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- Abstract:
- To what extent does hegemonic behavior in peripheral areas change during times of instability in the global world order? The United States has sought to preserve its relative power advantage against China for twenty years, but its policies towards peripheral areas break with existing scholarship. Current explanations—foundational international relations theories, hegemonic order theory, and brinkmanship—predict aggressive behavior from the hegemon towards the rising power and even preemptive war. I argue that hegemonic behavior instead manifests as competition for allies and relative strategic influence. An examination of U.S. policy towards China in the South China Sea from 2000 to 2023 reveals the threat of nuclear war mitigates international conflict; hegemons are initially complacent and reactive in peripheral areas and only become proactive when they perceive the rising power to have achieved parity. Using twenty years of quantitative data on U.S. activity, key U.S. policy documents, and interviews with subject matter experts, I test four theories of hegemonic behavior and synthesize them into a new framework. Different theories have explanatory power for hegemonic behavior during different policy phases. My study has implications for the U.S.-China relations, interstate competition, global stability, and research on international relations more broadly.
- Notes:
- Senior thesis (AB)--Brown University, 2024
- Concentration: International and Public Affairs
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Citation
Yee-Wadsworth, Sofia L.,
"WHEN THE COMPLACENT GIANT STIRS: Revisiting Hegemonic Behavior During Instability in the Global World Order"
(2024).
International and Public Affairs Theses and Dissertations, The Watson School of International and Public Affairs Theses and Dissertations.
Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library.
https://doi.org/10.26300/7whz-6p31
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WHEN THE COMPLACENT GIANT STIRS: Revisiting Hegemonic Behavior During Instability in the Global World Order
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The Watson School of International and Public Affairs Theses and Dissertations
Theses and Dissertations for the The Watson School of International and Public Affairs department....