POLS 1600 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: Loss Aversion, Externality, Bush Doctrine
21 Jun 2018
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CHAPTER 3 (Week 3) – FOREIGN POLICY DECISION MAKING
Emergence of the Modern State System
- born with Peace of Westphalia – 1648, ended 30 Years War in Europe
- concept of state sovereignty (no longer in hands of Catholic church) – a state’s supreme
authority to manage internal affairs and foreign relations
State – legal entity that has a permanent population, well-defined territory, governmental
capable of exercising sovereignty
Nation - collection of people who see themselves as member of the same group because they
share the same ethnicity, culture or language
Nation-state – convergence between territorial states and the psychological identification of
people within them (very rare)
Foreign policy – the decisions governing authorities make to realize international goals
The Global and Domestic Determinant of States’ Foreign Policy Behaviour
Levels of analysis – different aspect of and agents I international affairs that may be stressed in
interpreting world politics and explaining global phenomena,
- Major sources of states’ foreign policy decisions:
- global influences – ex. prevalence of civil wars, extent of trade interactions,
international law, military alliances
- state level – ex. internal/domestic influences, state’s type of government, opinions of
citizens
- individual level – ex. characteristics of leaders (personal beliefs, value, personality)
Intermestic decision making – a concept used to describe those issues confronting a state that
are simultaneously international and domestic
State’s attributes – state characteristics that shape foreign policy behaviours, such as its size,
wealth and the extent to which its leaders are accountable to its citizens in comparison with other
states
Influences to foreign policy decision making:
1. Geopolitics = the theoretical postulate that the state’s foreign policies are determined by
their location, natural resources, and physical environment
- physical terrain and location influences state’s foreign policy behaviour
- ex. location of US is reason why isolationism was successful, Germany in centre of
Europe and centre of wars/changes in politic systems
Spheres of influence – areas within a region of country controlled or dominates by a
foreign power
Imperialism – intentional imposition of one state’s power over another, traditionally
through territorial conquest, but more recently through economic domination, denying the
victim population freedom to have a voice in the conquering regime’s decisions
2. Military Capabilities
- State’s internal capacities shape their foreign policy priorities – states’ preparations
for war strongly influence their alter use of force
- States may seek similar goals, though their ability to realize them will vary according
to their military capabilities
3. Economic conditions
- The more economically developed a state is, the more likely it is to play a role in the
global political economy, though also less likely to make “adventuresome” policies
(since they have much to lose in the event of revolutionary change or global
insecurity)
- Gross national product (GNP) – the total monetary value of goods and services
produced within the territory of a state during a specified period, regardless of the
national identity of the producers
4. Type of government
- Constitutional democracy (“open”) – government processes that allow people, through
their elective representatives, to exercise power and influence the state’s policies
- In a democracy, public opinions and preferences often matter, and therefore
differences in who is allowed to participate and how much they exercise their
right to participate are critical determinants of foreign policy choices
- Autocratic rule (“closed”) – a system of authoritarian or totalitarian government where
unlimited power is concentrated in a single leader
- Diversionary theory of war - the hypothesis that leaders sometimes initiate conflict
abroad as a way of increasing national cohesion at home by diverting national public
opinion away from controversial domestic issues and internal problems
- Democratic peace – the theory that although democratic states sometimes wage war
against other states, they do not fight one another
The Unitary Actor and Rational Decision Making
Global level of analysis – an analytical approach to world politics that emphasizes the impact of
worldwide conditions on the behaviour of the states, IGOs, NGOs, and other international actors
- Realists believe that leaders’ goals and their corresponding approach to foreign policies
are the same
! thus all decision makers are essentially alike in their approach to foreign policy
making
Unitary actor – homogenous or monolithic unit with few or no important internal differences
(opinions, problems) that affect its choices
- Its actions are determined by its interactions with the others, not by what occurs inside it
Rational choice – decision-making procedures guided by careful definition of situations,
weighing of goals, consideration of all alternatives, and selection of the options most likely to
achieve the highest goals
1. Problem recognition and definition – an external problem is perceived and one
attempts to objectively define its distinguishing characteristics
2. Goal selection – those responsible must determine what they want to accomplish,
identification and ranking of values
3. Identification of Alternatives
4. Choice
Document Summary
Chapter 3 (week 3) foreign policy decision making. Born with peace of westphalia 1648, ended 30 years war in europe. Concept of state sovereignty (no longer in hands of catholic church) a state"s supreme authority to manage internal affairs and foreign relations. State legal entity that has a permanent population, well-defined territory, governmental capable of exercising sovereignty. Nation - collection of people who see themselves as member of the same group because they share the same ethnicity, culture or language. Nation-state convergence between territorial states and the psychological identification of people within them (very rare) Foreign policy the decisions governing authorities make to realize international goals. The global and domestic determinant of states" foreign policy behaviour. Levels of analysis different aspect of and agents i international affairs that may be stressed in interpreting world politics and explaining global phenomena, Major sources of states" foreign policy decisions:
