Realism (mercantilism, neo-mercantilism, economic nationalism)

Liberalism (Orthodox, Interventionist, neoliberalism, interdependence and regime theories)

Historical Structuralism (Marxism, Dependency theory, World System theory)

Main thinkers

Machiavelli, Thucydides, Hans Morgenthau, Alexander Hamilton, Friedrich List

John Locke, Adam Smith, David Ricardo, John M.Keynes, Karl Polanyi, Friedrich Hayek, Ludwig von Mises, Milton Friedman

Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, V.I.Lenin, Paul Baran, Andre Gunder Frank, Raul Prebisch, Fernando H. Cardoso, Immanuel Wallerstein

Basic Tenets

Nature of Relationship between economics and politics

Politics determines economic policy

Totally separate

Economy determines politics

Nature of international political economy

Struggle for power

Cooperation

Struggle between rich and poor

Role of International institutions

Minimal to non-existent

Facilitate cooperation

Instrument of capitalist control

Role of the state

Maximum or dominant

Minimal to nonexistent

Instrument of capitalist class

Focus

Zero-Sum game among states

Non-zero sum game

Zero-sum game between classes and rich and poor

Main actors of international political economy

State

Individual, Private companies, International institutions, state

Capitalist class and exploited class; rich and poor.

Main issues

International security dilemma

Individual states’ acceptance of liberal principles

Unequal relationship between north and south

Principles and theories under the major perspectives

Mercantilism (accumulation of gold and silver, import limits with the focus of trade surplus)

Neo-Mercantilism (Gold not so important but manufacturing is more important, need to protect infant domestic industries)

Hegemonic Stability theory (need to have one strong and willing superpower to maintain international economic order)

Orthodox liberalism (Focus on absolute and comparative advantage assumption, least govt.), Interventionist liberalism (Keynesian economy with the focus of govt interference in raising aggregate demand to rectify market failures)

Orthodox or neo-classic liberalism (market itself can correct unemployment, rising wages and high standard for living; monetarism)

Interdependence theory (Growing interdependence pressures for common standards and policy coordination)

Regime Theory (Behaviors of state is regulated through regimes maintained by international institutions or hegemonic state: monetary, trade, )

Business conflict model

Marxism (Capitalism and its spread throughout the world, Lenin: Imperialism/Colonialism as the survival strategy for capitalism and necessary to bring modernization to third world)

Dependency Theory (Peripheral dependency from the developed Core; capitalist development in the periphery is totally different from the core, external constraints of development. Core capitalists oppose industrialization of periphery in alliance with local elite, Periphery always in a market disadvantage in terms of trade; )

World System Theory (Entire world system with single division of labor and multiple cultural system, semi-periphery, relationship of core states, )

Business conflict model (states are not relatively independent from business or class interests, internationalist and nationalist business groups influence policy making)