Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Arab Spring Uprisings In Geopolitical Context, Jake Alan Rutledge

Dissertations and Theses

The question of why revolts, civil wars, and social unrest occur is central in the field of political science. This paper asks that question in the specific context of the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings as a revolutionary wave. Many theories of revolution and social unrest locate their causes in the internal characteristics of the country where they take place, such as the country's demographics or level of economic development. This paper examines the external situation of a country: its relationships with other states and the international community. This paper examines eighteen Arab countries in the Middle East and North Africa …

The Impetus Of International Security In European Integration: The Nature Of Eu Common Security And Defense Policy, Osman Goktug Tanrikulu

Dissertations and Theses

This study explores the complicated relationship between security considerations and the European integration process. The research uncovers specific security factors that have shaped the EU integration process. Applying policy alignment and collective efforts for governance, this study offers a methodological improvement to the conventional status quo satisfaction concept within power transition theory.

Findings indicate that external militarized actions targeting European nations only occasionally disrupted integration in the short term. Instead, inner coordination among member states vis-à-vis external actors, promoted integration. During the early stages of integration, alignment with the EU collective was crucial, while aligning with regional leader Germany became …

Global Climate Governance: Does Bilateral Cooperation Matter?, Nataliya Stranadko

Dissertations and Theses

The international relations literature looks at the climate regime from a perspective of power distribution, state interests, institutions, and multilateral negotiations. The international law literature focuses on legal analysis and design of international climate agreements. The transnational governance literature examines the participation of transnational actors at different levels of governance. However, each of these disciplines overlooks the trend in bilateral cooperation between national and subnational actors in a multilateral setting, which arises as part of the construction of the international regime. Why do national and subnational public actors in global climate governance cooperate bilaterally when multilateral cooperation already exists? What …

Comparative Foreign Aid Analysis: Replacing The Competition Between Donors With Complementary Aid Policies, Emily Melinda Baker

Dissertations and Theses

Foreign Aid has been a topic of study for decades with few concrete findings on whether it is effective or not. Contemporary foreign aid is divided into two camps: the West and China, with little cooperation and plenty of politics between them. In this thesis I analyze the effectiveness of Western aid and Chinese aid in twelve sub-Saharan African states using annual HDI scores and GDP. I find there is a strong correlation between Western aid and the development measures used as well as cases where Chinese aid is more effective than Western aid. With these findings, I argue that …

Same Game, Different Rules: Pointillist Imperialism And The New Cartography Of Great Power Competition, Andrew Jesse Shaughnessy

Dissertations and Theses

For centuries, "Great Powers" competed for global hegemony not only through building up military strength and amassing wealth, but through the formal acquisition of distant lands, conquered and folded into their borders. Today, core states continue to vie for global power, but no longer exert formal control or sovereignty over less powerful states. So how has the nature of great power competition in peripheral states changed? Most scholars studying great power competition measure power in terms of military and economic resources, often failing to account for a third, crucial dimension in international power politics: the impact of distributed networks of …

Trump's Legacy In The Middle East: Strategic Shift And The Geopolitics Of American Foreign Policy In The Region, Bilel Kriaa

Dissertations and Theses

The last six months of the Trump administration witnessed interesting developments regarding its legacy in the Middle East. The normalization of ties between four Arab states and Israel constituted major breakthroughs not only in the regional inter-state relations but also for the American foreign policy in the region.

In this context, this thesis offers insights into how to understand and evaluate the administration's approach towards these developments. Based on systematic and empirical research, I analyze a corpus comprised of Trump-era foreign policy documents regarding the Iranian and Israeli-Palestinian questions. I find, firstly, that the Trump administration pursued a strategic shift …

Arctic Security: The Race For The Arctic Through The Prism Of International Relations Theory, Michael Gregory Morgan Trujillo

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of the thesis is to examine future international relations in the Arctic as a theoretical exercise based on realism and liberalism. As the ice cap shrinks, and the region's environment changes, developing costs will decrease allowing for resource-extraction while new transit routes emerge. The opportunities to develop resources and ship via the Arctic are economic and strategically valuable, altering the geopolitics of the region. This thesis seeks to explore how resource development and new transit routes will affect regional politics through the lens of two theories. The two theoretical approaches will examine states and actors' interests and possible …

Building Climate Empire: Power, Authority, And Knowledge Within Pacific Islands Climate Change Diplomacy And Governance Networks, Ashlie Denée Denton

Dissertations and Theses

Transnational networks are growing in prevalence and importance as states, nongovernmental, and intergovernmental organizations seek to meet climate change goals; yet, the organizations in these networks struggle between the global, technical and local, contextual sources of power, authority, and knowledge used to influence decision-making and governance. This dissertation analyzes these contestations in Pacific Islands climate change diplomacy and governance efforts by asking: i) What do power relations look like among the Pacific Islands' networked organizations? ii) To what authority do organizations appeal to access sources of power? iii) What sources of knowledge are produced and reproduced by these organizations? and …

Using The Syrian Civil War To Measure Hierarchy: Regional Power Transition In The Middle East, Eric Michael Clary

Dissertations and Theses

In 2018, the Syrian Civil War will enter into its ninth year of conflict. From an international relations perspective there are few, if any, studies on state actors in regional sub-state systems. What can an intrastate conflict teach us about future dynamics of the regional interstate hierarchy? It is worthwhile to examine The Syrian Civil War for three reasons. First, Syria lies in the heart of the Middle East lending proximity to regional actors. Second, the breakdown of order in Syria represents a microcosm of the global anarchic environment. Third, Syrian Civil War is an intrastate war that encapsulates both …

On The Poverty, Rise, And Demise Of International Criminal Law, Tiphaine Dickson

Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation in four essays critically examines the emergence of international criminal courts: their international political underpinnings, context, and the impact of their political production in relation to liberal legalism, liberal political theory, and history. The essays conceive of international criminal legal bodies both as political projects at their inception and as institutions that deny their own political provenance. The work is primarily one of political theory at the intersection of history, international relations, international criminal law, and the politics of memory. The first essay questions Nuremberg's legacy on the United States' exceptionalist view of international law and its deviant …

The Europeanization Of Political Parties: A Study Of Political Parties In Poland 2009-2014, Dennis Jan Blew

Dissertations and Theses

On May 1^st 2004, Poland entered the European Union (EU), introducing new variables into the domestic politics of the Polish Republic. Since gaining its independence from Soviet control in 1989, Poland’s political landscape can be described as a dynamic and ever changing force towards democratic maturation. With the accession of Poland to the EU, questions of European integration and Europeanization have arisen, most specifically with how these two processes effect and shape the behaviors of domestic political actors.

With Poland entering its second decade of EU membership, this study attempts to explain how, and if, further European integration has …

Nationalism In United States Foreign Policy In The Post 9/11 Era, Chris W. Baum

Dissertations and Theses

One year after the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, the administration of President George W. Bush introduced a revolutionary foreign policy strategy--the Bush Doctrine. Proponents of this strategy advocated the use of American 'hard power' as a tool to promote freedom and democracy, beginning with the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. Opponents of the doctrine saw it as dangerously nationalistic, with the potential to entangle the United States in a myriad of protracted international conflicts. This thesis will identify aspects of nationalism within post-9/11 American foreign policy and illuminate the incompatibility of nationalism and the fundamental tenets of conflict …

The Impact Of Economic Integration Within The European Union As A Factor In Conflict Transformation And Peace-Building, John Umo Ette

Dissertations and Theses

This study examines economic integration within the European Union (EU) as a factor in conflict transformation and peace-building. European responses to causes of frequent conflicts and wars after the end of WWII focused on the search for peace, economic cooperation and prosperity. This thesis will focus on three elements: economic interdependence, the expansion of the free market, and economic integration. In-depth examination of these factors reveals that economic interdependence or the exchange of goods and services across inter-state and international boundaries only, is not sufficient to bring peace among states. Economic inter-dependence may reduce the impact of war, but cannot …

A Dissatisfied Partner: A Conflict - Integration Analysis Of Britain's Membership In The European Union, Osman Goktug Tanrikulu

Dissertations and Theses

Since 2009, the European Union has faced the worst economic crisis of its history. Due to the devastating impact of the Eurozone crisis on their economies, European countries realized the need to deepen the integration. Without a fiscal union, the Monetary Union would always be prone to economic crises. However, the efforts to reinforce the Union’s economy have been hampered by the UK due to its obsession with national sovereignty and lack of European ideals. In opposing further integration, the UK officials have started to speak out about the probability of leaving the EU.

The purpose of this paper is …

The Strategic Effects Of Counterinsurgency Operations At Religious Sites: Lessons From India, Thailand, And Israel, Timothy L. Christopher

Dissertations and Theses

With the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center buildings, the intersection of religious ideals in war has been at the forefront of the American discussion on war and conflict. The New York attacks were followed by the U.S. invasions of Afghanistan in October of 2001 in an attempt to destroy the religious government of the Taliban and capture the Islamic terrorist leader Osama bin Laden, and then followed by the 2003 invasion of Iraq, both in an attempt to fight terrorism and religious extremism. In both instances, American forces became embroiled in counterinsurgency operations against insurgent fighters who …

Here, We Are Walking On A Clothesline: Statelessness And Human (In)Security Among Burmese Women Political Exiles Living In Thailand, Elizabeth Hooker

Dissertations and Theses

An estimated twelve million people worldwide are stateless, or living without the legal bond of citizenship or nationality with any state, and consequently face barriers to employment, property ownership, education, health care, customary legal rights, and national and international protection. More than one-quarter of the world's stateless people live in Thailand. This feminist ethnography explores the impact of statelessness on the everyday lives of Burmese women political exiles living in Thailand through the paradigm of human security and its six indicators: food, economic, personal, political, health, and community security. The research reveals that exclusion from national and international legal protections …

A Strategic Model For Ingo Accountability Systems, Sarah Elizabeth Wardwell

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis reconstructs the concept of International Non-Governmental Organization (INGO) accountability to beneficiaries through the development of a strategic model for INGO accountability to beneficiaries. It works through the history and arguments surrounding the rise of the debate around whether INGOs should be held accountable to their beneficiary populations. Unique definitions are developed for the terms and concepts related to this topic and a framework for understanding the strategic model for INGO accountability to beneficiaries is outlined: Accountable to whom? Accountable for what? Accountable how? A practical example of an internal assessment for measuring an INGO's accountability to beneficiaries is …

'Conflict Analysis:' Exploring The Role Of Kuwait In Mediation In The Middle East, Abdullah R. Al Saleh

Dissertations and Theses

The Middle East is a large geographical area, and while people think of it as a homogeneous area in terms of language and culture, the region IS actually more of a melting pot of ethnic, religious, racial and linguistic groups. Understanding the distinctions between these groups is of paramount importance to understanding the region. Historical rivalries between some groups, for example, Sunni and Shia Muslims, go back hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years. Yet, people continue with life. How do countries continue to deal with each other when there are open, unsettled questions, such as boundaries or control of islands? Is …

A Cross-National Study Of Attitudes And Group Labeling: Multinational Corporation (Mnc) Workers In Canada, Brazil, And West Germany, Tobias Albert Ten Eyck

Dissertations and Theses

Many studies concerning multinational corporations (MNCs) are replete with theoretical models and case studies that treat MNCs as stand-alone entities. Very little time and effort is given to understanding the context in which MNCs operate. This context includes not only the fact that MNCs transcend national boundaries (political as well as geographical), but also the meaning of work and being part of a multinational work force for those employed within MNCs. This thesis is an effort to elucidate how the political/societal/cultural contexts of different host countries affect the attitudes of those workers most directly involved with foreign-owned MNCs. By shifting …

Corporatism In American Foreign Policy Toward Germany Between The Wars, 1921-1936, William R. Martin

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis is an investigation of how United States foreign policy was made in the context of German-American relations in the period between the two world wars. The problem under investigation is whether the United States was using a corporatist approach in dealing with the problems of Germany and ultimately Europe and whether the corporatist model is a good one for analyzing foreign policy development during this period. Corporatism, as it is used in this thesis, is defined as an organizational form which recognizes privately organized functional groups outside the United States government, which collaborate with the government to share …

An Analysis Of Us/Soviet Arms Control: Adding A Subsystem Perspective, Peter Millard Olson

Dissertations and Theses

Analyses of US/Soviet arms control have usually focused on domestic variables to explain US/Soviet arms control behavior. Partly because the number of negotiating parties is only two, there is a propensity to focus on the bilateral relationship of the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective domestic political situations. Only superficial attention has usually been given to international systems variables that may well influence the domestic political situation and arms control policy.

This thesis broadens the explanatory scope of US/Soviet arms control by showing how the political environment of a trilateral relationship (a subsystem that includes the West …

American Foreign Policy: The Utility Of Force As An Influence, Bargaining, Or Coercive Force In The Caribbean Basin, Susan M. Marandas

Dissertations and Theses

Throughout history states have pursued both cooperative and power-oriented strategies. Moralists and realists have long questioned the appropriateness of using force to gain state objectives. Recent analysts have stressed that states have a moral duty to manage international uncertainty in the best interests of their citizens. While this might involve utilizing both power-seeking and order-seeking strategies, it has been suggested that pursuing order-seeking strategies could help alleviate international uncertainty.

An historical survey, as well as recent case studies in Grenada and Nicaragua, indicate that the United States often has relied upon military strategies in the Caribbean Basin. The United States …

Hugo Grotius And The Liberal Tradition, Karen Diane Csajko

Dissertations and Theses

One approach in contemporary international relations theory is the moralist position. Most moralists argue that obligations which an individual has toward the state and toward persons qua fellow citizens should not override the obligations which every individual has toward other persons qua members of humanity. Essential to a moralist approach is the idea that every individual shares some feature, such as rights, which is universal to all men and incontrovertible by any body. Many moralists base their theory upon the thought of Hugo Grotius, equating Grotius ' s thought with their own moralist approach.

This thesis argues that Grotius does …

Egypt And The Soviet Union, 1953-1970, John W. Copp

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study is to describe and analyze in detail the many aspects of the Soviet-Egyptian friendship as it developed from 1953 to 1970. The relationship between the two is extremely important because it provides insight into the roles of both Egypt and the Soviet Union in both the history of the Middle East and in world politics. The period from 1953 to 1970 is key in understanding the relationship between the two states because it is the period of the genesis of the relationship and a period in which both nations went through marked changes in both …

United States Policy Toward Tunisian Nationalism During World War Ii, Martha Staley Marks

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis has attempted to describe the controversy between Robert Murphy and Hooker Doolittle over American policy toward the North Africans and French during World War II. The research was based primarily on material from State Department documents found in the National Archives supplemented by material from the French archives as well as memoirs, personal interviews, and histories of the period. In order for the reader to understand this particular dispute, the problem was developed in the context of the larger political scene as it evolved in North Africa. The controversy between de Gaulle and Giraud was described since it …

Congressional Power And Presidential Prerogative: The War Powers Question, Gerald Michael Worley

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis is a study of the formulation of American foreign policy in general terms and specifically how hostility is initiated. War powers and who controls this authority is an age-old question. One can not simply look to the Constitution for direction. An intricate formula is necessary and the evolution of the nation must be understood.

Germany, Mexico, And The United States, 1911-1917, John Joseph Leffler

Dissertations and Theses

The thesis focuses on Germany's Mexican policies from 1911 to 1917, with particular attention given to the connection of these policies to political relations between the United States and Germany and between the United States and Mexico. The paper also attempts to place German activities in Mexico within the context of Germany's desire to promote its political and economic interests on a worldwide scale. Although some unpublished sources were consulted, the account relies mostly on published documents, memoirs, and secondary sources for its factual basis.

Theoretical Differences In Kissinger And Schlesinger's Models Of The International System, Wayne Alan Schroeder

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis is a study of national security decision making in the Ford Administration. The subject for study is the Kissinger- Schlesinger controversy in the Ford Administration. The thesis will attempt to prove that the differences that emerged over issues of national policy were due to deep theoretical disagreements as to the nature of the international system, the utility of power in the nuclear age and the means by which to preserve detente.

An examination of the substantive policy differences will be preceded by an examination of the conceptual disagreements between the Secretaries on topics that are fundamental to any …

The Nixon "Shocks": Implications For Japan's Foreign Policy In The 1970'S, Richard Douglas Partch

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examines the implications that the Nixon “shocks” may have on Japan’s foreign policy. The data used consisted of books, articles, periodicals, government publications and newspapers. Examined were such important factors as: the attitudes of the political parties in Japan on foreign policy questions, the rapid rise of the Japanese economy and the implications this has had on Japan's relations with other countries, and the question of Japan's possible remilitarization, both in conventional and nuclear terms. In addition, Japan's relations with the other three Great Powers in Asia, (China, the Soviet Union and the United States), are also studied. …

Nigerian Nationalism: A Case Study In Southern Nigeria, 1885-1939, Bassey Edet Ekong

Dissertations and Theses

Modern Nigeria is a creation of the British who because of economic interest, ignored the existing political, racial, historical, religious and language differences. The task of developing a concept of nationalism from among such diverse elements who inhabit Nigeria and speak about 280 tribal languages was immense if not impossible. The traditionalists did their best in opposing the British who took away their privileges and traditional rights, but their policy did not countenance nationalism. The rise and growth of nationalism was only possible through educated Africans. Colonialism brought Nigeria in contact with the West and western culture, but the impact …