Essentials of International Relations / Edition 8

by Karen A. Mingst, Heather Elko McKibben, Ivan M. Arregu n-Toft

Overview

New coauthor Heather Elko McKibben enlivens a classic text

A fresh perspective renews Karen Mingst’s classic, concise text. A new chapter on international cooperation and international law presents alternatives to war. A streamlined approach to theories and levels of analysis makes concepts easier to understand and apply. Expanded coverage of cybersecurity, refugees, health, and the environment asks students to grapple with the big issues of our time. And InQuizitive—an all-new digital learning tool—helps students learn, retain, and apply key concepts.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780393675191
Publisher:	Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
Publication date:	10/01/2018
Edition description:	Eighth Edition
Pages:	544
Product dimensions:	6.70(w) x 9.20(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Karen A. Mingst is Professor Emeritus at the Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce at the University of Kentucky. She holds a PhD in political science from the University of Wisconsin. A specialist in international organization, international law, and international political economy, Professor Mingst has conducted research in Western Europe, West Africa, and Yugoslavia. She is the author or editor of seven books and numerous academic articles. She has frequently taught the introductory international relations course. In addition, she has traveled and lectured extensively at universities around the globe.

Heather Elko McKibben is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of California, Davis. She has been at Davis since 2009, after receiving her PhD from the University of Pittsburgh in 2008 and holding a postdoctorate position in the Niehaus Center for Globalization and Governance at Princeton University in the 2008–2009 academic year. In her research, Professor McKibben is interested in understanding when, why and how different countries negotiate with each other. When and why will countries come to the negotiating table to resolve problems instead of resorting to more coercive measures? What types of strategies do they use in those negotiations, and why do those strategies differ from country to country and negotiation to negotiation? When and why will countries be able to reach cooperative agreements, and what are the resulting agreements likely to look like? Examining international negotiations in a wide variety of settings, Professor McKibben seeks to answer these types of questions.

Ivan M. Arreguín-Toft is Assistant Professor of International Relations at Boston University, where he teaches introductory international relations, among other courses. He holds a Ph.D. in political science from the University of Chicago. Professor Arreguín-Toft is a specialist in security studies and, specifically, asymmetric conflict. He is the recipient of fellowships at the Peace Research Institute and the Norwegian Institute for Defense Studies.

Table of Contents

	List of Maps	xi
	Preface	xiii
1	Approaches to International Relations
	International Relations in Daily Life	1
	Thinking Theoretically	3
	Developing the Answers	4
	Integrating the Answers	11
	In Sum: Making Sense of International Relations	13
	Where Do We Go from Here?	14
2	The Historical Context of Contemporary International Relations
	The Pre-Westphalian World	18
	The Emergence of the Westphalian System	25
	Europe in the Nineteenth Century	28
	The Interwar Years and World War II	35
	The Cold War	38
	The Post-Cold War Era	49
	In Sum: Learning from History	53
3	Contending Perspectives: How to Think about International Relations Theoretically
	Thinking Theoretically	55
	Theory and the Levels of Analysis	59
	Liberalism and Neoliberal Institutionalism	62
	Realism and Neorealism	65
	The Radical Perspective	71
	Constructivism	74
	Theory in Action: Analyzing the 1991 Gulf War and the 2003 Iraq War	76
	In Sum: Seeing the World through Theoretical Lenses	80
4	The International System
	The Notion of a System	83
	The International System according to Liberals	84
	The International System according to Realists	86
	The International System according to Radicals	95
	Advantages and Disadvantages of the International System as a Level of Analysis	96
	In Sum: From the International System to the State	99
5	The State
	The State and the Nation	101
	Contending Conceptualizations of the State	103
	The Nature of State Power	108
	Using State Power	112
	Models of Foreign-Policy Decisionmaking	121
	Challenges to the State	128
	In Sum: The State and Challenges Beyond	133
6	The Individual
	Foreign-Policy Elites: Individuals Who Matter	137
	Private Individuals	147
	Mass Publics	150
	In Sum: How Much Do Individuals Matter?	155
7	Intergovernmental Organizations, Nongovernmental Organizations, and International Law
	Intergovernmental Organizations	159
	Nongovernmental Organizations	180
	International Law	185
	Realist Views of International Organization and Law	191
	The Radical View of International Organization and Law	192
	In Sum: Do Intergovernmental Organizations, Nongovernmental Organizations, and International Law Make a Difference?	194
8	War and Strife
	The Causes of War	198
	The Changing Character of Warfare and Its Instruments	208
	The Just War Tradition	217
	Approaches to Managing Insecurity	218
	Other Threats to International Security	228
	In Sum: International Security, Old and New	229
9	International Political Economy
	Contending Theoretical Approaches	235
	Key Concepts in Liberal Economics	242
	Power, Competition, and Development in the International Political Economy	244
	The Role of Institutions in Managing Power, Competition, and Development	256
	In Sum: Economic Convergence and Divergence	269
10	Globalizing Issues
	Health and Disease--Protecting Life in the Commons	274
	The Environment--Protecting Space in the Global Commons	280
	Human Rights--Protecting Human Dignity	296
	The Impact of Globalizing Issues	307
	Do Globalizing Issues Lead to Global Governance?	311
	In Sum: Changing You	313
	Glossary	315
	Index	325

Editorial Reviews

The Global Perspectives box and Theory in Brief is solid. Great content, good presentation.

Selwyn Samaroo

The textbook is well-written and reflects up-to-date scholarship in the IR field. The IR theoretical approaches are skillfully and effectively integrated into the chapters.

Abdalla Battah