Rethinking Political Science and International Studies series – serie

Leading scholar, Birte Siim, presents an erudite examination of gender and politics from intersectional, transnational and postnational perspectives. Addressing key areas of classical and contemporary feminism, Siim explores the influence of diverse national, socio-economic and political contexts on gender politics across the globe.Examining feminist methodologies, theories and research, the book investigates key feminist topics such as rethinking patriarchy and the critique of the public-private divide, as well as more contemporary discussions including the postcolonial feminist critique of methodological nationalism, Western universalism and Eurocentrism. It highlights how gender scholarship is informed by global socio-economic developments, geopolitical issues and crises such as the wars in Afghanistan and Syria. Looking ahead, Siim calls for future gender politics scholarship to consider feminist ecological approaches and advocates for strategies which centre social, reproductive and climate justice.Rethinking Gender and Politics is an essential resource for students and academics in gender studies, political science, sociology and development studies. It is also a valuable read for practitioners, activists and policymakers involved in feminism, climate justice and decolonization.

In this insightful book, Arthur Benz introduces a novel analytical approach to comparative research on multilevel governance. Confronting the intricate problems of coordinating local, regional, national and international policies in the face of political polarisation, he makes the case for pragmatic, sustainable and resilient multilevel governance. Rethinking Multilevel Governance encompasses a range of theoretical perspectives on multilevel governance to analyze the dispersion of authorities and inter-jurisdictional coordination of policies across levels. The book proposes a revised conceptualization that is more adaptable in the light of institutional variety, recent crises and political changes. Chapters explore the consequences of economic disparities and societal diversity on organising this complex system of governance. Ultimately, Benz reconsiders power dynamics in multilevel policymaking and discusses how policies can be legitimized in multilevel governance. Significantly advancing the discussion on power and legitimacy in multilevel politics, the book is a crucial read for students and scholars of public policy, politics, regulation and governance. It is also beneficial to civil servants working on issues such as climate change, international conflict and digitalization.

In this timely book, Benjamin J. Cohen identifies and analyses a range of critical pathologies currently afflicting the field of international political economy (IPE) and offers remedies to restore the field’s vitality. The book addresses the purpose of IPE as a field of study, highlighting the key questions posed by scholars since the modern field’s inception, and explores how research seeks to engage with politics in practice.Tackling contemporary factionalism in the field, chapters consider IPE’s remarkable diversity and fragmentation of research traditions across the globe and draw attention to the lack of clear methods and behavioural assumptions established as ‘best practice’ internationally. To rejuvenate the field, Cohen argues, reforms are needed that would both encourage more policy engagement by IPE scholars and maximize opportunities to enjoy the benefits of the field’s diversity. The book offers a cutting-edge research agenda, emphasising the need for collaboration across scholarly divides and the obligations of leading professional associations and societies to countervail the forces that keep these groups separated. A powerful critique and a rousing call-to-arms, this book is crucial reading for scholars of IPE in search of innovative ways to develop new research and revitalise the field as a whole. It also offers key insights for students who need to understand the challenges facing IPE and its potential research trajectories.

Exploring the evolution and resilience of systems for the separation of powers, this prescient book rethinks how different architectures can defend democracies against adverse shocks and help them adapt to change. Frank Vibert cuts across many fields of study to address the central problem in modern government of how to balance the reasoning of experts with that of electoral politics.Beginning from the original separation of powers between the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government, Vibert explores modern alternatives to this system. In particular, he discusses consociationalism, based on the need for political consensus for major decisions, as well as rights-based approaches. Looking to the future, he identifies important areas for improvement in these systems, such as better defences against corruption and stronger representation for the marginalised as well as the need to address income and wealth differences. Ultimately, he shows that the separation of powers is a learning system that can adapt to the tasks of modern government, especially by combining the reasoning of experts with political strategy without reverting to technocracy.Rethinking the Separation of Powers is an essential read for students and scholars of political science, law, behavioural science, social psychology and philosophy. Addressing central problems in modern government, it will also be vital for researchers interested in strategies for effective policy-making.

This thought-provoking book explores how the global ecological crisis profoundly challenges conventional meanings of environmental security and raises important questions about how states and other institutions now face the future.Simon Dalby provides unique insights into the traditional search for security in terms of using firepower to dominate states and environments, and how this is now endangering people across the globe. Whereas earlier concerns about nuclear firepower focused on the security dilemmas it posed, Dalby offers a new perspective into the existential threats to civilization presented by the combustion of fossil fuels. Propounding that the constraint of firepower in both senses is now key to a flourishing human future, the book calls for international relations scholars to rethink many of the central premises in the field and formulate new policies that focus on the necessity of ecological flourishing to provide meaningful security in a climate disrupted world.Visionary and inspiring, Rethinking Environmental Security will be a critical read for scholars and students of international relations, climate change, environmental governance and regulation, and political geography and geopolitics. Its novel ideas will also be beneficial for policy makers and practitioners in these fields.

In this innovative book, Jacob Torfing, a leading scholar of the field, critically evaluates emerging ideas, practices and institutions that are transforming how public governance is perceived, theorised and conducted in practice.Identifying cutting-edge developments in public governance, this incisive book analyses new forms of political leadership, public management, public organisation, administrative steering, cross-boundary collaboration, public regulation and societal problem-solving. Examining some of the most significant instances of public governance transformation, chapters explore the effects of transformations from sovereign to interactive political leadership, from national to multi-level governance, and from hard to soft power. With a novel focus on the production of innovative public value outcomes, the book considers how these developments interact with and are influenced by new digital technologies and increasing globalisation. Torfing concludes with a reflection on how best to comprehend, study and take advantage of current and future transformations in public governance.A novel rethinking of how current societies are governed, this book will inspire students, scholars and practitioners of political science, public policy, regulation and governance, and public administration management to reconsider how public governance and administration may be organised in the future to present innovative solutions to societal problems.

Are theories of governance useful for helping policymakers and citizens meet and tackle contemporary challenges? This insightful book reflects on how a theory becomes useful and evaluates a range of theories according to whether they are warranted, diagnostic, and dialogical.By arguing that useful theory tells us what to ask, not what to do, Christopher Ansell investigates what it means for a theory to be useful. Analysing how governance theories address a variety of specific challenges, chapters examine intractable public problems, weak government accountability, violent conflict, global gridlock, poverty and the unsustainable exploitation of our natural resources. Finding significant tensions between state- and society-centric perspectives on governance, the book concludes with a suggestion that we refocus our theories of governance on possibilities for state-society synergy. Governance theories of the future, Ansell argues, should also strive for a more fruitful dialogue between instrumental, critical and explanatory perspectives.Examining both the conceptual and empirical basis of theories of governance, this comprehensive book will be an invigorating read for scholars and students in the fields of public administration, public policy and planning, development studies, political science and urban, environmental and global governance. By linking theories of governance to concrete societal challenges, it will also be of use to policymakers and practitioners concerned with these fields.

Rethinking and revising the established knowledge and practice of conflict resolution and management, this innovative book brings together complementary perspectives to consider novel approaches to resolving conflict after the collapse of the World Order.Examining the current system of world disorder, the authors identify ways of operating constructively and navigating conflict in order to better manage and resolve it. Analysing conventional and hybrid conflict at both international and internal state level, they look to transform current scholarship on conflict resolution and management in international relations. Chapters rethink mediation; power in peace-making; prevention of escalation; governance, protest and revolt; inclusion and representation; and the individual as subject and object in conflict resolution and management. Paving the way for future research in the field, the book outlines the need to learn how to operate within the present world disorder in order to prevent the descent into entropy. By awakening realistic creativity and examining present characteristics and future possibilities, the book develops a more positive evolution which can reinstitute an effective new system of World Order.Both prescriptive and analytical in approach, this insightful book will prove vital to students and scholars of international relations, political science and public policy, alongside policy makers looking to rethink their conflict resolution and management methods.

In this innovative book, Jonah Levy conducts an insightful investigation into economic liberalisation and articulates a progressive alternative to neoliberalism, compatible with the values and interests of leftist governments and parties. Levy identifies and expands on the vices of contemporary welfare capitalism, which have been previously targeted by progressive reformers seeking to improve the functioning of the economy while protecting the well-being of low-income and disadvantaged groups. Chapters delve into case studies from the UK, the Netherlands, Sweden and wider Europe that show progressive-liberal reforms by centre-left governments, assessing austerity budgets, tax cuts, the promotion of part-time employment and workfare. Levy provides a roadmap to guide the left’s approach to economic liberalization and to ensure these actions can be understandable to voters. Ultimately, this book demonstrates how left-leaning governments across Europe can advance liberal objectives in a more just and inclusive manner.Rethinking Economic Liberalization is an essential read for students and researchers of political science, political economy, sociology, public policy, and social welfare. Political practitioners and progressive think tanks will find the insights presented useful when navigating the challenge of economic liberalization.

In this thought-provoking book, Bertrand Badie argues that the traditional paradigms of international relations are no longer sustainable, and that ignorance of these shifting systems and of alternative models is a major source of contemporary international conflict and disorder. Through a clear examination of the political, historical and social context, Badie illuminates the challenges and possibilities of an 'intersocial' and multilateral approach to international relations.Badie lays the foundations for understanding by first tracing the history of traditional Eurocentric international relations, from the Westphalian Peace of the seventeenth century through to the power politics of the mid-twentieth century, and discussing the processes, such as decolonisation, by which this system has been destabilised. Chapters consider issues such as the changing powers and identity of the state, regionalism, and war and conflict, demonstrating the impact of globalisation and the growing influence of both non-Western and non-state actors in the international arena and highlighting the need for a more widespread understanding of these realities.Rethinking International Relations will be essential reading for all scholars and students of international relations and political science. Its insights will also prove useful to policymakers and other actors involved in diplomatic relations and international public policy.

Governments have always required large public organizations, or bureaucracies, to deliver on their promises. Yet most people leading and managing those agencies lack understanding of the full toolkit of values, insights and findings that are necessary. Considering how public administration can learn from a wide range of disciplines ranging from history and the humanities to management and the social sciences, Marc Holzer delineates new ways of transforming organizations and building trust in governments.Reflecting upon the well-established field of studies on public administration, this book examines how it might reposition itself as society’s necessary and best investment. Concise and timely, the book first draws on the arts and humanities for portrayals of bureaucracy’s unintended impacts, before moving to highlight that public organizations must deliver on governmental promises to build trust with their stakeholders, outlining how willful blindness can result in organizational disasters. Holzer concludes by confronting the popular notion that governments should be run according to the principles of the private sector, and provides an insightful rethinking of how public administration should be practiced.Demonstrating the full range of competencies necessary to manage the public sector, Rethinking Public Administration will be essential reading for all scholars and students of public administration and management, public policy, government and political science. Providing a practical approach to the topic, it will also be advantageous to policymakers and other actors involved in the public sector.

In this timely book, Benjamin J. Cohen identifies and analyses a range of critical pathologies currently afflicting the field of international political economy (IPE) and offers remedies to restore the field’s vitality. The book addresses the purpose of IPE as a field of study, highlighting the key questions posed by scholars since the modern field’s inception, and explores how research seeks to engage with politics in practice.Tackling contemporary factionalism in the field, chapters consider IPE’s remarkable diversity and fragmentation of research traditions across the globe and draw attention to the lack of clear methods and behavioural assumptions established as ‘best practice’ internationally. To rejuvenate the field, Cohen argues, reforms are needed that would both encourage more policy engagement by IPE scholars and maximize opportunities to enjoy the benefits of the field’s diversity. The book offers a cutting-edge research agenda, emphasising the need for collaboration across scholarly divides and the obligations of leading professional associations and societies to countervail the forces that keep these groups separated. A powerful critique and a rousing call-to-arms, this book is crucial reading for scholars of IPE in search of innovative ways to develop new research and revitalise the field as a whole. It also offers key insights for students who need to understand the challenges facing IPE and its potential research trajectories.

Are theories of governance useful for helping policymakers and citizens meet and tackle contemporary challenges? This insightful book reflects on how a theory becomes useful and evaluates a range of theories according to whether they are warranted, diagnostic, and dialogical.By arguing that useful theory tells us what to ask, not what to do, Christopher Ansell investigates what it means for a theory to be useful. Analysing how governance theories address a variety of specific challenges, chapters examine intractable public problems, weak government accountability, violent conflict, global gridlock, poverty and the unsustainable exploitation of our natural resources. Finding significant tensions between state- and society-centric perspectives on governance, the book concludes with a suggestion that we refocus our theories of governance on possibilities for state-society synergy. Governance theories of the future, Ansell argues, should also strive for a more fruitful dialogue between instrumental, critical and explanatory perspectives.Examining both the conceptual and empirical basis of theories of governance, this comprehensive book will be an invigorating read for scholars and students in the fields of public administration, public policy and planning, development studies, political science and urban, environmental and global governance. By linking theories of governance to concrete societal challenges, it will also be of use to policymakers and practitioners concerned with these fields.

In this innovative book, Jacob Torfing, a leading scholar of the field, critically evaluates emerging ideas, practices and institutions that are transforming how public governance is perceived, theorised and conducted in practice.Identifying cutting-edge developments in public governance, this incisive book analyses new forms of political leadership, public management, public organisation, administrative steering, cross-boundary collaboration, public regulation and societal problem-solving. Examining some of the most significant instances of public governance transformation, chapters explore the effects of transformations from sovereign to interactive political leadership, from national to multi-level governance, and from hard to soft power. With a novel focus on the production of innovative public value outcomes, the book considers how these developments interact with and are influenced by new digital technologies and increasing globalisation. Torfing concludes with a reflection on how best to comprehend, study and take advantage of current and future transformations in public governance.A novel rethinking of how current societies are governed, this book will inspire students, scholars and practitioners of political science, public policy, regulation and governance, and public administration management to reconsider how public governance and administration may be organised in the future to present innovative solutions to societal problems.

This thought-provoking book explores how the global ecological crisis profoundly challenges conventional meanings of environmental security and raises important questions about how states and other institutions now face the future.Simon Dalby provides unique insights into the traditional search for security in terms of using firepower to dominate states and environments, and how this is now endangering people across the globe. Whereas earlier concerns about nuclear firepower focused on the security dilemmas it posed, Dalby offers a new perspective into the existential threats to civilization presented by the combustion of fossil fuels. Propounding that the constraint of firepower in both senses is now key to a flourishing human future, the book calls for international relations scholars to rethink many of the central premises in the field and formulate new policies that focus on the necessity of ecological flourishing to provide meaningful security in a climate disrupted world.Visionary and inspiring, Rethinking Environmental Security will be a critical read for scholars and students of international relations, climate change, environmental governance and regulation, and political geography and geopolitics. Its novel ideas will also be beneficial for policy makers and practitioners in these fields.

Rethinking and revising the established knowledge and practice of conflict resolution and management, this innovative book brings together complementary perspectives to consider novel approaches to resolving conflict after the collapse of the World Order.Examining the current system of world disorder, the authors identify ways of operating constructively and navigating conflict in order to better manage and resolve it. Analysing conventional and hybrid conflict at both international and internal state level, they look to transform current scholarship on conflict resolution and management in international relations. Chapters rethink mediation; power in peace-making; prevention of escalation; governance, protest and revolt; inclusion and representation; and the individual as subject and object in conflict resolution and management. Paving the way for future research in the field, the book outlines the need to learn how to operate within the present world disorder in order to prevent the descent into entropy. By awakening realistic creativity and examining present characteristics and future possibilities, the book develops a more positive evolution which can reinstitute an effective new system of World Order.Both prescriptive and analytical in approach, this insightful book will prove vital to students and scholars of international relations, political science and public policy, alongside policy makers looking to rethink their conflict resolution and management methods.

Driven by an international agenda, the act of ‘rethinking’ corruption has already taken place more than once in the past two decades, contributing further to a post-truth about corruption than to anything else. This book makes a clear argument in favor of rethinking corruption across any contingency and offers a forecasting method, alongside the latest generation of analytical, fact-based tools to map, assess and predict corruption risk.Mungiu-Pippidi argues that corruption is a policy problem frequently overriding individual choice, and can only be tackled by strong policy interventions, not by ‘nudging’ every individual into honesty. Chapters explain that corruption has not decreased despite unprecedented efforts because the international context presently creates far more opportunities for it than constraints: few nations, governments or international organizations have proven able to solve the social dilemma of corruption. Meanwhile, many countries, governments, businesses and politicians profit from a world order where integrity cannot be enforced and perpetuate the current status quo.Rethinking Corruption will be crucial reading for academics and students of political science, sociology and law seeking to understand the theoretical dimensions of corruption. It will also be an enlightening read for policy makers, administrators and practitioners looking to rethink how corruption can manifest.

In this timely book, Carol S. Weissert proves that federalism is highly relevant to the modern world and worthy of deeper academic study. Highlighting the dynamic nature of federalism, this book focuses on linking scholarship to the policy and politics of federalism in the US and across the world.Combining work by American federalism and comparative federalism scholars, Weissert explores how researchers from across these fields can learn from each other. Chapters analyse both traditional and newer approaches to federalism, identifying areas of success and suggestions for further study. The book focuses on the challenges facing federalism today, in particular analysing the impact of federalism on governmental responses to the Covid-19 pandemic. Other issues covered include the impact of political polarisation on federalism, intergovernmental conflict, the drive towards centralisation, multi-level governance, and public scepticism of government.Offering up-to-date insights into the theory and practice of federalism, this book will be essential reading for scholars and students of American and comparative federalism, political science, public administration, governance, and constitutional studies.

This visionary book takes stock of the urgent challenges facing food chains globally and provides a critical evaluation of radical new thinking and perspectives on agricultural and food policy. Wyn Grant investigates the principal drivers of change in food and agriculture, including globalization, climate change, the structure of the industry, changing patterns of consumer demand and new technologies.Rethinking Agricultural and Food Policy provides a comprehensive account of the contemporary challenges impacting the food chain. Chapters explore the various barriers towards positive progress, exposing the deficiency of institutional architecture at a domestic and international level and examining how attempts to reform and revitalize it encounter inertia, embedded production structures, defenders of the status quo and vested interests. Proposing that a holistic, interdisciplinary approach is essential in making progress towards revitalizing policy and encouraging innovation in international governance, Wyn Grant calls for a new agenda to deliver real and necessary change and offer hope for the planet and its people. Using critical insights from natural and social science to uphold its calls for a holistic, integrated approach to agricultural and food policy, this timely book will be an essential read for policy makers, as well as students taking undergraduate or postgraduate courses in agriculture, food and the environment.

In this precisely argued book, Colin Crouch questions the current meaning of political parties for citizens in Western Europe given that the identities on which they are based were the product of past conflicts over industrialization and religion. Crouch asks whether the issues confronting post and ex-industrial societies can develop their own political identities among citizens? And, if so, how far do these identities relate to the inheritance of the past?Applying a theory of political identity, Crouch analyses voting behaviour across Europe and presents an in-depth historical analysis of the key political parties. He traces the content of party manifestos and the geographical and industrial status of parties’ support. He argues that, far from following a model provided by the West, the faltering party systems in Central and Eastern Europe offer insights as to how western systems may develop in the future. Looking ahead, Crouch considers the viability of democratic politics, assessing the roles of gender, environmentalism and xenophobia in generating effective modern political identities.Rethinking Political Identity is an invaluable resource for academics and researchers specialising in comparative European politics, political science, sociology and social policy, human geography and social history. It will also be of value to public policymakers and think tank professionals across Europe.

In this precisely argued book, Colin Crouch questions the current meaning of political parties for citizens in Western Europe given that the identities on which they are based were the product of past conflicts over industrialization and religion. Crouch asks whether the issues confronting post and ex-industrial societies can develop their own political identities among citizens? And, if so, how far do these identities relate to the inheritance of the past?Applying a theory of political identity, Crouch analyses voting behaviour across Europe and presents an in-depth historical analysis of the key political parties. He traces the content of party manifestos and the geographical and industrial status of parties’ support. He argues that, far from following a model provided by the West, the faltering party systems in Central and Eastern Europe offer insights as to how western systems may develop in the future. Looking ahead, Crouch considers the viability of democratic politics, assessing the roles of gender, environmentalism and xenophobia in generating effective modern political identities.Rethinking Political Identity is an invaluable resource for academics and researchers specialising in comparative European politics, political science, sociology and social policy, human geography and social history. It will also be of value to public policymakers and think tank professionals across Europe.

In this innovative book, Ilan Kapoor and Gavin Fridell rethink development politics psychoanalytically, investigating its unconscious. Whereas mainstream development politics is organized around stability and rationality, psychoanalysis points to disharmony and irrationality, helping to explain the development subject’s often self-defeating behaviour — for example being seduced by growth and shopping, despite being aware of the inherent perils of inequality and climate crisis.Rethinking Development Politics reassesses development in relation to three significant schools of thought: Modernization; (neo)Marxist political economy; and Postdevelopment/Decoloniality. It exposes how all three disavow the unconscious temptations of development, resulting in the rationalization of the market, the undervaluation of fantasy and fetishism, and the advocacy of an uncritical politics of authenticity. The book distinguishes the psychoanalytic approach from its predecessors by focusing on contemporary case studies, including digital and green modernization, trade, neopopulism, anti-racist training, and radical politics in present-day Iran. Crucially, these case studies speak to the extent to which the unconscious may be a political resource for reconfiguring development politics to put the subaltern first.Proposing a distinctive method of inquiry, Rethinking Development Politics will be of great interest to students, academics, and researchers in development studies, psychology, sociology, international relations, political science, and peace and conflict studies. Its critical analysis will also be of great use to global agency officials, corporate policy-makers, public policy institutions, and activist and advocacy organizations.

In this timely book, Hans-Georg Betz rethinks the concept of populism to address crucial questions around this complex, multifaceted, and enduring political phenomenon. Betz provides a novel interpretative framework based on the extant theoretical and empirical literature and supported by primary sources.Rethinking Populism highlights the divisive nature of populism, exploring the economic, social, and political dynamics fueling its rise and success. It tackles key facets of the field, including questions of identity, recognition, and the disruptions associated with globalization, financialization, digitalization, and skill-biased technological change. Chapters address populism’s endurance and past failures, offering diverse case studies that underscore the dynamics which engender populist mobilization. Betz illustrates how nativism, culture wars, gender, and emotions such as nostalgia and resentment are drivers of contemporary radical right-wing populism. The book is an essential resource for students and academics in political science, political theory, economics, sociology, and cultural history. It is also of interest to policymakers and practitioners involved in international politics and public policy.

In this innovative book, Jonah Levy conducts an insightful investigation into economic liberalisation and articulates a progressive alternative to neoliberalism, compatible with the values and interests of leftist governments and parties. Levy identifies and expands on the vices of contemporary welfare capitalism, which have been previously targeted by progressive reformers seeking to improve the functioning of the economy while protecting the well-being of low-income and disadvantaged groups. Chapters delve into case studies from the UK, the Netherlands, Sweden and wider Europe that show progressive-liberal reforms by centre-left governments, assessing austerity budgets, tax cuts, the promotion of part-time employment and workfare. Levy provides a roadmap to guide the left’s approach to economic liberalization and to ensure these actions can be understandable to voters. Ultimately, this book demonstrates how left-leaning governments across Europe can advance liberal objectives in a more just and inclusive manner.Rethinking Economic Liberalization is an essential read for students and researchers of political science, political economy, sociology, public policy, and social welfare. Political practitioners and progressive think tanks will find the insights presented useful when navigating the challenge of economic liberalization.

In this thought-provoking book, Bertrand Badie argues that the traditional paradigms of international relations are no longer sustainable, and that ignorance of these shifting systems and of alternative models is a major source of contemporary international conflict and disorder. Through a clear examination of the political, historical and social context, Badie illuminates the challenges and possibilities of an 'intersocial' and multilateral approach to international relations.Badie lays the foundations for understanding by first tracing the history of traditional Eurocentric international relations, from the Westphalian Peace of the seventeenth century through to the power politics of the mid-twentieth century, and discussing the processes, such as decolonisation, by which this system has been destabilised. Chapters consider issues such as the changing powers and identity of the state, regionalism, and war and conflict, demonstrating the impact of globalisation and the growing influence of both non-Western and non-state actors in the international arena and highlighting the need for a more widespread understanding of these realities.Rethinking International Relations will be essential reading for all scholars and students of international relations and political science. Its insights will also prove useful to policymakers and other actors involved in diplomatic relations and international public policy.