{"id":342639,"date":"2025-07-10T21:27:47","date_gmt":"2025-07-10T15:57:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/?p=342639"},"modified":"2025-07-16T16:59:38","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T11:29:38","slug":"psir-power-50-day-31-capsule-approaches-to-ir-practice-qs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/psir-power-50-day-31-capsule-approaches-to-ir-practice-qs\/","title":{"rendered":"PSIR Power 50 \u2013 Day 31 Capsule:\u00a0 Approaches to IR+ Practice Qs"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Download the PDF<\/a><\/p>\n

Hello aspirants,<\/p>\n

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Today\u2019s revision capsule of PSIR optional preparation covers Approaches to \u00a0International Relations.<\/strong> There are four 20-markers, twelve 15-markers, and nie 10-markers<\/strong> from this topic in the last 12 years.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Origins of the Idea<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Year<\/strong><\/td>\nTerm \/ Author<\/strong><\/td>\nKey Point<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1650s<\/td>\nRichard Zouche<\/strong> \u2013 inter gentes<\/em><\/td>\nEarly \u201claw of nations\u201d.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1780s<\/td>\nJeremy Bentham<\/strong> \u2013 \u201cInternational\u201d<\/td>\nCoined the English word.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1919<\/td>\nAberystwyth Chair<\/strong> (Alfred Zimmern<\/strong>)<\/td>\nFirst university chair in IR.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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IR as Condition vs Discipline<\/strong><\/p>\n

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  • Quincy Wright<\/strong>:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
      \n
    • Condition<\/em> \u2192 real-world political, economic, cultural, military dealings among sovereign states & other actors.<\/li>\n
    • Discipline<\/em> \u2192 systematic, scientific study of those dealings.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Early scepticism: Palmer & Perkins<\/strong> call IR a \u201cloose bundle\u201d; Zimmern<\/strong> \u201cno distinct framework.\u201d<\/p>\n

      Post-WW II shift: E.H. Carr<\/strong>, Hans Morgenthau<\/strong> inject critical, analytical rigour \u2192 IR becomes a bona-fide academic field.<\/p>\n

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      Realism: \u00a0Generations<\/strong><\/p>\n

      \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
      Branch<\/strong><\/td>\nCore Claim<\/strong><\/td>\nPrime Names<\/strong><\/td>\nSignature Texts \/ Concepts<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      Classical Realism<\/strong><\/td>\nPower rooted in human nature<\/em> (egoism, domination).<\/td>\nThucydides<\/strong>, Kautilya<\/strong>, Machiavelli<\/strong>, Hobbes<\/strong>, E.H. Carr<\/strong>, Hans Morgenthau<\/strong>, Niebuhr<\/strong><\/td>\nMelian Dialogue<\/em>; Arthashastra<\/strong>; \u201cends justify means\u201d ; Leviathan<\/em>; Twenty Years\u2019 Crisis<\/em>; Politics Among Nations<\/em> (6 principles).<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      Structural \/ Neo-Realism<\/strong><\/td>\nAnarchic structure<\/em> of system compels states to seek security.<\/td>\nKenneth Waltz<\/strong> (Theory of International Politics<\/em>)<\/td>\nAnarchy, relative gains, security dilemma, bipolar stability.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      Defensive Realism<\/strong><\/td>\nStates seek enough<\/em> power for security; over-accumulation backfires.<\/td>\nWaltz, Jack Snyder<\/strong>, Stephen Van Evera<\/strong><\/td>\nCostly conquest, balancing.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      Offensive Realism<\/strong><\/td>\nBest path to survival = maximise power, pursue (regional) hegemony.<\/td>\nJohn Mearsheimer<\/strong><\/td>\n\u201cBack-passing, bait-and-bleed, bloodletting\u201d; China\u2019s rise; Thucydides Trap; critique of \u2018peaceful rise\u2019.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      Strategic Realism<\/strong><\/td>\nFocus on rational coercion & bargaining, not morality.<\/td>\nThomas Schelling<\/strong> (Strategy of Conflict<\/em>, Arms & Influence<\/em>)<\/td>\nGame theory, deterrence, brute force vs coercion, \u201cdiplomacy of violence\u201d.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      Neo-classical Realism<\/strong><\/td>\nSystem + domestic intervening variables<\/em> (leaders\u2019 perceptions, state-society, state capacity).<\/td>\nGideon Rose<\/strong>, Randall Schweller<\/strong>, Lobell\u2013Ripsman\u2013Taliaferro<\/strong>, Stephen Walt<\/strong><\/td>\nStatus-quo vs revisionist states, extraction capacity, perception of power.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

      \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Realist Keywords<\/strong><\/p>\n