This book moves scholarly debates beyond the old question of whether or not international institutions matter in order to examine how they matter, even in a world of power politics. Power politics and international institutions are often studied as two separate domains, but this is in need of rethinking because today most states strategically use institutions to further their interests. Anders Wivel, T.V. Paul, and the international group of contributing authors update our understanding of how institutions are viewed among the major theoretical paradigms in international relations, and they seek to bridge the divides. Empirical chapters examine specific institutions in practice, including the United Nations, International Atomic Energy Agency, and the European Union. The book also points the way to future research. International Institutions and Power Politics provides insights for both international relations theory and practical matters of foreign affairs, and it will be essential reading for all international relations scholars and advanced students.
Part I: IntroductionChapter 1: Exploring International Institutions and Power Politics Anders Wivel and T.V. PaulPart II: Theorizing Power Politics and International InstitutionsChapter 2: Realist Institutionalism and the Institutional Mechanisms of Power Politics J. Samuel Barkin and Patricia A. WeitsmanChapter 3: A Neoclassical Realist Explanation of International Institutions Norrin M. RipsmanChapter 4: Pyrrhic Victory: A World of Liberal Institutions, Teeming with Tensions Georg SorensenChapter 5: Making Power Politics Great Again? Discursive Institutionalism and the Political Economy of World Politics after Globalization Ben RosamondPart III: The Processes of Power Politics and International InstitutionsChapter 6: Maximizing Security through International Institutions: Soft-Balancing Strategies Reconsidered Anders Wivel and T.V. Paul Chapter 7: The Power in Opacity: Rethinking Information in International Organizations Austin Carson and Alexander ThompsonChapter 8: Revisionists, Networks, and the Liberal Institutional Order Stacie GoddardPart IV: The Power Politics of Global and Regional InstitutionsChapter 9: Structural Modifiers, the Non-Proliferation Treaty Regime, and Fostering a Less Competitive International Environment Steven E. Lobell and Brad NicholsonChapter 10: The Power Politics of United Nations Peace Operations Sarah-Myriam Martin-Brule, Lou Pingeot, and Vincent PouliotChapter 11: Variable Geometry: Power and Institutions in the European Union John A. Hall and Frederic MerandPart V: ConclusionsChapter 12: The Dynamic Relations between Power Politics and Institutionalization: A Neo-Gramscian Intervention Annette Freyberg-InanChapter 13: International Order and Power Politics Daniel H. NexonReferences List of Contributors Index
