Solution Manual for Global Politics 1st Edition by Boyer

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Chapter 2: Interpreting Power: A Levels-of-Analysis Approach

Chapter Outline

Defining Power in Global Politics

            Characteristics of Power

The Levels-of-Analysis Approach

            Origins and Applicability

Individual-Level Analysis

            Human Rationality and Its Limits

            Cognitive Factors

            Psychological Factors

            Sex and Gender

            Leadership

State-Level Analysis

            Governmental Sources

            Societal Factors

System-Level Analysis

            Structural Characteristics

            Power Relationships

Critical Thinking Questions

Chapter Summary

Chapter Objectives

After reading this chapter, students should be able to:

1.      Understand the sources of power in global politics, as well as power’s differing characteristics

2.      Comprehend the overall “levels-of-analysis” approach and its utility for thinking about the distribution and use of power in global politics

3.      Compare, contrast, and apply the three levels of analysis: individual, state, and systemic, as well as the key components of each level (including leadership, sovereignty, and anarchy)

4.      Evaluate the relationship between and among the three levels in assessing how power works in contemporary global politics

5.      Analyze the future of human rights and environmental issues in the face of national resistance to international solutions.

Chapter Glossary

Anarchy  A fundamental concept in the study of global politics derived from the insights of Thomas Hobbes regarding the “state of nature,” which contends that global politics is best understood as a self-help struggle for survival between and among states and other actors given the lack of any effective overarching central governing authority in the system.

Autarky/autarkic state  A completely or nearly completely inwardly directed society with little or no connections to the outside world.

Authoritarian  A government that centralizes and exercises power and administers society with little or no input from or participation by the governed.

Balance of power  A concept that describes the degree of equilibrium (balance) or disequilibrium (imbalance) of power in the global or regional system.

Behavioralism  The study of social and political phenomena using the scientific method – including, but not limited to, hypothesis testing and empirical analysis.

Bipolar system/bipolarity  A type of international system with two roughly equal actors or coalitions of actors that divide the international system into two “poles” of power centers.

Bloc  Grouping of materially interdependent and (often) ideologically aligned states.

Bounded rationality  A concept that suggests the rational choices of individuals are bound or limited by time pressures, imperfect information, and biases that influence those choices.

Bureaucracy  The bulk of the state’s administrative structure that continues even when political leaders change.

Capabilities  In global politics, the power and influence available to an actor as a Function of its tangible power assets.

Cognitive consistency  The tendency of individuals to hold fast to prevailing views of the world, and to discount contradictory ideas and information in the process.

Cognitive dissonance  A discordant psychological state in which an individual attempts to process information contradicting her or his prevailing understanding of a subject.

Cold War  The confrontation that emerged following World War II between the bipolar superpowers, the Soviet Union and the United States. Although no direct conflict took place between these countries, it was an era of great tensions and global division.

Complex interdependence  A term most associated with the liberal theorists Robert Keohane and Joseph Nye referring to the broad and deep interdependence of issues and actors in the contemporary global political system, and the ways in which this condition structures and conditions the conduct of global politics.

Concert of Europe  A multipolar arrangement prevailing in Europe through much of the 19^th century in which the major powers committed to a loose agreement to avoid war with one another while policing disorder and outbreaks of violence with and among smaller actors in the region.

Credibility  The power and influence available to an actor as a function of its ability and willingness to follow through on commitments and threats.

Democratic  A form of government established on the premise that the consent of the governed is necessary to the exercise of power and administration of society – and that the governed have obligations to participate in the political system.

Frustration-aggression theory  A psychologically based theory that frustrated societies sometimes become collectively aggressive.

Fundamental attribution error (correspondence bias)  Overrating personality and disposition and underrating situational or contextual factors when explaining the observed behavior of others—and doing the exact opposite in seeking to understand one’s own behavior.

Fungible  An economic term referring to the degree of convertibility of currency or other economic assets into a desired good or service.

Gender opinion gap  The difference between males and females along any one of a number of dimensions, including foreign policy preferences.

Hard power  The use or threatened use of material power assets by an actor to compel one or more other actors to undertake a desired action, or not undertake an undesirable one. Hard power relies on coercion

Hegemony  Systemic arrangement in which one predominant actor possesses both the material capabilities and political will to introduce, follow, and enforce a given set of rules to lend order and structure to the global system. Also requires “buy-in” from at least some other actors who stand to benefit from those rules.

Heuristic devices  A range of psychological strategies that allow individuals to simplify complex decisions.

Human development  An approach to international development emphasizing the functioning and capabilities of individuals as an improved means for assessing a society’s overall development.

Idiosyncratic analysis  An individual-level analysis approach to decision making that assumes individuals make foreign policy decisions and that different individuals are likely to make different decisions.

Individual-level analysis  An analytical approach that emphasizes the role of individuals as either distinct personalities or biological/psychological beings.

Levels of analysis  A social scientific approach to the study of global politics that analyzes phenomena from different perspectives (system, state, individual).

Multipolar system/multipolarity  A world political system in which power is primarily held by four or more international actors.

Munich analogy  A prevailing belief among many post-World War II leaders that appeasement must be avoided at all costs—a “lesson” derived from the concessions made to Hitler by Britain and France at Munich in 1938.

Norms  Unwritten rules, principles, or standards of behavior that create expectations about how states and individuals ought to behave and interact in the global community.

Operational code  How an individual acts in a given situation, based on a combination of one’s understanding of the nature of politics and fundamental worldview.

Optimistic bias  The psychological tendency of individuals—particularly those in positions of power – to overrate their own potential for success, and underrate their own potential for failure.

Overstretch  A concept developed by historians that suggests a recurring tendency of powerful actors to overextend themselves by taking on costly foreign policy commitments that deplete their finances and generate domestic discord.

Polarity  The number of predominantly powerful actors in the global system at any given point in time.

Political culture  A society’s general and fundamental practices and attitudes toward governance and policy, based on historical experience and the values of citizens.

Population aging  A scenario in which a large and increasing proportion of a given society is approaching or at an age in which active participation in public and private life is unlikely

Rally effect  The tendency during a crisis of political and other leaders, legislators, and the public to give strong support to a chief executive and the policy that leader has adopted in response to the crisis.

Rational actors  The assumption that individuals are prone to make informed and self-serving choices based on a careful accumulation and weighting of all relevant information.

Regime type  The type of government prevailing in a given society.

Rogue state  States that are perceived to be in noncompliance with the majority of prevailing rules, norms, and laws in the global system and therefore constitute a threat to order. This may mean, among other things, a state governed by authoritarian rule that severely restricts human rights, sponsors or condones terrorism, or seeks to obtain or promote the spread of weapons of mass destruction.

Salience/salient  In public opinion research, the issues or questions that are more meaningful and significant (or “matter” more) to a greater proportion of people.

Soft power  The use or prospective use of material or ideational power assets by an actor to induce another actor or actors to undertake a desired action, or not undertake an undesirable one. Soft power relies on persuasion.

State-level analysis  An analytical approach that emphasizes the actions of states and the internal (domestic) causes of their policies.

State sovereignty  A central tenet of global politics that holds that the state has the sole right to govern its territory and people, free from outside interference.

Statecraft  The use of military, economic, diplomatic, and ideational tools in the pursuit of clearly defined foreign policy interests and objectives.

System-level analysis  An analytical approach that emphasizes the importance of the impact of world conditions (economics, technology, power relationships, and so forth) on the actions of states and other international actors.

Transaction costs  Impediments to commercial or other cooperative ventures stemming from a lack of trust between and among involved parties rooted in concerns about the enforceability of agreements.

Transnational  Social, political, economic, and cultural activities and processes that transcend and permeate the borders and authority of states.

Treaty of Westphalia  The treaty ending the Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648), giving rise to the modern state-based system.

Unipolar system/unipolarity  A type of international system that describes a single country with complete global hegemony or preponderant power.

Chapter Overview and Sample Lecture Outline

This lecture provides students with the content background needed to achieve the chapter objec­tives. The objectives numbers link the outline to the objective, and these topics require detailed information.

I.    Defining Power in Global Politics (Objectives 1, 4)

A.  Characteristics of Power

1.   Power as Asset and Aspiration

2.   Hard and Soft Power

3.   Absolute and Relative Power

4.   Capabilities and Credibility

5.   Objective and Subjective Power

6.   Situational Power

II.  The Levels-of-Analysis Approach (Objectives 2, 3)

A.  Origins and Applicability

III. Individual-Level Analysis (Objectives 3, 4, 5)

A.  Human Rationality and Its Limits

1.   Human Rationality and Its Limits

a.   Bounded Rationality

B.  Cognitive Factors

1.   Cognitive Consistency

2.   Optimistic Bias

3.   Heuristic Devices

C.  Psychological Factors

1.         Perception and Misperception

D.  Sex and Gender

1.   Problematizing Gender

E.   Leadership

1.   Personality

2.   Ego and Ambition

3.   Worldview and Operational Code

IV. State-Level Analysis (Objectives 3, 4, 5)

A.  Governmental Sources

1.   State Sovereignty

2.   Governmental Authority

3.   Military Capabilities

4.   Economic Capacity

B.  Societal Factors

1.   Political Culture

2.   Technological Sophistication

3.   Geography

4.   Demographics

5.   Human Development

V.  System-Level Analysis (Objectives 3, 4, 5)

A.  Structural Characteristics

1.   The Organization of Authority

2.   Interdependence

B.  Power Relationships

1.   Polarity

2.   Hegemony

3.   Social Context

VI.       Chapter Summary

Classroom Analytical Activities And Discussion Questions

Although the following activities focus on classroom activities, they also can serve as outside assignments with slight modifications.

1.      Select a current international crisis between two or more countries. Ask students to consider how they would handle that situation if:

·         the UN was a powerful world government.

·         a regional organization such as the EU had exten­sive powers in that region.

·         one of the states involved was part of an extensive alliance network.

·         the issue was one involving an international regime such as air travel or whaling.

·         an intergovernmental organization such as the IMF was concerned about this issue.

·         a nongovernmental organization such as the Red Cross had significant power to address this issue.

Debrief by asking students what these different scenarios suggest about how different types of actors with different amounts of power can influence international political processes.

2.      Ask students to identify the concerns that theorists who study power and power tran­sitions at the international level may have. Challenge them to support their positions with historical examples.

3.      Select a current international situation (for instance, a conflict between two countries). Have students work in small groups in class to explain how they could resolve the situations using one of the polar systems. Allow the groups to explain their solutions to the class, including defin­ing the power status of the countries involved, the rules for the polar system they chose, and why they chose that polar system.

4.      Ask students to write a two-sentence description of their foreign policy views (e.g., aggressive/passive; cooperative/uncooperative). Then set up several Risk boards in a number of different configurations and ask students to discuss the alliances that they would expect. Assign students to play in teams or as individuals, but, before they begin, they must share their foreign policy statements with the other players. Afterward, ask students to discuss how the statements shaped their perceptions of other players and of the security situation. Also, discuss any differences in perception that arise between students who played in teams (democratic structures) and those who played as individuals (authoritarian structures).

5.      Challenge students to describe the international political system of the future. Include types of actors and their relative strength, num­ber of poles, power distributions among them, the norms of behavior, scope and level of interaction, and the geo­graphic factors that will exist.

6.      In the eighteenth century, Immanuel Kant argued that when citizens have a choice about going to war  they are not likely to fight. Ask the class if they agree with Kant. Point out to students that war was the popular reaction in the United States to the terrorist attacks of September 11^th, and ask them whether this reaction supports or contradicts their positions? Have students discuss whether U.S. citizens had a choice with respect to engaging in the “war on terror­ism”?

7.      Ask students to consider the claim that democracies are unsafe vehicles for for­eign policy formation. Ask what arguments they can make opposing or supporting the position. Determine which arguments sides are most persuasive and why? Also, have the students determine evidence that supports the arguments.

8.      Although democracies seem as likely as autocracies to be involved in international conflicts, they do seem less likely to be at war with each other. Ask students how they ac­count for this pattern. Determine if they can identify examples of this pattern operating today.

9.      Encourage students to consider the ways in which American political culture affects United States foreign policy. Have them identify the aspects of history, its belief system, and its attitude to the rest of the world that they believe have an impact upon the making of United States foreign policy. Using this information, challenge the students to predict elements of United States foreign policy in the post–cold war era. Assign students to follow the news during the semester and determine if any of their predictions seem to emerge. Ad the end of the semesters, have students discuss their findings.

10.    Ask the class to identify times they were in a group situation (for exam­ple, among friends or in a club) where “groupthink” influenced a decision-making process. Ask them which elements of groupthink are most apparent, and why?

11.    Pose the following question to the class: “Do you think that U.S. foreign policy would be differ­ent if we had a woman president and most members of Congress were women?” During class discuss, encourage the students to identify if women have innately different values from men when it comes to foreign policy? Present the idea that the events would force women to pursue similar that were similar to the policies of the men if women occupied posi­tions of power.

12.    Present the fact that some scholars suggest that the world’s situation would improve if all inhabitants thought of themselves as citizens of the world. Ask if they agree or disagree, and explore such questions as:

·         How might U.S. policy toward the less developed coun­tries be different if the U.S. had pursued global interests rather than national interests?

·         How would most U.S. citizens respond to this policy?

·         How would citizens in Germany, Japan, or France respond if their countries pursued a sim­ilar policy?

Out-Of-Class Activities

1.      Review several sources of news media for the past month. For each international news item found, note the name of the major actor(s) involved, the type(s) of actor(s), the issue at hand, the actions taken, and the outcome. Organize your results into a table. What tentative conclusions might you draw from analyzing this information? How would your table be different if you used news sources from the 1930s? The 1890s? What tentative conclusions might you make about the chang­ing nature of actors in international politics since 1930? Since 1890?

2.      As the 1991 conflict in the Persian Gulf demonstrates, re­source distribution can be a significant factor in inter­national politics. Obtain a list of materials regarded as essential for U.S. industry and defense. In a table, list those materials, the sources of them and the percentage of U.S. consumption from each source, the uses of that material, and our strategic reserves. (Hypothetical exam­ple: Uranium; South Africa, 43%; nuclear weapons and energy; 8 months.) Using this information, identify other world regions or countries where you expect the United States to intervene when threatened by a hostile power. Defend your answer.

3.      Select a current U.S. foreign policy and study it. Seek to answer the following questions:

·         What is its goal?

·         Do you agree with the goal?

·         What means achieved that goal?

·         Do you agree with the means?

·         Are they the most effective means?

·         What are the costs and benefits of this policy and the means used to achieve them?

         Af­ter reaching an informed conclusion about U.S. policy in this area, express your support for the current policy or try to change it through whatever methods seem most appropriate to you.

4.      Research any contemporary international issue. Analyze and describe the situation from the perspective of a(n)

·         Individual-level analyst

·         State-level analyst

·         System-level analyst

5.      Research current research on gender behaviors related to power and violence. Apply this research to predict the impact on international politics of increasing numbers of women holding elected office around the world.

6.      Gather information about the personality types (e.g., active-passive, positive-negative) of world leaders. After analyzing the leaders, explain past behaviors and predict future ones. How accurately does your analysis explain or predict?

 

Suggestions for Further Reading

Allison, Graham T. and Philip Zelikow. 1999. Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis. New York: Longman.  Analyzes the Cuban missile crisis from three different perspectives. Demonstrates the importance of understanding bureaucratic politics as an element of decision making even during a for­eign policy crisis.

Axelrod, Robert. 1984. The Evolution of Cooperation.  New York: Basic Books. Explains how cooperation can emerge despite the pursuit of self-interested goals, applying a game theory framework to interactions among states, businesses, and individuals.

Barber, James David. 1992. The Presidential Character, 4th ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. The latest of Bar­ber’s studies of presidential behavior based upon the use of psychological profiles.

Chan, Steve 1997.  “In Search of Democratic Peace: Problems and Promise.” Mershon International Studies Review 41(1): 59-91.  A detailed review of literature and ideas both for and against democratic peace theory.

Enloe, Cynthia. 1989. Bananas, Beaches and Bases: Making Feminist Sense of International Politics. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Controversial in­terpretation that details the effects of the structural position of women, both individually and as a group, on the interna­tional system of diplomacy.

George, Alexander, and Juliette George. 1956. Woodrow Wil­son and Colonel House: A Personality Study. New York: J. Day. A careful study of Woodrow Wilson and how his childhood experiences may have influenced his style of governance and his successes and failures in office.

Gilpin, Robert. 1981. War and Change in World Politics. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. An explica­tion of the theory of hegemonic stability, which argues that the dominance of world politics by one overwhelmingly powerful state will lead to the maintenance of international stability.

Ikenberry, G. John, ed. 1989. American Foreign Policy: Theoretical Essays. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman. Edited volume with essays presenting different approaches to understanding the forces that affect U.S. foreign policy making

Jackson, Robert. 2000. The Global Covenant: Human Con­duct in a World of States. New York: Oxford University Press. A comprehensive system-level analysis of the inter­national community that looks at the plethora of issues that influence the system.

Janis, Irving. 1982. Groupthink: Psychological Studies of Policy Decisions, 2nd ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. An analysis of the ways in which peer pressure within groups can distort decision-making and produce bad or irrational results, even in foreign policy.

Jervis, Robert. 1976. Perception and Misperception in In­ternational Politics. Princeton: Princeton University Press. The author explores the patterns of divergence between per­ception and reality of foreign policy decision makers.

Lenin, V. I. 1975. Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capi­talism. Moscow: Progress Publishers. Lenin builds on the writings of Karl Marx to explain imperialism and war as an outcome of capitalist rivalry that will incorporate all regions of the world into one world capitalist system.

Neustadt, Richard E., and Ernest R. May. 1986. Thinking in Time: The Uses of History for Decision Makers. New York: The Free Press. An argument that policy makers should make better use of historical cases to inform their decision-making, including practical suggestions on how they can do so effectively.

Nincic, Miroslav. 1992. Democracy and Foreign Policy: The Fallacy of Political Realism. New York: Columbia Univer­sity Press. A comprehensive analysis of the links between the democratic form of government and foreign policy de­cision-making.

Nye, Joseph S. Jr. 1993. Understanding International Con­flicts: An Introduction to Theory and History. New York: HarperCollins. A concise, well-written, and thoughtful overview of the logic underlying the study of conflict in world affairs, incorporating both history and theory.    

Olson, Mancur. 1982. The Rise and Decline of Nations. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. The author argues that there is a tendency for interest groups to become entrenched in domestic politics when there is no war or crisis; without disruption, the state becomes paralyzed and sclerotic and ultimately loses power relative to other states.

Organski, A.F.K., and Jacek Kugler. 1980. The War Ledger. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Presents and empir­ically tests the “power transition” theory that war is most likely to occur when one state is overtaking another in power, thus explaining war as a result of changes in the structure of the international system.

Singer, Max, and Aaron Wildavsky. 1993. The Real World Order: Zones of Peace, Zones of Turmoil. Chatham, NJ: Chatham House. The authors divide the world into demo­cratic zones of peace and nondemocratic zones of turmoil, and present an argument for multilateral efforts to promote democratic regimes in order to broaden the realm of peace

Sklair, Leslie. 1991. The Sociology of the Global System. Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins Press. A sociologist analyzes the global system as a single unit in which there exist common transnational practices that link seemingly distinctive societies.

Starr, Harvey 1992. “Democracy and War: Choice, Learning and Security Communities” Journal of Peace Research. 29(2): 207–213.  An application of rational utility maximization theory to democratic peace. 

Sylvester, Christine. 1994. Feminist Theory and International Relations in a Postmodern Era. New York: Cambridge Uni­versity Press. An interesting look at international relations from a constructionist-feminist perspective.

Waltz, Kenneth. 1954. Man, the State, and War. New York: Columbia University Press. A careful and well-written text on the different levels at which one can understand and an­alyze international politics.

Waltz, Kenneth. 1979. Theory of World Politics. Read­ing, MA: Addison-Wesley. A modern classic in which the author attempts to develop a system-level theory of interna­tional politics based on microeconomic models of interstate behavior.