midterm 1

Question 1

Who was the author of the concept of Heartland?

Answer 1

Halford Mackinder

Question 2

What ideas are characteristic for critical geopolitics?

Answer 2

Political geographers should look beyond the state-centric perspective; “Geopolitical laws” are just subjective perceptions

Question 3

What does the concept of Rimland refer to?

Answer 3

Ii emphasizes the coastal fringes of Eurasia as key to global power.

Question 4

What author has emphasized the importance of geopolitical representations of the world by populations of certain countries?

Answer 4

Yves Lacoste

Question 5

Who was the first to apply the term Lebensraum (living space) in a sense that a developed nation is a living organism that needs more geographical space to grow?

Answer 5

Friedrich Ratzel

Question 6

What researchers can be considered as ones belonging to critical geopolitics?

Answer 6

Gerard Toal, John Agnew

Question 7

What author represented post-Soviet Eurasia as a “grand chessboard”?

Answer 7

Zbiegnew Brzezinski

Question 8

What does the geopolitical concept of Heartland refer to?

Answer 8

It highlights the importance of Eurasia’s interior for global dominance.

Question 9

Who believed that maritime powers had an advantage over continental ones?

Answer 9

Alfred Mahan

Question 10

Please select all scholars belonging to the realism tradition

Answer 10

Morgenthau, Waltz

Question 11

What are the key ideas of the critical theory

Answer 11

Diagnosing power relations in society and politics (Who dominates? Who has more power? Who is powerless?), Empowering disadvantaged and powerless social groups (emancipation)

Question 12

Why do researchers need social theories? Please check all correct statements

Answer 12

To be able asking much more research questions than they could do without theories, To rely on systematic collective wisdom of those who made their studies in the field previously

Question 13

Constructivism is a theory that should be constructed from ideas of other theories that fit each other

Answer 13

False

Question 14

Constructivism assumes that in social relations ideas and perceptions are more important than objective reality

Answer 14

True

Question 15

The key idea of positivism is that a researcher should select positive phenomena for one’s research, as only these positive phenomena are useful for elaborating practical recommendations

Answer 15

False

Question 16

The key idea of postmodernism is rejection of modernity and orientation on the past

Answer 16

False

Question 17

One of the key ideas of postmodernism (in political sciences) is departure from the state-centric perspective and adopting non-statist perspectives

Answer 17

True

Question 18

Alienation is one of the key ideas of positivism

Answer 18

False

Question 19

The positivist principle of falsification means that researchers are strictly prohibited from falsifying facts

Answer 19

False

Question 20

One of the key ideas of postmodernism (in political sciences) is departure from the state-centric perspective and adopting non-statist perspectives

Answer 20

False

Question 21

The positivist principle of falsification means that for a valid theory there should be a potential way to prove that this theory is wrong

Answer 21

True

Question 22

Alienation is one of the key ideas of Marxism

Answer 22

True

Question 23

Check all that is relevant to realism

Answer 23

Balance of power, National interest, Security dilemma

Question 24

Who of the following authors argued that international behavior of a state is determined by the international system and that internal politics of this state doesn’t matter?

Answer 24

Kenneth Waltz

Question 25

Who wrote the book "Politics among nations"?

Answer 25

Hans Morgenthau

Question 26

Who wrote the book "Theory of International Politics" (1979)?

Answer 26

Kenneth Waltz

Question 27

Which statement is the most relevant to defensive realism

Answer 27

The conditions of international relations system favor those who try to keep the balance of power rather than to those who try to violate it to their advantage

Question 28

Please check the statement that is the most relevant to the theory of offensive realism

Answer 28

The international balance of power is vulnerable and easily can be violated by revisionist states

Question 29

Check all scholars that belong to the school of realism

Answer 29

Hans Morgenthau, Kenneth Waltz, John Mearsheimer

Question 30

Which short statement is the best description of the security dilemma?

Answer 30

Security dilemma is the situation where a state's efforts to enhance its security lead to increased insecurity for other states

Question 31

Which short statement is the best description of the prisoner's dilemma in international relations?

Answer 31

The prisoner's dilemma in international relations refers to a situation where two states, acting in their own self-interest, end up in a suboptimal outcome due to a lack of cooperation

Question 32

Which short statement is the best description of the chicken game in international relations"?

Answer 32

The chicken game in international relations is a scenario where two actors engage in a high-stakes competition, risking a catastrophic outcome if neither backs down.

Question 33

Which short statement is the best description of the democratic peace theory?

Answer 33

The democratic peace theory suggests that democracies are less likely to go to war with each other

Question 34

What person is considered as the architect of the peaceful order that emerged after World War I?

Answer 34

Woodrow Wilson

Question 35

Which person first put forward the idea of democratic peace?

Answer 35

Emmanuel Kant

Question 36

What scholar first put forward the idea that peace is the absence of violence and outlined several kinds of violence?

Answer 36

Johan Galtung

Question 37

Who are the author of the theories of transnationalism and complex interdependence

Answer 37

Robert Keohane and Joseph Nye

Question 38

What is the key idea of the theory of transnationalism?

Answer 38

Non-state actors, such as NGOs and multinational corporations, play an increasingly important role in shaping international relations.

Question 39

What is the most correct statement concerning David Mitrany's functionalist approach towards integration?

Answer 39

Successful integration should be de-politicized and should start with few domains rather then from comprehensive integration unions

Question 40

What is the most correct statement concerning Ernst Haas' functionalist approach towards integration?

Answer 40

Successful integration should be led by politicians and start from one or few domains

Question 41

Which scholar is related to Liberalism

Answer 41

Joseph Nye

Question 42

What figure is NOT related to liberalism

Answer 42

Kenneth Waltz

Question 43

Which of the following statements is the best to describe Marxist approach to international relations

Answer 43

Both domestic politics and international relations are driven by capitalism: systematic profit-making and exploitation

Question 44

What is the key idea of Vladimir Lenin's theory of imperialism?

Answer 44

It represents the highest stage of capitalism, characterized by monopolization of capitalist business, export of capital to colonies, their systematic exploitation and rivalry between imperialist states over the control of colonies

Question 45

What is the key idea of Immanuel Wallerstein's world-system theory?

Answer 45

The world is divided into the core, periphery, and semi-periphery; the periphery is exploited by the core that make profits, extracts raw materials, and exploits cheap labor

Question 46

What is the key idea of Antonio Gramsci's theory of hegemony?

Answer 46

It focuses on the role of cultural and ideological leadership of a ruling class in maintaining its dominance over society.

Question 47

What is the most relevant implication of the catch-up development for international relations?

Answer 47

Semi-periphery states mobilize its resources to rise and challenge the dominance of Western powers.

Question 48

Who of the following scholars is NOT Marxist

Answer 48

Robert Keohane

Question 49

What is the key assumption of postmodernism, as it concerns international relations?

Answer 49

There is no single objective truth, and reality is constructed through language, discourse, and interpretation

Question 50

What statement is most relevant to poststructuralism when it concerns international relations?

Answer 50

International relations can be represented as a text, whose logic, causal assumptions, and binary oppositions should be properly analyzed.

Question 51

How knowledge and power relate according to postmodernism?

Answer 51

Knowledge and power are interrelated, as power structures shape what is considered 'knowledge,' and knowledge legitimates existing power structures.

Question 52

What are binary oppositions, and why are they important for poststructuralist analysis of IR texts?

Answer 52

Binary oppositions are pairs of contrasting concepts or terms, and they are important for poststructuralist analysis of IR texts because they reveal how our understanding of international relations is shaped by dominating meanings that reduce our choice to two options only.

Question 53

What is the role of the state in contemporary international relations according to postmodernism?

Answer 53

The role of the state in contemporary international relations is decentered and fragmented, with non-state actors, such as multinational corporations and non-governmental organizations, playing significant roles in shaping global politics

Question 54

Which of the following scholars does not belong to postmodernism or post structuralist tradition?

Answer 54

Immanuel Kant