Baylis,, Smith and

d Owens: T
The Globa
alization of World Pol itics 6e
Re
evision guiide
mporary mainstream
m
m approac
ches: neo
o-realism aand neo-liberalism
Chapterr 8: Contem

The neoneo
o debate ha
as been a major focu
us in Intern
national Reelations the
eory
sch
holarship in
n the USA for the lasst fifteen to
o twenty ye
ears.

Mo
ore than jusst theories, neo-reali sm and ne
eo-liberalism represeent paradigms or
con
nceptual frrameworks
s that shap
pe individua
als images
s of the woorld and inffluence
ressearch prio
orities and policy deb
bates and choices.
c

Ne
eo-liberalism
m in the ac
cademic w
world refers
s most often to neo-libberal
insstitutionalissm. In the policy
p
world
d, neo-libe
eralism is id
dentified w
with the pro
omotion of
cap
pitalism an
nd Western
n democrattic values and
a institutions.

ational-choice approa
aches and game theo
ory have be
een integraated into neo-realist
Ra
and
d neo-liberral theory to
t explain p
policy choiices and th
he behavioour of state
es in
con
nflict and cooperative
c
e situationss.

Ne
eo-realists and neo-lib
berals stud
dy differentt worlds. Neo-realists
N
s study sec
curity
isssues and are concern
ned with isssues of po
ower and su
urvival. Neeo-liberals study
political econ
nomy and focus
f
on co
ooperation
n and institu
utions.

Ke
en Waltz cla
aims that the
t structu re of the in
nternationa
al system iss the key fa
actor in
sha
aping the behaviour
b
of states. W
Waltzs neo-realism also
a
expannds our vie
ew of
pow
wer and ca
apabilities.

Strructural rea
alists minim
mize the im
mportance of national attributess as determ
minants of
a sstates fore
eign policy behaviour . To these neo-realis
sts, all statees are func
ctionally
sim
milar units, experienc
cing the sam
me constra
aints prese
ented by annarchy.

Strructural rea
alists accept many off the assum
mptions of traditional realism. They
T
believe that force
f
remains an imp
portant and
d effective tool
t
of stattecraft, and
d balance
anism for order
o
in the
e system.
of power is sttill the central mecha

Oxford Universityy Press, 2014.

Baylis,, Smith and

d Owens: T
The Globa
alization of World Pol itics 6e
Re
evision guiide

Josseph Griecco represents a grou p of neo-re

ealists, or modern
m
reaalists, who
o are
crittical of neo
o-liberal ins
stitutionalissts who cla
aim that sta
ates are m
mainly intere
ested in
abssolute gain
ns. Grieco claims tha
at all states
s are intere
ested in booth absolute
e and
rela
ative gainss. How gains are disttributed is an
a importa
ant issue. T
Thus there are two
barriers to intternationall cooperati on: fear off those who
o might noot follow the
e rules,
and
d the relatiive gains of
o others.

Scholars in security
s
stu
udies prese
ent two verrsions of ne
eo-realism
m or modern realism.
Offfensive rea
alists emph
hasize the importanc
ce of relativ
ve power. D
Defensive realists
are
e often con
nfused with
h neo-libera
al institutio
onalists. Th
hey recognnize the costs of war
and
d assume that it usua
ally resultss from irrational force
es in a sociiety. Coope
eration is
posssible, but it is more likely to su
ucceed in relations
r
with
w friendlyy states.

Co
ontemporarry neo-liberalism hass been sha
aped by the
e assumpti ons of com
mmercial,
rep
publican, sociological, and insti tutional lib
beralism.

Co
ommercial and republican libera
alism provide the foundation forr current neo-liberal
thin
nking in Western
W
gov
vernments . These co
ountries pro
omote freee trade and
d
democracy in
n their foreign policy programm
mes.

Ne
eo-liberal in
nstitutionalism, the otther side of
o the neoneo debatee, is rooted
d in the
fun
nctional integration th
heoretical w
work of the
e 1950s an
nd 1960s, aand the complex
inte
erdepende
ence and trransnation al studies literature of
o the 19700s and 198
80s.

Ne
eo-liberal in
nstitutionalists see insstitutions as
a the med
diator and tthe means
s to
ach
hieve coop
peration in the interna
ational sys
stem. Regim
mes and innstitutions help
govvern a com
mpetitive and anarchiic international system, and theey encoura
age, and
at ttimes requ
uire, multila
ateralism a
and cooperration as a means of securing national
n
inte
erests.

Oxford Universityy Press, 2014.

Baylis,, Smith and

d Owens: T
The Globa
alization of World Pol itics 6e
Re
evision guiide

Ne
eo-liberal in
nstitutionalists recogn
nize that co
ooperation
n may be h arder to ac
chieve in
are
eas where leaders pe
erceive the
ey have no
o mutual intterests.

Ne
eo-liberals believe tha
at states co
ooperate to
o achieve absolute
a
ggains, and the
t
gre
eatest obsttacle to coo
operation iis cheating
g or non-c
compliancee by other states.
s

The neoneo
o debate is
s not a deb
bate betwee
en two polar oppositee worldview
ws. They
sha
are an episstemology, focus on similar que
estions, an
nd agree o n a numbe
er of
asssumptions about inte
ernational p
politics. Th
his is an inttra-paradiggm debate..

Ne
eo-liberal in
nstitutionalists and ne
eo-realists study diffe
erent worldds of intern
national
politics. Neo--realists foc
cus on seccurity and military
m
issues. Neo-lliberal
insstitutionalissts focus on
n political e
economy, environme
ental issuess, and hum
man rights
isssues.

Ne
eo-realists explain tha
at all statess must be concerned
d with the aabsolute an
nd relative
gains that ressult from in
nternationa
al agreeme
ents and co
ooperative efforts. Ne
eo-liberal
s concerne
ed about re
elative gain
ns and conssider that all
a will
insstitutionalissts are less
benefit from absolute
a
gains.

Ne
eo-realists are more cautious
c
ab
bout coope
eration and
d remind uss that the world
w
is
still a compettitive place
e where se lf-interest rules.

eo-liberal in
nstitutionalists believe
e that state
es and other actors ccan be pers
suaded to
Ne
coo
operate if they
t
are co
onvinced th
hat all state
es will com
mply with ruules, and that
coo
operation will
w result in absolute
e gains.

Ne
eo-realists think
t
that states
s
are still the principal acto
ors in interrnational po
olitics.
Glo
obalization
n challenge
es some arreas of state authority
y and conttrol.

Glo
obalization
n provides opportunit ies and res
sources for transnatioonal social
mo
ovements that
t
challen
nge the au
uthority of states
s
in va
arious policcy areas. NeoN

Oxford Universityy Press, 2014.

Baylis,, Smith and

d Owens: T
The Globa
alization of World Pol itics 6e
Re
evision guiide
rea
alists are not
n supporttive of any movement that seek
ks to open critical sec
curity
isssues to pub
blic debate.

ee market neo-liberals believe g

on is a pos
sitive forcee. Eventually, all
Fre
globalizatio
sta
ates will be
enefit from the econo mic growth
h promoted
d by the forrces of
glo
obalization.

ome neo-lib
berals belie
eve that sta
ates should intervene
e to promoote capitalis
sm with a
So
human face or
o a marke
et that is more sensitiive to the needs
n
and interests of
o all the
peo
ople. New institutions
s can be ccreated and
d older one
es reformeed to prevent the
une
even flow of capital, promote e
environmen
ntal sustain
nability, an d protect the rights
of ccitizens.

Oxford Universityy Press, 2014.