International Relations and Foreign Policy

International relations and foreign policy research examines how states, international organizations, and non-state actors interact across borders — why wars start or are avoided, how cooperation emerges despite competing interests, and what gives some actors enduring influence over others. Central to the work are questions about power: whether it operates through military capacity and economic leverage, or through subtler means like setting the norms and rules that others come to accept as legitimate. Scholars debate whether institutions such as the United Nations or the World Trade Organization genuinely constrain state behavior or simply reflect the preferences of the most powerful actors, and whether the current international order is fragmenting under the pressure of rising powers and eroding multilateral commitments. Active research is tracking how shifting alliances, great-power competition, and new arenas like cyberspace and climate governance are testing the durability of the legal frameworks and diplomatic practices built after World War II.

Works

77,906

Total citations

758,316

Keywords

PowerInternational InstitutionsGlobal GovernanceNormsSoft PowerSecurity Dilemma