Foreign Policy – Undergraduate Course Syllabus

Course Description

The aim of the course is to provide students with a broad theoretical basis in the field and to prepare them for further research and employment in Foreign Policy. Foreign policy refers to the various strategies a country uses to protect its international and national interests. It determines how it interacts with other state and non-state actors. Diplomacy or other more direct means, such as military aggression or cyberattacks, can achieve this. Foreign Policy course helps students understand and explain these means by giving them the right tools to think about them.

Students will explore, compare, and debate the merits of theories and key foreign policy concepts through in-depth discussion to develop a solid understanding of the various theoretical and practical perspectives. In each lecture, we will place these theories and concepts in their historical context, show how they contribute to a better understanding of international and national security, and assess their strengths and weaknesses.

Applying the Aristotelian method of teaching, I will focus on developing both the intellectual and moral virtues of students. Intellectual virtues are character traits such as the ability to judge the truth and comprehend the nature of things, whereas moral virtues are habits of living that involve the whole person and include justice, temperance, prudence, and fortitude, which are characterised by desire and emotion.

In addition, I designed the course with the following implications in mind: to understand the diverse backgrounds of undergraduate students, to provide full support to non-native speakers in relation to academic English, and to engage the students in practical discussions and seminars. An inclusive curriculum implements policies and resources to ensure that all students are supported in their learning.

Learning Objectives and Outcomes

  • Analyse and apply diverse theoretical approaches to foreign policy.
  • Examine critically the reasons for cooperation and conflict in international relations.
  • Engage in contemporary theoretical discussions.
  • Construct and defend theoretically sophisticated arguments regarding foreign policy.
  • Identify leading authors and the theories with which they are associated.
  • Learn to think and write critically about crucial debates in foreign policy analysis.
  • Effective oral and written communication in professional applications of foreign policy.
  • Develop innovative ways of thinking about the practical implications of foreign policy (responsible actors, foreign policy practice, diplomacy, agency and structure). 

Reading Materials

Foundation texts

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

Additionally, essential and recommended readings based on scholarly articles are provided for each lecture to introduce students to academic analytical and critical thinking.

The quality of teaching, course content, and literature included reflects the advanced practice of worldwide recognised departments of politics and international relations.

Course Content

Lecture 1: Foreign Policy and International Relations

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Foreign Policy in International Relations

Essential Required Reading

Recommended Reading

  • Hurwitz, J. and Peffley, M. (1987) ‘How are Foreign Policy Attitudes Structured? A Hierarchical Model’, American Political Science Review, 81(4), pp. 1099–1120. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/1962580.
  • Jacobs, L.R. and Page, B.I. (2005) ‘Who Influences U.S. Foreign Policy?’, American Political Science Review, 99(1), pp. 107–123. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/S000305540505152X.
  • Lavenex, S. (2006) ‘Shifting up and out: The foreign policy of European immigration control’, West European Politics, 29(2), pp. 329–350. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/01402380500512684.

Lecture 2: Foreign Policy and Politics

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • The Politics of Foreign Policy

Essential Required Reading

  • Carlsnaes, W. (1992) ‘The Agency-Structure Problem in Foreign Policy Analysis’, International Studies Quarterly, 36(3), p. 245. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/2600772.
  • Gadarian, S.K. (2010) ‘The Politics of Threat: How Terrorism News Shapes Foreign Policy Attitudes’, The Journal of Politics, 72(2), pp. 469–483. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022381609990910.
  • Nye, J.S. (2004) ‘Soft Power and American Foreign Policy’, Political Science Quarterly, 119(2), pp. 255–270. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/20202345.

Recommended Reading

  • Kertzer, J.D. et al. (2014) ‘Moral Support: How Moral Values Shape Foreign Policy Attitudes’, The Journal of Politics, 76(3), pp. 825–840. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022381614000073.
  • Layne, C. (2018) ‘The US–Chinese power shift and the end of the Pax Americana’, International Affairs, 94(1), pp. 89–111. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/ia/iix249.
  • Malamud, A. (2011) ‘A Leader Without Followers? The Growing Divergence Between the Regional and Global Performance of Brazilian Foreign Policy’, Latin American Politics and Society, 53(3), pp. 1–24. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1548-2456.2011.00123.x.

Lecture 3: Foreign Policy Actors

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • The Actors: Taking Responsibility

Essential Required Reading

  • Cross, M.K.D. and Karolewski, I.P. (2017) ‘What Type of Power has the EU Exercised in the Ukraine-Russia Crisis? A Framework of Analysis: Europe’s Hybrid Foreign Policy’, JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies, 55(1), pp. 3–19. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/jcms.12442.
  • Tellander, E. and Horst, C. (2019) ‘A Foreign Policy Actor of Importance? The Role of the Somali Diaspora in Shaping Norwegian Policy towards Somalia’, Foreign Policy Analysis, 15(1), pp. 136–154. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/fpa/orx012.
  • von Seth, R. (2018) ‘All Quiet on the Eastern Front? Media Images of the West and Russian Foreign Political Identity’, Europe-Asia Studies, 70(3), pp. 421–440. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/09668136.2018.1448926.

Recommended Reading

  • Ayata, B. (2015) ‘Turkish Foreign Policy in a Changing Arab World: Rise and Fall of a Regional Actor?’, Journal of European Integration, 37(1), pp. 95–112. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/07036337.2014.975991.
  • Black, L. and Hwang, Y.-J. (2012) ‘China and Japan’s Quest for Great Power Status: Norm Entrepreneurship in Anti-Piracy Responses’, International Relations, 26(4), pp. 431–451. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0047117812452441.
  • Darwich, M. (2021) ‘Foreign Policy Analysis and Armed Non-State Actors in World Politics: Lessons from the Middle East’, Foreign Policy Analysis, 17(4), p. orab030. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/fpa/orab030.

Lecture 4: Foreign Policy Agents

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Agents: Bureaucracy and the Proliferation of External Relations

Essential Required Reading

  • Blarel, N. and Sarkar, J. (2019) ‘Substate Organizations as Foreign Policy Agents: New Evidence and Theory from India, Israel, and France’, Foreign Policy Analysis, 15(3), pp. 413–431. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/fpa/ory009.
  • Homan, P. and Lantis, J.S. (2022) ‘Foreign policy free agents: how lawmakers and coalitions on the political margins help set boundaries for US foreign policy’, International Politics, 59(5), pp. 851–872. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41311-021-00371-8.
  • Klatt, M. (2017) ‘Minorities as secondary foreign policy agents in peace-building and reconciliation? The case of Denmark and Germany’, Regional & Federal Studies, 27(3), pp. 239–259. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/13597566.2017.1350651.

Recommended Reading

  • Drezner, D.W. (2019) ‘Present at the Destruction: The Trump Administration and the Foreign Policy Bureaucracy’, The Journal of Politics, 81(2), pp. 723–730. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1086/702230.
  • Hudson, V.M. (2002) ‘Foreign Policy Decision-Making’, in Snyder, R. C., Bruck, H. W., and Sapin, B., Foreign Policy Decision-Making (Revisited). New York: Palgrave Macmillan US, pp. 1–20. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230107526_1.
  • Kaarbo, J. (2015) ‘A Foreign Policy Analysis Perspective on the Domestic Politics Turn in IR Theory’, International Studies Review, 17(2), pp. 189–216. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/misr.12213.

Lecture 5: Rationality in Foreign Policy

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Rationality in Foreign Policy

Essential Required Reading

Recommended Reading

  • Pursiainen, C. and Forsberg, T. (2021) ‘The Cognitive Limitations of Rationality’, in Pursiainen, C. and Forsberg, T., The Psychology of Foreign Policy. Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 47–87. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-79887-1_2.
  • Scott, W.A. (1958) ‘Rationality and non-rationality of international attitudes’, Journal of Conflict Resolution, 2(1), pp. 8–16. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/002200275800200102.
  • Verba, S. (1961) ‘Assumptions of Rationality and Non-Rationality in Models of the International System’, World Politics, 14(1), pp. 93–117. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/2009558.

Lecture 6: Foreign Policy and Power

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Implementation: Foreign Policy Practice and the Texture of Power

Essential Required Reading

  • Amirbek, A. and Ydyrys, K. (2014) ‘Education and Soft Power: Analysis as an Instrument of Foreign Policy’, Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 143, pp. 514–516. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.07.428.
  • Braveboy-Wagner, J. (2010) ‘Opportunities and limitations of the exercise of foreign policy power by a very small state: the case of Trinidad and Tobago’, Cambridge Review of International Affairs, 23(3), pp. 407–427. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/09557571.2010.484049.
  • Nye, J.S. (2011) ‘Power and foreign policy’, Journal of Political Power, 4(1), pp. 9–24. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/2158379X.2011.555960.

Recommended Reading

  • Herrmann, R. (1986) ‘The Power of Perceptions in Foreign-Policy Decision Making: Do Views of the Soviet Union Determine the Policy Choices of American Leaders?’, American Journal of Political Science, 30(4), p. 841. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/2111276.
  • Tsygankov, A.P. (2006) ‘If not by tanks, then by banks? The role of soft power in Putin’s foreign policy’, Europe-Asia Studies, 58(7), pp. 1079–1099. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/09668130600926355.
  • Viner, J. (1948) ‘Power versus Plenty as Objectives of Foreign Policy in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries’, World Politics, 1(1), pp. 1–29. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/2009156.

Lecture 7: Foreign Policy, Geopolitics, Interdependence, and the System

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Foreign Policy in a Multi-Actor World

Essential Required Reading

  • Cooper, R.N. (1972) ‘Economic Interdependence and Foreign Policy in the Seventies’, World Politics, 24(2), pp. 159–181. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/2009735.
  • İpek, P. (2007) ‘The role of oil and gas in Kazakhstan’s foreign policy: Looking east or west?’, Europe-Asia Studies, 59(7), pp. 1179–1199. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/09668130701607144.
  • Libman, A. and Obydenkova, A.V. (2018) ‘Regional international organizations as a strategy of autocracy: the Eurasian Economic Union and Russian foreign policy’, International Affairs, 94(5), pp. 1037–1058. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/ia/iiy147.

Recommended Reading

  • Kahler, M. and Kastner, S.L. (2006) ‘Strategic Uses of Economic Interdependence: Engagement Policies on the Korean Peninsula and Across the Taiwan Strait’, Journal of Peace Research, 43(5), pp. 523–541. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0022343306066778.
  • Takeuchi, H. (2014) ‘Sino-Japanese relations: power, interdependence, and domestic politics’, International Relations of the Asia-Pacific, 14(1), pp. 7–32. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/irap/lct023.
  • Tuathail, G.Ó. and Agnew, J. (1992) ‘Geopolitics and discourse’, Political Geography, 11(2), pp. 190–204. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/0962-6298(92)90048-X.

Lecture 8: Transnational Aspects of Foreign Policy

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Transnational Reformulations

Essential Required Reading

  • Hägel, P. and Peretz, P. (2005) ‘States and Transnational Actors: Who’s Influencing Whom? A Case Study in Jewish Diaspora Politics during the Cold War’, European Journal of International Relations, 11(4), pp. 467–493. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/1354066105057893.
  • Porter, P. (2018) ‘Why America’s Grand Strategy Has Not Changed: Power, Habit, and the U.S. Foreign Policy Establishment’, International Security, 42(4), pp. 9–46. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1162/isec_a_00311.
  • Risse, T. (2007) ‘Transnational Actors and World Politics’, in W.C. Zimmerli, M. Holzinger, and K. Richter (eds) Corporate Ethics and Corporate Governance. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg, pp. 251–286. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-70818-6_19.

Recommended Reading

  • Davis, D.R. and Moore, W.H. (1997) ‘Ethnicity Matters: Transnational Ethnic Alliances and Foreign Policy Behavior’, International Studies Quarterly, 41(1), pp. 171–184. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/0020-8833.00037.
  • Nye, J.S. and Keohane, R.O. (1971) ‘Transnational Relations and World Politics: A Conclusion’, International Organization, 25(3), pp. 721–748. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0020818300026412.
  • Peterson, M.J. (1992) ‘Transnational Activity, International Society and World Politics’, Millennium: Journal of International Studies, 21(3), pp. 371–388. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/03058298920210030901.

Lecture 9: Domestic Aspects of Foreign Policy

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • The Domestic Sources of Foreign Policy

Essential Required Reading

  • Anderson, C.J. (1998) ‘When in Doubt, Use Proxies: Attitudes toward Domestic Politics and Support for European Integration’, Comparative Political Studies, 31(5), pp. 569–601. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0010414098031005002.
  • Cantir, C. and Kaarbo, J. (2012) ‘Contested Roles and Domestic Politics: Reflections on Role Theory in Foreign Policy Analysis and IR Theory1: Contested Roles and Domestic Politics’, Foreign Policy Analysis, 8(1), pp. 5–24. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1743-8594.2011.00156.x.
  • Fearon, J.D. (1998) ‘DOMESTIC POLITICS, FOREIGN POLICY, AND THEORIES OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS’, Annual Review of Political Science, 1(1), pp. 289–313. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.polisci.1.1.289.

Recommended Reading

  • Chapman, T.L. (2007) ‘International Security Institutions, Domestic Politics, and Institutional Legitimacy’, Journal of Conflict Resolution, 51(1), pp. 134–166. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0022002706296177.
  • Smith, A. (1998) ‘International Crises and Domestic Politics’, American Political Science Review, 92(3), pp. 623–638. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/2585485.
  • Smith, M. (2004) ‘Toward a theory of EU foreign policy-making: multi-level governance, domestic politics, and national adaptation to Europe’s common foreign and security policy’, Journal of European Public Policy, 11(4), pp. 740–758. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/1350176042000248124

Lecture 10: Foreign Policy, Interest Groups, Society, and the Public

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Politics, Society and Foreign Policy

Essential Required Reading

  • McLean, E.V. and Whang, T. (2014) ‘Designing foreign policy: Voters, special interest groups, and economic sanctions’, Journal of Peace Research, 51(5), pp. 589–602. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0022343314533811.
  • Risse-Kappen, T. (1991) ‘Public Opinion, Domestic Structure, and Foreign Policy in Liberal Democracies’, World Politics, 43(4), pp. 479–512. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/2010534.
  • Soroka, S.N. (2003) ‘Media, Public Opinion, and Foreign Policy’, Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics, 8(1), pp. 27–48. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/1081180X02238783.

Recommended Reading

  • Bossuyt, F. (2021) ‘The influence of interest groups on the EU’s foreign policy: assessing and explaining the influence of human rights NGOs on the EU’s human rights promotion in the post-Soviet space’, Contemporary Politics, 27(3), pp. 356–370. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/13569775.2021.1907938.
  • Newman, E. and Visoka, G. (2016) ‘The Foreign Policy of State Recognition: Kosovo’s Diplomatic Strategy to Join International Society’, Foreign Policy Analysis, p. orw042. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/fpa/orw042.
  • Ross, L.R. (2013) ‘Muslim Interest Groups and Foreign Policy in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom: Identity, Interests, and Action’, Foreign Policy Analysis, 9(3), pp. 287–306. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1743-8594.2012.00186.x.

Lecture 11: Foreign Policy and the State

Core Required Reading

Hill, C. (2016) Foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Second edition. London; New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Foreign Policy and the Revival of the State

Essential Required Reading

  • Checkel, J. (1993) ‘Ideas, Institutions, and the Gorbachev Foreign Policy Revolution’, World Politics, 45(2), pp. 271–300. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/2950660.
  • Hocking, B. (1993) ‘Localizing Foreign Policy’, in Hocking, B., Localizing Foreign Policy. London: Palgrave Macmillan UK, pp. 8–30. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-22963-5_2.
  • Lake, D.A. (1992) ‘Powerful Pacifists: Democratic States and War’, American Political Science Review, 86(1), pp. 24–37. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/1964013.

Recommended Reading

  • Kastner, S.L. and Saunders, P.C. (2012) ‘Is China a Status Quo or Revisionist State? Leadership Travel as an Empirical Indicator of Foreign Policy Priorities1: Is China a Status Quo or Revisionist State?’, International Studies Quarterly, 56(1), pp. 163–177. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2478.2011.00697.x.
  • Levi, W. (1970) ‘Ideology, Interests, and Foreign Policy’, International Studies Quarterly, 14(1), p. 1. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/3013538.
  • Subotić, J. (2015) ‘Narrative, Ontological Security, and Foreign Policy Change’, Foreign Policy Analysis, p. n/a-n/a. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/fpa.12089.

Required Students’ Skills

Read the course materials carefully and focus on the core and essential required readings that will greatly increase your level of knowledge.

Learn how to use search engines for academic articles, primarily Web of Science, JSTOR, SAGE Journals, and Google Scholar.

To pass an essay assignment with flying colours, you must master the Harvard citation style. Also, it is highly recommended to read the following publication about research methods and design to improve your essay score:

  • Lamont, C. and Boduszynski, M. (2020) Research methods in politics and international relations. Thousand Oaks: SAGE.

Throughout the course, students are also expected to familiarise themselves with leading academic journals to locate the latest articles, thereby connecting with the international relations academic community.

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