in International Relations Theory and to the new epistemological challenges related to the paradigm shift induced by the new planetary condition of the Anthropocene and the relevant questions arising for a justice encompassing the humanity-earth system. The Encyclical seems to suggest that practicing sustainable international relations means exiting the logic of power or hegemony, while simultaneously operationalizing the concept of care.

Introduction: Diversity and Disciplinarity in International Relations Theory

International Relations Theories ◽

10.1093/hepl/9780198814443.003.0018 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-12

Author(s):

Steve Smith

Keyword(s):

Critical Theory ◽

Social Science ◽

International Relations ◽

Structural Realism ◽

Normative Theory ◽

English School ◽

International Theory ◽

The World

This text argues that theory is central to explaining International Relations (IR) and that the discipline of IR is much more relevant to the world of international relations than it has been at any point in its history. Some chapters cover distinct IR theories ranging from realism/structural realism to liberalism/neoliberalism, the English school, constructivism, Marxism, critical theory, feminism, poststructuralism, green theory, and postcolonialism. Oher chapters explore International Relations theory and its relationship to social science, normative theory, globalization, and the discipline’s identity. This introduction explains why this edition has chosen to cover these theories, reflects on international theory and its relationship to the world, and considers the kind of assumptions about theory that underlie each of the approaches.