Deck 4: Thinking Theoretically

Question 1

Political scientists who claim to view the world as it is, not as it ought to be, are often called

A) pluralists or liberals.
B) utopians.
C) realists.
D) idealists.

Answer 1

realists.

Question 2

Political scientists who claim to view the world in terms of a multiplicity of different kinds of actors engaged in transactions are called

A) optimists.
B) economic structuralists.
C) liberals.
D) realists.

Answer 2

liberals.

Question 3

Thomas Hobbes was concerned with the security implications of

A) anarchy.
B) political equality.
C) assuring due process of law.
D) global civil society.

Answer 3

anarchy.

Question 4

Realists tend to see world politics as a result of the combination of

A) power, democracy, and human nature.
B) human nature, conflict and power, and the structure of the state.
C) human nature, ethics, and the characteristics of political organization.
D) human nature, the characteristics of states, and the distribution of power or structure of the international system.

Question 5

Liberals tend to

A) dispute the claim that to understand international relations or world politics one needs only to focus on the state.
B) see the state as a unitary, rational actor.
C) downplay the importance of international organizations.
D) see international organizations only as arenas in which states compete with each other.

Question 6

Realists believe we must view international relations in terms of

A) global politics.
B) global government.
C) interstate government.
D) the world as it is.

Question 7

Structural realists view the world in terms of

A) economic structures of dominance.
B) realist structures of dominance.
C) distribution of power.
D) economic interdependence.

Question 8

Liberalism is synonymous with

A) feminism.
B) pluralism.
C) egocentrism.
D) structuralism.

Question 9

Liberalism has been influenced by

A) the Stoics.
B) writings on interest groups.
C) rationalism.
D) all of the above.

Question 10

Neoliberals believe one must take into account

A) the state as an enduring actor.
B) essentially only NGOs.
C) essentially only international organizations.
D) economic structuralist concepts.

Question 11

Global civil society refers to

A) rule of international law.
B) voluntary institutions.
C) networks.
D) all of the above.

Question 12

The Third World is sometimes also referred to as the

A) North.
B) East.
C) South.
D) West.

Question 13

Causal analysis would include consideration of

A) independent variables.
B) dependent variables.
C) intervening variables.
D) all of the above.

Question 14

A focus on mechanisms of domination in a capitalist world order is most closely associated with

A) realism.
B) pluralism or liberalism.
C) economic structuralism.
D) social constructivism.

Question 15

Which of the following are often associated with economic structuralism?

A) Marxists
B) Paretoists
C) Smithists
D) liberals

Question 16

For Marxists, the term ?structure? typically means

A) either a parliamentary or presidential form of government.
B) global class formations.
C) federalism.
D) globalization.

Question 17

Which of the following terms is not associated with economic structuralism?

A) periphery
B) South
C) Third World
D) constructivism

Question 18

The comprador class refers to

A) local exploitative capitalists in a Third World country.
B) businessmen who buy companies overseas.
C) a type or set of goods that are comparable in price.
D) none of the above.

Question 19

Those in the English School tend to see international politics in terms of

A) class struggle conducted on a global scale.
B) interactions within a worldwide or global society.
C) global ideals that ultimately will displace realist balance-of-power understandings.
D) an almost mechanical system of states.

Question 20

Which of the following writers is not associated with the English School?

A) Karl Marx
B) Thomas Hobbes
C) Hugo Grotius
D) Immanuel Kant

Question 21

Which of the following is not emphasized in the English School?

A) global civil society
B) international law
C) class struggle
D) moral or ethical principles

Question 22

That states don?t simply react to their environment, but dynamically engage it-that anarchy in international politics is what states make of it-is a view most closely associated with

A) economic structuralism.
B) feminism.
C) both realism and pluralism or liberalism.
D) social constructivism.

Question 23

Constructivists argue

A) balance of power is an inevitable aspect of international relations.
B) class struggle is critical in understanding world politics.
C) ideas are not important in understanding international relations.
D) none of the above.

Question 24

Positivism attempts to

A) separate facts from values.
B) define and operationalize concepts into measurable variables.
C) test truth claims in the form of hypotheses.
D) none of the above

Question 25

Some critical theorists argue

A) strict methodological criteria are impossible.
B) beliefs held by theorists bias their work.
C) postmodernist scholarship is not worthwhile.
D) none of the above.

Question 26

Feminism involves

A) using gender as a category of analysis, focusing on differences between feminine and masculine understandings and actions.
B) an understanding of women making decisions in a highly rational way, often cold to human concerns.
C) a view of women as typically exhibiting assertive, often aggressive behavior.
D) a perspective that sees women as customarily assuming leadership positions in society.

Question 27

According to feminists, gender

A) permeates social life.
B) has a largely unnoticed effect on the actions of states.
C) includes conceptions of masculinity.
D) all of the above

Question 28

Normative theory is concerned with

A) what is in the real world.
B) common or average state behavior over time.
C) what ought to be.
D) none of the above.

Question 29

Normative theorists recognize that

A) their theories are ignored by statesmen.
B) they have no real place in the literature on international relations.
C) wars are never just.
D) choice is constrained by circumstance.

Question 30

Individuals and small groups, state and society, and international systems are

A) levels of analysis.
B) economic structuralist categories.
C) pluralist or liberal references of multiple actors.
D) social constructivist categories.

Question 31

A theory is an intellectual construct that helps make the world more intelligible by offering causal explanations.

Question 32

Public opinion is not included in any of the levels of analysis.

Question 33

Feminist writers have made us more aware of how gender -both feminine and masculine constructions-affect the way we understand international relations and world politics.

Question 34

Feminist theorists may share an affinity with social constructivism.

Question 35

Independent (or intervening) variables that can be used to explain foreign policy (the dependent variable) can be found at different levels of analysis.

Question 36

Testing a hypothesis always requires the use of statistical or quantitative data.

Question 37

Constructivism and social constructivism are very different approaches to understanding world politics.

Question 38

Gender is a set of socially and culturally constructed characteristics.

Question 39

Normative theory is concerned with ?what is.?

Question 40

Critical theory is critical of positivism as an approach to knowledge.

Question 41

How do realists, liberals or pluralists, and economic structuralists differ on their perspective of the world?

Question 42

What is theory and why should you care?

Question 43

Distinguish between the terms ʺrealismʺ and ʺliberalism.ʺ Which of these perspectives is more
helpful in understanding contemporary world politics? Why?

Question 44

Write an essay in which you describe how one can apply the levels of analysis to present -day issues in international relations or world politics.

Question 45

Discuss how feminist scholars tend to differ from realists in understanding national and international security.

Question 46

Discuss how theories can make the world around us more intelligible, explaining how the world works or predicting the recurring phenomena we observe in international relations or world politics.

Question 47

What new insights do scholars in the English School bring to the study of international relations and world politics?

Question 48

How does the concept of a ʺsocietyʺ of states and non-state actors differ from the concept of a
ʺsystemʺ of states? Which concept (society or system) gives us the better understanding of international relations or world politics? Why?

Question 49

Which perspective on the study of international relations do you prefer-realism, pluralism or liberalism, economic structuralism, social constructivism, feminism, or English School? Why?