SUGGESTED READING LIST FOR INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS COMPREHENSIVE EXAMS
This list is not exclusive; it is only a baseline guide. You should also make use of the citations contained in these works to develop a full understanding of the field.
Current Literature: Students are expected to be up to date on the current literature, by reading through the articles published in the last five years in the main international relations journals (such as IO, ISQ, JCR, WP, and EJIR) and the IR articles published in the general purpose journals (APSR and AJPS). This holds true for all subfields.
IR Theory
Classical Realism
Hans Morgenthau, Politics Among Nations
Kenneth Waltz, Man, the State, and War
E.H. Carr, The Twenty Years Crisis
Thucydides, The History of the Peloponnesian War, Book V, The Melian Dialogue.
Randall Schweller, “Unanswered Threats: A Neoclassical Realist Theory of
Underbalancing,” International Security; Vol. 29, No. 2 (Fall 2004).
Neorealism: the structure of anarchy
Kenneth Waltz, Theory of International Politics
Stephen Walt, The Origins of Alliances
Liberalism: preferences and progress
Immanuel Kant, "To Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch," in Perpetual Peace and other Essays on Politics, History and Morals.
Michael Doyle, "Liberalism and World Politics," American Political Science Review
(December 1986).
G. John Ikenberry, "Institutions, Strategic Restraint, and the Persistence of American
Postwar Order" International Security (Winter 1998/99).
Patrick McDonald, The Invisible Hand of Peace: Capitalism, the War Machine and
International Relations Theory (Cambridge University Press, 2009). Selections to be
determined.
Neoliberalism: International Cooperation and Institutions
Robert Keohane, After Hegemony
Stephen Krasner, International Regimes
Robert Jervis, "Cooperation Under the Security Dilemma," World Politics 30 (January
1978).
Kenneth Abbott and Duncan Snidal, “Why States Act through Formal International
Organizations.” Journal of Conflict Resolution. (1998).
John Mearsheimer, "The False Promise of International Institutions," International
Security (Winter 1994/95).
Barbara Koremenos, Charles Lipson and Duncan Snidal, (2001) “The Rational Design of
International Institutions” International Organization 55/4 Autumn, 761-799.
Constructivism
Alexander Wendt, "Anarchy is What States Make of It," International Organization (Spring 1992), pp. 391-426.
John G. Ruggie, (1982) “International Regimes, Transactions, and Change: Embedded
Liberalism in the Postwar Economic Order” International Organization 36, 2 (Spring),
379-416.
Peter J. Katzenstein, ed, (1996) The Culture of National Security
John Ikenberry and Charles Kupchan (1990) “Socialization and Hegemonic Power”
International Organization 44/3 (Summer), 283-315.
Alexander Wendt, Social Theory of International Relations (Cambridge University Press, 1999).
Michael Barnett and Martha Finnemore (1999) "The Politics, Power and Pathologies of
International Organizations," International Organization 53/4 (Autumn): 699-732.
Vincent Pouliot, (2008), "The Logic of Practicality: A Theory of Practice of Security
Communities" International Organization 62(2): 257-288.
Lisa Wedeen, (2002) “Conceptualizing Culture: Possibilities for Political Science”
American Political Science Review. Vol. 96, No. 4 December, 713-28.
Ted Hopf (2010) “The Logic of Habit in International Relations” European Journal of
International Relations June.
Strategic Interaction
Thomas Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict
James Fearon, "Rationalist Explanations for War." International Organization. 49 (1995):
379-414.
Kenneth Oye, ed., Cooperation Under Anarchy, Introduction and Conclusion, skim case
studies.
Stephen Krasner, "Global Communications and National Power: Life on the Pareto
Frontier," World Politics (April 1991), pp. 336-66.
Kenneth Schultz, Democracy and Coercive Diplomacy (Cambridge: CUP, 2001).
Martin, “Interests, Power, and Multilateralism.” International Organization, Vol. 46, No.
4, (Autumn 1992), pp. 765-792
Mancur Olson, The Logic of Collective Action, chs. I, II, & IV.
Robert Axelrod, The Evolution of Cooperation
Robert Jervis, "Realism, Game Theory and Cooperation," World Politics 40 (April 1988).
Hegemony
Robert Gilpin, War and Change, (Cambridge University Press, 1981).
Stephen Krasner, "State Power and the Structure of International Trade," World Politics (April 1976).
William Wohlforth, "The Stability of a Unipolar World," International Security (Summer 1999) pp. 5-41.
Charles Kindleberger, The World in Depression.
Robert Gilpin, The Political Economy of International Relations.
Domestic Structures and Domestic Actors
Robert Putnam, "Diplomacy and Domestic Politics," International Organization (Summer 1988).
Jack Snyder, Myths of Empire.
Ronald Rogowski, Commerce and Coalitions.
Graham T. Allison, “Conceptual Models and the Cuban Missile Crisis,” American
Political Science Review, Vol. 63, No. 3 (September 1969), pp. 689-718.
Andrew MacIntyre, “Institutions and Investors: The Politics of the Economic Crisis in
Southeast Asia,” International Organization 55, 1 (Winter) 2001, pp. 81-122.
Peter Gourevitch, "The Second Image Reversed," International Organization (Autumn
1978), pp. 881-912.
Michael Hiscox, “Class Versus Industry Cleavages: Inter-Industry Factor Mobility and
the Politics of Trade,” International Organization 55 (Winter 2001), pp. 1-46.
Ideas and Perception
Robert Jervis, Perception and Misperception in International Relations.
Kathleen R. McNamara, The Currency of Ideas (Cornell UP 1998).
John Owen, Liberal Peace, Liberal War.
Elizabeth Saunders, (2009). “Transformative Choices: Leaders and the Origins of
Intervention Strategy.” International Security 34(2), pp.119-161.
Julia Gray, The Company States Keep: International Economic Organization and
Sovereign Risk in Emerging Markets.
International Order
Monteiro, Nuno. “Unrest Assured: Why Unipolarity Is Not Peaceful.” International Security (Winter 2011/2012): 9-40.
Lake, David. “Escape from the State of Nature: Authority and Hierarchy in World Politics.” International Security (Summer 2007): 47-79.
Nexon, Daniel and Thomas Wright. “What’s at Stake in the American Empire Debate?” American Political Science Review (May 2007): 253-271.
Branch, Jordan. “Mapping the Sovereign State: Technology, Authority, and Systematic Change.” International Organization (January 2011): 1-36.
Ikenberry, John G., Michael Mastanduno and William C. Wohlforth. “Introduction: Unipolarity, State Behavior, and Systemic Consequences.” World Politics (January 2009): 1-27.
Causes of War and Peace
Fearon, James. “Rationalist Explanations for War.” International Organization (Summer 1995): 379-414.
Reiter, Dan. “Exploring the Bargaining Model of War.” Perspectives on Politics (March 2003): 27-43.
Gartzke, Erik. “The Capitalist Peace.” American Journal of Political Science (January 2007): 166-191.
Dafoe, Allan. “Statistical Critiques of the Democratic Peace: Caveat Emptor.” American Journal of Political Science (April 2011): 247-262.
Lieber, Keir. “The New History of World War I and What It Means for International Relations Theory,” International Security (Fall 2007): 155-191.
Powell, Robert. “War as a Commitment Problem.” International Organization (January 2006): 169-203.
Slantchev, Branislav. “Borrowed Power: Debt Refinancing and the Resort to Arms.” American Political Science Review (November 2012): 787-809.
Goemens, Hein and Giacomo Chiozza. “International Conflict and the Tenure of Leaders: Is War Still Ex-Post Inefficient?” American Journal of Political Science (July 2004): 604-619.
Weeks, Jessica. “Strongmen and Straw Men: Authoritarian Regimes and the Initiation of International Conflict.” American Political Science Review (May 2012): 326-347.
Gartzke, Erik and Yonatan Lupu. “Trading on Preconceptions: Why World War I Was Not a Failure of Economic Interdependence.” International Security (Spring 2012): 115-150.
Crisis Behavior
Fearon, James. “Signaling Foreign Policy Interests: Tying Hands versus Sinking Costs.” Journal of Conflict Resolution (February 1997): 68-90.
Kroenig, Matthew. “Nuclear Superiority and the Balance of Resolve: Explaining Nuclear Crisis Outcomes.” International Organization (January 2012): 141-171.
Weeks, Jessica. “Autocratic Audience Costs: Regime Type and Signaling Resolve.” International Organization (January 2008): 35-64.
Snyder, Jack and Erica D. Borghard. “The Cost of Empty Threats: A Penny, Not a Pound.” American Political Science Review (August 2011): 437-456.
Slantchev, Branislav. “Military Coercion in Interstate Crises.” American Political Science Review (November 2005): 533-547.
Trager, Robert. “Diplomatic Calculus in Anarchy.” American Political Science Review (May: 2010): 347-368.
Press, Daryl. “The Credibility of Power: Assessing Threats during the Appeasement Crisis of the 1930s.” International Security (Winter 2004/2005): 136-169.
Sechser, Todd. “Goliath's Curse: Coercive Threats and Asymmetric Power.
International Organization (Fall 2010): 627-60.
War Conduct and Outcomes
Reiter, Dan and Allan Stam. “Understanding Victory: Why Political Institutions Matter.” International Security (Summer 2003): 168-179.
Downes, Alexander B. “How Smart and Tough Are Democracies? Reassessing Theories of Democratic Victory in War.” International Security (Spring 2009): 9-51.
Reiter, Dan, Allan Stam, and Alexander B. Downes. “Correspondence: Another Skirmish in the Battle over Democracies and War.” International Security (Fall 2009): 194.
Kahl, Colin. “In the Crossfire or the Crosshairs? Norms, Civilian Casualties, and U.S. Conduct in Iraq.” International Security (Summer 2007): 7-46.
Downes, Alex. “Desperate Times, Desperate Measures: The Causes of Civilian Victimization in War.” International Security (Spring 2006): 152-195.
The Rise of China
Friedberg, Aaron. “The Future of U.S.-China Relations: Is Conflict Inevitable?” International Security (Fall 2005): 7-45.
Beckley, Michael. “China’s Century? Why America’s Edge Will Endure.” International Security (Winter 2011/2012): 41-78.
Johnston, Alastair, I. “Is China a Status Quo Power?” International Security (Spring 2003): 5-56.
Drezner, Daniel. “Bad Debts: China's Inflated Financial Power in Great Power Politics.” International Security (Fall 2009): 7-45.
Jervis, Robert. “Thinking Systemically About China.” International Security (Fall 2006): 206-208.
Christensen, Thomas. “Fostering Stability or Creating a Monster? The Rise of China and U.S. Policy toward East Asia.” International Security (Summer 2006): 81-126.
Nuclear Proliferation
Kroenig, Matthew. “Importing the Bomb: Sensitive Nuclear Assistance and Nuclear Proliferation,” Journal of Conflict Resolution (April 2009): 161-180.
Kroenig, Matthew. “Exporting the Bomb: Why States Provide Sensitive Nuclear Assistance,” American Political Science Review (February 2009): 113-133.
Press, Daryl, Scott Sagan, and Benjamin Valentino. “Atomic Aversion: Experimental Evidence on Taboos, Traditions, and the Non-Use of Nuclear Weapons.” American Political Science Review (February 2013): 188-206.
Hymans, Jacques. “Veto Players, Nuclear Energy, and Nonproliferation: Domestic Institutional Barriers to a Japanese Bomb,” International Security (Fall 2011): 154-189.
Fuhrmann, Matthew. “Spreading Temptation: Proliferation and Peaceful Nuclear Cooperation Agreements,” International Security (Summer 2009): 7-41.
Bluth, Christopher, et al. “Correspondence: Civilian Nuclear Cooperation and the Spread of Nuclear Weapons,” International Security (Summer 2010): 184-200. (Read Kroenig’s critique and Fuhrmann’s response only).
Terrorism and Insurgency
Pape, Robert. “The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism.” American Political Science Review (August 2003): 343-361. Frankie
Lyall, Jason and Isaiah Wilson II. “Rage against the Machines: Explaining Victory in Counterinsurgency Wars.” International Organization (January 2009): 67-107.
Blair, Graeme, Christine Fair, Neil Malhotra, and Jacob Shapiro. “Poverty and Support for Militant Politics in Pakistan.” American Journal of Political Science, forthcoming, available at online first.
Abrahms, Max. “Why Terrorism Doesn’t Work.” International Security (Fall 2006): 42-78.
Lyall, Jason. “Are Coethnics More Effective Counterinsurgents? Evidence from the Second Chechnyan War.” American Political Science Review (February 2010): 1-20.
Chenoweth, Erica. “Democratic Competition and Terrorist Activity.” Journal of Politics (January 2010): 16-30.
Compliance with International Agreements
Fearon, James. “Bargaining, Enforcement, and International Cooperation.” International Organization (Spring 1998), 269-306.
Vreeland, James Raymond. “Political Institutions and Human Rights: Why Dictatorships Enter into the United Nations Convention Against Torture.” International Organization (January 2008): 65-101 .
Simmons, Beth and Allison Danner. “Credible Commitments and the International Criminal Court.” International Organization (April 2010): 225-256.
Xinyuan, Dai. “Why Comply? The Domestic Constituency Mechanism.” International Organization (April 2005): 363-398.
Recommended Reading:
Von Stein, Jana. “Do Treaties Constrain or Screen? Selection Bias and Treaty Compliance.” American Political Science Review (November 2005): 611-622.
International Trade
Tomz, Michael, Judith L. Goldstein, and Douglas Rivers. “Do We Really Know that the WTO Increases Trade? Comment.” American Economic Review (December 2007): 2005-2018.
Mansfield, Edward D., Helen V. Miller, and Peter Rosendorff, “Why Democracies Cooperate More: Electoral Control and International Trade Agreements.” International Organization (June 2002): 477-513.
Kono, Daniel. “Optimal Obfuscation: Democracy and Trade Policy Transparency.” American Political Science Review (August 2006): 369-384.
Busch, Marc L. “Overlapping Institutions, Forum Shopping, and Dispute Settlement in International Trade.” International Organization (Fall 2007): 735-761.
Milner, Helen V. and Dustin Tingley. “Who Supports Global Economic Engagement? The Sources of Preferences in American Foreign Economic Policy.” International Organization (Winter 2011): 37-68.
International Finance
Schultz, Kenneth and Barry Wingast. “The Democratic Advantage: Institutional Foundations of Financial Power in International Competition.” International Organization (Winter 2003): 1-40.
Archer, Candace, Glen Biglaiser, and Karl DeRouen Jr. “Sovereign Bonds and the ‘Democratic Advantage’: Does Regime Type Affect Credit Rating Agency Ratings in the Developing World?” International Organization (Spring 2007): 341-365.
Chwieroth, Jeffrey. “Neoliberal Economists and Capital Account Liberalization in Emerging Markets.” International Organization (Spring 2007): 443-463.
Bach, David and Abraham Newman. “Transgovernmental Networks and Domestic Policy Convergence: Evidence from Insider Trading Regulation.” International Organization (July 2010): 505-528.
Sub-field A: International Law, Norms, and Institutions
International Legal Philosophy
Robert J. Beck, Anthony Clark Arend & Robert D. Vander Lugt, eds, International Rules: Approaches from International Law and International Relations (1996).
Anthony Clark Arend, Legal Rules and International Society (1999).
Theoretical Approaches to International Law
The Natural Law Approach
Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, "Natural Law," pp. 34-37
Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, Questions 90-94
Francisco Vitoria, De Indis, Excerpts
Hugo Grotius, De Jure Belli ac Pacis, Prolegomena, in Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, pp. 38-53
The Legal Positivist Approach
Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, "Legal Positivism," pp. 56-59
John Austin, "Lectures on Jurisprudence"
Hans Kelsen, "The Nature of International Law," from Law and Peace in International
Relations, in Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, pp. 60-74.
H.L.A. Hart, “Law as the Union of Primary and Secondary Rules,” and "International Law," from The Concept of Law, in Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, pp. 75-92
Arend, Legal Rules and International Society, Chapters One, Two & Three
The Realist Approach
Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, "Classical Realism," pp. 94-98
George Kennan, "Diplomacy in the Modern World," from American Diplomacy, in Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, pp. 99-106
Dean Acheson, Remarks before the American Society of International Law, in Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, pp. 107-108
Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, "Structural Realism," pp. 144-146
John J. Mearsheimer, "The False Promise of International Institutions"
The New Haven School
Beck, Arend & Vander Lugt, "The New Haven School," pp. 110-112
John Norton Moore, "Prolegomenon to the Jurisprudence of Myres McDougal and Harold Lasswell"