Week 4 - Realism and Liberalism






Realism
The concepts of realism as a political theory and method of governance has been a foundational concept in the formation of the structures of government we currently see operating in the world today. The introduction of realism and its various expressions (statism, neoclassical realism, structural realism) have been influential in defining the role of the state, its governance, and its interaction with other states in what is considered an anarchic global arena where states prioritise their own goals above the needs and wants of other state actors. Various branches of deal with unique issues such as security, and global power structures, in particular the tension between offensive and defensive approaches to security and the value of relative and absolute power to the state.

An interesting article on the way Realist and Liberalist approaches to war operate, produced by Thomas S. Mowle on behalf of the United States Air Force Academy, identifies that foreign conflicts, as considered by three "bystander" nations, are more often. This research is demonstrative of the variety between the two theories of liberalism and realism and their effect on decision making in the global political arena.


References:

Mowle, T. S. (2003). Worldviews in Foreign Policy: Realism, Liberalism, and External Conflict. Political Psychology, 24(3), 561-592.
J. Baylis, S.Smith, and P. Owens, (Eds.) 2017.The Globalisation of World Politics: an introduction to international relations. Oxford: Oxford University Press


Mearsheimer, J.J., 2007. Structural realism. International relations theories: Discipline and diversity, 83. Chapter 5

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