International Studies
Global Forces, Interactions, and Tensions
3rd Edition
Published on 20. November 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
616 pages
978-1-0719-4769-2 (ISBN)
Description
Through an intellectually stimulating and empirical approach to global studies, students examine how key factors-forces, interactions, and tensions-contribute to world events and global problems.
Reviews / Votes
Straus and Driscoll have pulled together an introduction to international studies that finally puts the field on its own footing. The framework is well thought out and easy to comprehend. -- Daniel Masters * Review * This text offers great opportunities for discussion and evaluation in class. The emphasis on current global issues will educate students on a variety of perspectives involving global issues. -- Lavonna Lovern * Review *More details
Edition
3rd Revised edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Thousand Oaks
United States
Publishing group
Sage Publications Inc Ebooks
Target group
College/higher education
Edition type
Revised edition
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Dimensions
Height: 231 mm
Width: 187 mm
Weight
907 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-0719-4769-2 (9781071947692)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Previous edition
Book
03/2021
2nd Edition
CQ Press
€169.36
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Persons
Scott Straus is a Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley. He has published multiple books that pertain to genocide, human rights, and African politics, notably Making and Unmaking Nations: War, Genocide, and Leadership in Modern Africa (Cornell, 2015), which won the 2018 Grawemeyer Prize for Improving World Order, and The Order of Genocide: Race, Power, and War in Rwanda (Cornell, 2006). He also co-authored International Studies: Global Forces, Interactions, and Tensions (Sage, 2nd ed., 2022). You can learn more about him and his work here: https://sites.google.com/view/scott-straus/home
Barry Driscoll has completed PhD in Political Science from University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is originally from Galway, Ireland and made it to Grinnell by way of Leiden (Holland), Copenhagen, Washington, London, Oslo, and finally Wisconsin, either working in international development or researching themes in comparative politics. His work is on the political economy of development and the state in Africa, focusing on decentralization, local governance, taxation, state capacity, and political parties. His work has been published in Democratization, Studies in Comparative International Development, and Journal of Modern African Studies. At Grinnell College, he teaches classes on African Politics, International Political Economy, and the Political Economy of Development.
Barry Driscoll has completed PhD in Political Science from University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is originally from Galway, Ireland and made it to Grinnell by way of Leiden (Holland), Copenhagen, Washington, London, Oslo, and finally Wisconsin, either working in international development or researching themes in comparative politics. His work is on the political economy of development and the state in Africa, focusing on decentralization, local governance, taxation, state capacity, and political parties. His work has been published in Democratization, Studies in Comparative International Development, and Journal of Modern African Studies. At Grinnell College, he teaches classes on African Politics, International Political Economy, and the Political Economy of Development.
Content
Preface
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
Part I: Foundations
Chapter 1: Global Interactions and Global Tensions
What is Our Era? (de)globalization
A Framework for International Studies
Global Interactions
Global Tensions
An Inside-Out/Outside-In Approach
Global Forces
What Is International Studies Good For?
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 2: The Making of Our Global Age: Forces, Interactions, and Tensions Since 1800
The First Global Age: Increasing Global Interactions
Between the First and Second Global Ages: Wars, Hot and Cold, and New Interactions
The Second Global Age: An Explosion of Global Finance, International Interactions, and New Tensions
China-USA: A new Cold War?
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 3: States: Shapers and Subjects of Global Interactions
The Age of States: Born From a Cycle of Interactions
What Does a State Do?
Where Do States Come From? Forces Shaping the Modern State
The Strengths and Weaknesses of States
Is the State Fit for Purpose? Modern Challenges to States
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 4: Intergovernmental Organizations: Sites of Global Governance
Problems Without Passports
IGOS: The Basics
What Do IGOS Do?
The United Nations: Mediating Global Tensions
Do IGOs Actually Matter? Three Views
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 5: Civil Society: Agents of Change in Global Interactions
Who Cares About Cecil the Lion?
What Is Civil Society?
Who Is Civil Society?
Recent History of Global Civil Society: Rise of a New Global Force
Civil Society on the Global Stage
How Does Civil Society Have an Impact?
Criticisms of Global Civil Society
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 6: Social Identities and Culture: Shaping Interactions at the Individual and Societal Levels
What Are Social Identities and Culture?
Global Interactions and Forces Impact Identity and Culture
Which Social Identities Matter?
Why Do Some Social Identities Matter More Than Others?
Social Identities and Global Challenges
Understanding Culture
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 7: Money: Propelling Global Interactions
Why Global Money Matters
What Is Capitalism?
Trade
Finance: Borrowers, Lenders, and Debt
Currencies
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Part II: Global Challenges
Chapter 8: Democracy and Representation: Struggles for Freedom and Efforts to Restrict It
A Critical Moment for Democracy
What Do Democracies Consist of?
What Do Dictatorships Consist of?
Trends in Democratization
The Process of Democratization
Democratic Consolidation
Democracy and International Studies Themes
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 9: Human Rights: The Challenge of Setting and Enforcing Global Norms
What Is the Human Rights Regime?
Human Rights at the UN Level: Roots of the Tension Between Universal Rights and State Sovereignty
Regional Approaches to Human Rights
What Roles Do Nonstate Human Rights Actors Play?
Do Human Rights Work?
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 10: Development: The Challenge of Global Poverty
A Picture of Uneven Global Poverty
What Is Development, and How Is It Measured?
Why Are Some Countries Poor?
How Can Developing Countries Grow Their Economies? Five Theories
Neoliberalism and the Washington Consensus: Shrink the State, Embrace the Market
The Role of Foreign Aid
Debt: A "lost decade" for poor countries?
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 11: Armed Conflict and Political Violence: New Global Security Challenges and Efforts to Manage Them
Types of Armed Conflict
What Is Terrorism?
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 12: Migration: Confronting the Myths of Human Movement
What Is Migration?
Trends in Global Migration: Facts and Myths
Why Do People Migrate? Push, Pull, and Policy Factors
The Impacts of International Migration
Brain Drain or Brain Gain?
Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery
Can Migration Be Governed Globally?
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 13: Global Health: Addressing Inequalities in Outcomes
Bugs Do Not Respect Borders, and Other International Studies Themes
What Is Global Health?
Global Health Outcomes Highlight Systemic Inequalities
The Global HIV and AIDS Pandemic
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 14: Global Environment: Confronting the Challenge of Climate Change
What Is Climate Change?
Empirics of Climate Change
Predictions About Future Climate Change
Impacts of Climate Change
Responses to Climate Change: Global Governance
Other Approaches to Climate Change
Climate Change and Cross-Cutting Global Forces
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 15: Global Food: How Can We Solve World Hunger?
Global Hunger and a Growing Population: Is There Enough Food?
If There Is Enough Food, Why Do Famines Occur?
Reducing Hunger: Food Security or Food Sovereignty
Who Runs Global Food?
Tracing Global Food: Value Chains
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Glossary
Index
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
Part I: Foundations
Chapter 1: Global Interactions and Global Tensions
What is Our Era? (de)globalization
A Framework for International Studies
Global Interactions
Global Tensions
An Inside-Out/Outside-In Approach
Global Forces
What Is International Studies Good For?
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 2: The Making of Our Global Age: Forces, Interactions, and Tensions Since 1800
The First Global Age: Increasing Global Interactions
Between the First and Second Global Ages: Wars, Hot and Cold, and New Interactions
The Second Global Age: An Explosion of Global Finance, International Interactions, and New Tensions
China-USA: A new Cold War?
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 3: States: Shapers and Subjects of Global Interactions
The Age of States: Born From a Cycle of Interactions
What Does a State Do?
Where Do States Come From? Forces Shaping the Modern State
The Strengths and Weaknesses of States
Is the State Fit for Purpose? Modern Challenges to States
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 4: Intergovernmental Organizations: Sites of Global Governance
Problems Without Passports
IGOS: The Basics
What Do IGOS Do?
The United Nations: Mediating Global Tensions
Do IGOs Actually Matter? Three Views
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 5: Civil Society: Agents of Change in Global Interactions
Who Cares About Cecil the Lion?
What Is Civil Society?
Who Is Civil Society?
Recent History of Global Civil Society: Rise of a New Global Force
Civil Society on the Global Stage
How Does Civil Society Have an Impact?
Criticisms of Global Civil Society
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 6: Social Identities and Culture: Shaping Interactions at the Individual and Societal Levels
What Are Social Identities and Culture?
Global Interactions and Forces Impact Identity and Culture
Which Social Identities Matter?
Why Do Some Social Identities Matter More Than Others?
Social Identities and Global Challenges
Understanding Culture
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 7: Money: Propelling Global Interactions
Why Global Money Matters
What Is Capitalism?
Trade
Finance: Borrowers, Lenders, and Debt
Currencies
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Part II: Global Challenges
Chapter 8: Democracy and Representation: Struggles for Freedom and Efforts to Restrict It
A Critical Moment for Democracy
What Do Democracies Consist of?
What Do Dictatorships Consist of?
Trends in Democratization
The Process of Democratization
Democratic Consolidation
Democracy and International Studies Themes
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 9: Human Rights: The Challenge of Setting and Enforcing Global Norms
What Is the Human Rights Regime?
Human Rights at the UN Level: Roots of the Tension Between Universal Rights and State Sovereignty
Regional Approaches to Human Rights
What Roles Do Nonstate Human Rights Actors Play?
Do Human Rights Work?
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 10: Development: The Challenge of Global Poverty
A Picture of Uneven Global Poverty
What Is Development, and How Is It Measured?
Why Are Some Countries Poor?
How Can Developing Countries Grow Their Economies? Five Theories
Neoliberalism and the Washington Consensus: Shrink the State, Embrace the Market
The Role of Foreign Aid
Debt: A "lost decade" for poor countries?
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 11: Armed Conflict and Political Violence: New Global Security Challenges and Efforts to Manage Them
Types of Armed Conflict
What Is Terrorism?
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 12: Migration: Confronting the Myths of Human Movement
What Is Migration?
Trends in Global Migration: Facts and Myths
Why Do People Migrate? Push, Pull, and Policy Factors
The Impacts of International Migration
Brain Drain or Brain Gain?
Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery
Can Migration Be Governed Globally?
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 13: Global Health: Addressing Inequalities in Outcomes
Bugs Do Not Respect Borders, and Other International Studies Themes
What Is Global Health?
Global Health Outcomes Highlight Systemic Inequalities
The Global HIV and AIDS Pandemic
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 14: Global Environment: Confronting the Challenge of Climate Change
What Is Climate Change?
Empirics of Climate Change
Predictions About Future Climate Change
Impacts of Climate Change
Responses to Climate Change: Global Governance
Other Approaches to Climate Change
Climate Change and Cross-Cutting Global Forces
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Chapter 15: Global Food: How Can We Solve World Hunger?
Global Hunger and a Growing Population: Is There Enough Food?
If There Is Enough Food, Why Do Famines Occur?
Reducing Hunger: Food Security or Food Sovereignty
Who Runs Global Food?
Tracing Global Food: Value Chains
Summary
Key Terms
Questions for Review
Learn More
Notes
Glossary
Index