A Multi-Bloc Model of The International System
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3223440 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Roger D Masters (Yale University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1961 |
| Volume | 55 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 780-798 |
| Publication date | 1961-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | American Political Science Review (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0003-0554 • E-ISSN: 1537-5943 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/1952527 |
| OpenAlex | W4250648627 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 6 |
| References cited | 9 |
This essay will attempt to define an abstract model of the international system (or, more precisely, a model of the structure of that system), as a supplement to the types presented by Morton A. Kaplan. Before attempting such a construction, it is well to show the utility of the "multi-bloc system" as an alternative to his six models. Kaplan's "balance-of-power" and "unit veto" systems are essentially defined in terms of nation-states as "actors"; and his "universal" and "hierarchical" systems have essentially but one "actor," though in the former the nation-state subsists as an administrative and local political unit. The two "bipolar" models ("loose" and "tight") have, by definition, two major bloc "actors," with uncommitted nation-states on the margin and an "international actor" such as the U.N. playing a limited role in the former model. It is true that his "unit veto" system may have blocs instead of nation-states for "actors," but by this very token the difference between a system with a multiplicity of states and one with a multiplicity of blocs is not suggested by Kaplan's typology.The possibility of an international system composed of a multiplicity of blocs has been considered by a number of writers in the past few years. Even before the end of the Second World War, Walter Lippmann wrote:The question is whether some sixty to seventy states, each acting separately, can form a universal organization for the maintenance of peace. I contend that they cannot, and that single sovereign states must combine in their neighborhoods, and that the neighborhoods must combine into larger communities and constellations, which then participate in a universal society
Economic system · Economics · Law and economics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Sovereign state · Sovereignty · Typology · Veto · World-system · Global Peace and Security Dynamics · International Relations and Foreign Policy · Law · Post-Soviet Geopolitical Dynamics
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| Unique citing works | 6 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0.12 |
| Citation span | 1977 - 1990 (14) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 6 |