3/17/2021

Definitions of International Relations

 Study of the relations of states with each other and
with international organizations and certain
subnational entities (e.g., bureaucracies and
political parties).
 It is related to a number of other academic
disciplines, including political science, geography,
history, economics, law, sociology, psychology, and
philosophy.
 The field emerged at the beginning of the 20th
century largely in the West and particularly in the
U.S. as that country grew in power and influence.

Definitions of International Relations

 The study of international relations has always been
heavily influenced by normative considerations,
such as the goal of reducing armed conflict and
increasing international cooperation.
 At the beginning of the 21st century, research
focused on issues such as terrorism, religious and
ethnic conflict, the emergence of substate and non
state entities, the spread of weapons of mass
destruction and efforts to counter nuclear
proliferation, and the development of international
institutions.(Britannica Concise Encyclopedia)

1
 3/17/2021

Definitions of International Relations

 The discipline that studies interactions between
and among states, and more broadly, the workings
of the international system.
 It can be conceived of either as a multidisciplinary
field, gathering the international aspects of
politics, economics, history, law, and sociology, or
as a meta-discipline, focusing on the systemic
structures and patterns of interaction of the human
species taken as a whole.
 The discipline acquired its own identity after the
First World War.

Definitions of International Relations

 Its principal branches additional to theory include
international political economy, international organization,
foreign policy-making, strategic (or security) studies, and,
more arguably, peace research.
 If area studies is added to these, the label international
studies becomes more appropriate. When spelled wholly in
lower case, the term refers to the totality of interactions
within the international system.
 The emphasis is often on relations between states, though
other collective actors such as multinational corporations,
transnational interest groups, and international
organizations also play an important role.(Oxford
Dictionary of Politics)

2
 3/17/2021

Definitions of International Relations

 International relations, study of the relations among states and other
political and economic units in the international system.
 The areas of study within the field of international relations include
diplomacy and diplomatic history, international law, international
organizations, international finance and economics, and
communications, among others.
 In addition, increased attention has been paid in recent years to
developing a more scientific understanding of the international system.
 Aspects of international relations have been studied as early as the time
of the ancient Greek historian Thucydides.
 As a separate and definable discipline, however, it dates from the early
20th cent., when the first organized efforts were made to find
alternatives to wars in nation-state international behavior.

Definitions of International Relations

 Two schools of thought quickly developed. One looks to
strengthened international law and international
organizations to preserve peace; the other emphasizes that
nations will always use their power to achieve goals and sees
the key to peace in a balance of power among competing
states.
 With increased importance attached to a theoretical
understanding of the whole international system, there has
been a growing use of concepts and modes of analysis
developed in the natural sciences to improve the verifiability
and applicability of theories.
 In many of the leading U.S. universities there are both
research institutes and schools of international relations.
See diplomatic service United Nations; European Union.

3
 3/17/2021

Definitions of International Relations

 Trevor Taylor (1979) defines International
Relations as "a discipline, which tries to
explain political activities across state
boundaries".
 According to Ola, Joseph (1999),
"International relations are the study of all
forms of interactions that exist between
members of separate entities or nations
within the international system".

Definitions of International Relations

 As Stanley Hoffman writes
“the discipline of international relations is concerned with
the factors and the activities which affect the external
policies and power of the basic units into which the world is
divided.”
 Thus, international relations is concerned with all the
exchange transactions, contacts, flow of information and
the resulting behavioral responses between and among
separate organized societies.
 International relations could encompass many different
activities social, economic, religious and so forth in so far as
they have implications for international political relations.

4
 3/17/2021

Definitions of International Relations

 Seymon Brown (1988) thus defines
international relations as “The investigating
and study of patterns of action and “reactions
among sovereign states as represented by
their governing elites.”
 Some scholars see power as the key to
International politics. Thus, they define
International relations as the subject that
deals with those relations among nations,
which involve power status.

Definitions of International Relations

 In the words of Karl Wolfgang Deutsch (1968),

 “An introduction to the study of international

relations in our time is an introduction to the art
and science of the survival of mankind. If
civilization is killed in the nearest future, it will
not be killed by famine or plague, but by foreign
policy and international relations.”

5
 3/17/2021

Nature of International Relations

 International Relations, like the world community itself are
in transition.
 In a rapidly changing and increasingly complex world, it
encompasses much more than relations among nation states
and international organization and groups.
 It includes a variety of transitional relationships at various
levels, above and below the level of the nation states.
 International relations are a multidisciplinary field
gathering together the international aspects of politics,
economics, geography, history, law, sociology, psychology ,
philosophy and cultural studies . It is a meta-discipline.

Scope of International Relations

 It is known by now that international relations encompass a myriad of
discipline. Attempts to structure and intellectualize it have often been
thematically and analytically confined to boundaries determined by
data.
 The core concepts of international relations are International
Organization, International Law, Foreign Policy, International Conflict,
International Economic Relations and Military Thought and Strategy.
 International/Regional Security, Strategic Studies, International
Political Economy, Conflict/War and Peace Studies, Globalization,
International Regimes.
 Moreover it covers , state sovereignty, ecological sustainability,
nuclear proliferation, nationalism, economic development, terrorism,
organized crime, human security, foreign interventionism and human
rights.
 These have been grounded in various schools of thought (or
traditions) notably Realism and Idealism.