Realism is one of the dominant schools of thought in international relations theory, theoretically formalizing the Realpolitik statesmanship of early modern Europe. Although a highly diverse body of thought, it is unified by the belief that world politics is always and necessarily a field of conflict among actors pursuing wealth and power. The theories of realism are contrasted by the cooperative ideals of liberalism in international relations.
Realists are divided into three classes based on their view of the essential causes of interstate conflict. Classical realists believe it follows from human nature; neorealists attribute it to the dynamics of the anarchic state system; neoclassical realists believe it results from both, in combination with domestic politics. Neorealists are also divided between defensive and offensive realism. Realists trace the history of their ideas back through classical antiquity, beginning with Thucydides.
Realism entails a spectrum of ideas, which tend to revolve around several central propositions, such as:
State-centrism: states are the central actors in international politics, rather than leaders or international organizations;
Anarchy: the international political system is anarchic, as there is no supranational authority to enforce rules;
Rationality and/or egoism: states act in their rational self-interest within the international system; and
Power: states desire power to ensure self-preservation.
Realism is often associated with realpolitik, as both deal with the pursuit, possession, and application of power. Realpolitik, however, is an older prescriptive guideline limited to policy-making, while realism is a wider theoretical and methodological paradigm to describe, explain, and predict events in international relations. As an academic pursuit, realism is not necessarily tied to ideology; it does not favor any particular moral philosophy, nor does it consider ideology to be a major factor in the behavior of nations. However, realists are generally critical of liberal foreign policy.
This page is automatically generated and may contain information that is not correct, complete, up-to-date, or relevant to your search query. The same applies to every other page on this website. Please make sure to verify the information with EPFL's official sources.
In international relations, the security dilemma (also referred to as the spiral model) is when the increase in one state's security (such as increasing its military strength) leads other states to fear for their own security (because they do not know if the security-increasing state intends to use its growing military for offensive purposes). Consequently, security-increasing measures can lead to tensions, escalation or conflict with one or more other parties, producing an outcome which no party truly desires; a political instance of the prisoner's dilemma.
International relations theory is the study of international relations (IR) from a theoretical perspective. It seeks to explain behaviors and outcomes in international politics. The four most prominent schools of thought are realism, liberalism, constructivism, and rational choice. Whereas realism and liberalism make broad and specific predictions about international relations, constructivism and rational choice are methodological approaches that focus on certain types of social explanation for phenomena.
Idealism in the foreign policy context holds that a nation-state should make its internal political philosophy the goal of its conduct and rhetoric in international affairs. For example, an idealist might believe that ending poverty at home should be coupled with tackling poverty abroad. Both within and outside of the United States, American president Woodrow Wilson is widely considered an early advocate of idealism and codifier of its practical meaning; specific actions cited include the issuing of the famous "Fourteen Points".
L'objectif du cours est de comprendre ces phénomènes à la fois récurrents et déstabilisateurs que constituent les affaires, les scandales et les controverses, ce qui revient à s'intéresser aux mobilis
Cet enseignement aborde les grands enjeux des relations internationales de la Suisse aux XIXe et XXe siècles. Les étudiant·e·s apprendront à analyser de manière critique des documents d'époque (source
Covers the EPFL admission process for Master's programs, including criteria for acceptance and modalities of enrollment.
Over the last decades, a large understanding has been gained on the elastic properties of rocks. Rocks are, however, porous materials, which properties depend on both response of the bulk material and of the pores. Because in that case both the applied ext ...
Amer Geophysical Union2017
,
This article investigates the TED digital infrastructure for translating Science and Technology projects. Specifically, we seek to investigate the TED infrastructures generative mechanisms and their relation to valuation mechanisms and practices. The resea ...
Academy of Management2018
, , ,
Several strategies for simulating the ultrafast dynamics of molecules induced by interactions with electromagnetic fields are presented. After a brief overview of the theory of molecule-field interaction, we present several representative examples of quant ...