Explores international relations since 1945 including how the transformation of world politics has been inhibited by the strength of persistent global patterns and the varying organizations and movements that have influenced the global arena

As the best selling text in International Relations, WORLD POLITICS: TREND AND TRANSFORMATION is a trusted balance in coverage and approach unmatched by any other text for the course. Analyzing both historical and contemporary trends and developments, utilizing theoretical concepts, and weaving in the interactions of global actors, WORLD POLITICS: TREND AND TRANSFORMATION resists the temptation to overly simplify world politics but presents the material in a thought-provoking yet accessible manner. The major theories of realism and liberalism frame the dynamics of international relations in this text; however, newly advanced theories such as constructivism are also explored. In addition, major actors and current issues such as global welfare, international economics, ecology, and the environment are covered, as well as issues of global conflict, including the changing face of terrorism, national security, warfare, and approaches to peace. Carefully and meticulously revised in this Ninth Edition to reflect global changes and developments and the emergence of new issues on the global agenda, WORLD POLITICS: TREND AND TRANSFORMATION prepares the student to discuss the unfolding topics in world affairs and sensitizes them to their need as world citizens to think more critically about the moral implications of global circumstances and policies designed to alleviate human suffering.

We now live in a new era of globalization, where instant communications, the emergence of a world economy, a global culture, and new non-state social movements have transformed world politics, making redundant many of the approaches developed for understanding and explaining the cold war world. This comprehensive introductory text focuses on explaining to students without previous knowledge of the subject how contemporary world politics work. An introductory chapter discusses the concept of globalization and summarises the main arguments for and against it. There then follow four sections, covering: * the historical background to contemporary world politics * the main theories that offer explanations of world politics * the structures and processes of world politics * the main issues of contemporary world politics. Each chapter is written by a leading specialist in the field, and uses diagrams, boxes, and discussion points extensively, making this an extremely reader-friendly student text. Each chapter has a guide to further reading and ends with a series of questions.