A top benefit of international relations is the opportunity to become culturally sensitive. Through group projects and discussions, you will build a deeper understanding of people from different backgrounds and perspectives. This is a valuable skill for careers in diplomacy and global business, but also in our everyday lives.
The world is interconnected and the way societies work together – or in opposition – shapes crucial global outcomes, including peaceful coexistence and solutions to complex challenges like climate change and poverty. The discipline of international relations (IR) investigates these interactions, often drawing on theories from political science, geography, history, law, sociology, philosophy and anthropology.
As the world becomes increasingly complex and interdependent, diplomatic tools like cooperation and multilateralism are more important than ever to address global issues. However, there are many other dynamics that influence international relations. For example, some states may feel disadvantaged by the international system, and desire to reform it. This is often referred to as revisionist politics and can be seen in the US’s refusal to join the European Union and Japan’s rejection of the WTO.
Other influences on IR include global power shifts and the rise of non-state actors. Sub-unit level psychological factors can have explanatory power as well, such as how personality affects foreign policy decision-making and the effects of groupthink. Various schools of thought within IR explore these topics, from realism to liberalism and constructivism. Other influential theories include Marxism, dependency theory and feminism.