POL214Y1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Great Power
Document Summary
This conclusion rests on a misunderstanding of neorealist theory and an erroneous reading of the evidence. Properly specified, neorealism holds that great powers place an overriding emphasis on the need for self-help. This means that they rely relentlessly both on arming and on imitating the successful military practices of their peers to ensure their security. At the same time, they rarely resort to alliances and treat them with scepticism. There is abundant historical evidence to support these claims. Scholars argue that neorealism does not provide a convincing account of great power balancing behaviour. States constantly balance through internal means and seldom through external means. Our study reveals abundant evidence to support a neorealist theory of balancing. Great powers have routinely engaged in internal balancing since 1816, arming and imitating the successful military practices of others to counter the capabilities of their rivals.
