Int’l Relations

Question 1

Security Dilemma

Answer 1

States try to increase their own power to protect themselves
-> Their increased power is seen as a threat to
-> Other States feel insecure
-> They increase their power too
-> Make others more insecure

Question 2

Collective Good

Answer 2

a public good that is available to all regardless of individual contribution—e.g., the air, the
oceans, or Antarctica—that no one owns or is individually responsible for

Question 3

Intergovernmental organizations (IGOs)

Answer 3

international agencies or bodies established by states and controlled by member states that deal
with areas of common interest

Question 4

General Assembly (UN)

Answer 4

one of the major organs of the United Nations; generally addresses issues other than those of peace and security; each member state has one vote; operates with six functional committees composed of all member states

Question 5

Security Council

Answer 5

one of the major organs of the United Nations charged with the responsibility for peace and security issues; includes five permanent members with veto power and ten nonpermanent members chosen from the General Assembly

Question 6

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)

Answer 6

Private associations of individuals or groups that engage in political, economic, or social activities, usually across national borders.

Question 7

Anarchy

Answer 7

The fact that there exists no hierarchically superior, coercive authority that can create laws, resolve disputes, or enforce law and order in the system

Question 8

balance of power

Answer 8

any system in which actors (e.g., states) enjoy relatively equal power, such that no single state or coalition of states is able to dominate other actors in the system

Question 9

BRICS

Answer 9

an informal group of emerging economic powers, including Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa

Question 10

capitalism

Answer 10

capitalism the economic system in which the ownership of the means of production is in private hands; the system operates according to market forces whereby capital and labor move freely

Question 11

compellence

Answer 11

the use of threats to coerce another into taking an action it otherwise would not take

Question 12

constructivism

Answer 12

an international relations theory that hypothesizes how ideas, norms, and institutions shape state identity and interests

Question 13

demographic transition

Answer 13

The situation in which increasing levels of economic development lead to falling death rates, followed by falling birth rates

Question 14

deterrence

Answer 14

the policy of maintaining a large military force and arsenal to discourage any potential aggressor from taking action

Question 15

Jus ad bellum

Answer 15

Laws that deal with when it I just/legal to go to war

Question 16

Jus in bello

Answer 16

Laws that define what acts are considered legal and illegal when fighting a war

Question 17

economic liberalism

Answer 17

ideas based on Adam Smith that when individuals pursue their own self-interest, efficiency for
everyone is achieved; markets function best when governments interfere the least

Question 18

mercantilism

Answer 18

the economic theory that trade generates wealth and is stimulated by the accumulation of profitable balances, which a government should encourage by means of protectionism

Question 19

economic nationalism

Answer 19

modern version of core mercantilist ideas that economic policies should be subservient to the
national interest

Question 20

economic radicalism

Answer 20

beliefs drawn from Marxist and neo-Marxist writing that poor labor conditions, colonial
expansion, and divisions between the rich and poor are blamed on international capitalism

Question 21

macroeconomic policies

Answer 21

government policies designed to address macroeconomic conditions, including fiscal and
monetary policies

Question 22

fiscal policies

Answer 22

policies affecting a government’s budget, namely level of government spending and tax rates

Question 23

monetary policy

Answer 23

policies affecting national interest rates or exchange rates designed to affect employment and
inflation rates

Question 24

World Bank

Answer 24

a global lending agency focused on financing projects in developing countries; formally known as the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, established as one of the key Bretton Woods institutions to deal with reconstruction and development after World War II

Question 25

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Answer 25

The Bretton Woods institution originally charged with helping states deal with temporary balance-of-payments problems; now plays a broader role in assisting debtor developing states by offering loans to those who institute specific policies or structural adjustment programs.

Question 26

World Trade Organization (WTO)

Answer 26

intergovernmental organization designed to support the principles of liberal free trade; includes enforcement measures and dispute settlement mechanisms; established in 1995 to replace the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade

Question 27

Washington Consensus

Answer 27

a version of economic liberalism that holds that through specific liberal economic policies, privatization, government deregulation, and trade liberalization, can economic development occur

Question 28

sustainable development

Answer 28

an approach to economic development that tries to reconcile current economic growth and
environmental protection with the needs of future generations

Question 29

Moral Hazard

Answer 29

Problem when states of individuals are not made to pay the consequences of reckless behavior; they have little incentive to change that behavior

Question 30

Malthusian dilemma

Answer 30

the scenario in which population growth rates will increase faster than agricultural productivity, leading to food shortages; named after Thomas Malthus

Question 31

responsibility to protect (R2P)

Answer 31

emerging norm that the international community should help individuals suffering at the hands of their own state or others when the home state fails to provide security

Question 32

cultural relativism

Answer 32

the belief that human rights, ethics, and morality are determined by cultures and history and therefore are not universally the same

Question 33

Gross Domestic Product

Answer 33

Total value of goods and services produced within a state’s border within a state period of time

Question 34

Comparative advantages

Answer 34

States advantages: States benefit through specialization and international trade

Question 35

Balance of trade

Answer 35

Difference between a state’s imports and exports