War and Peace in International Relations

Course Description

When do states go to war with each other? When do states enter peace negotiations, and when do states avoid conflict altogether? With the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine and interstate conflict in the Middle East, these questions have once come to the forefront of academic and popular discussion. War and Peace in IR looks to introduce theories surrounding interstate conflict in conjunction with an interactive simulation and case study analysis.
Students will be introduced to core concepts underpinning international relations. Lecture topics will include definitions of statehood, core concepts of diplomacy, organizational of the international system, and other foundational topics. The aim of this section is to place all students on a similar knowledge level prior to the simulation and any theoretical discussion. Inter-class discussion and questions will be a core feature of this section.
The second day of the course will involve a full-day conflict/negotiation simulation using an augmented version of Georgetown University’s 1995 “Nations: A Simulation Game in International Politics.” Students will be divided into groups representing fictional nations with ongoing territorial, resource, and legal disputes. Trade, diplomacy, and war are all valid policy options in this scenario as students will have to meet certain objectives unique to their state before the end of the simulation. Students will communicate with the instructor and other nations through note form, although face-to-face negotiation is permitted given mutual agreement. The details of the simulation will be provided to students through printouts with an emphasis on avoiding Generative AI usage.
Days Three to Four will begin by reflecting on the results of the simulation. The aim of this section will allow students to recall their practical experience from the simulation prior to any introduction of frameworks. Days 3-4 will include an overview of the three core frameworks in IR: realism, liberalism, and constructivism. Simplified summaries of foundational texts will be provided as well. Day Four will introduce theories of conflict and negotiation that lie within the frameworks: bargaining theory, prospect theory, and Democratic/Capitalist Peace theory. These will be introduced in the context of both the simulation and real-world examples.
The final day of the course will involve a case study analysis of the Russian War in Ukraine from 2014 to the present day. The session will begin with a chronological overview from the dissolution of the Soviet Union to the present-day full-scale invasion. Factors introduced will include the role of nationalism, nuclear disarmament, Western security guarantees, domestic political movements. Open discussion will then be opened to the class. The final session will be dedicated to a handwritten final position paper answering the question: “What causes war and peace in international relations?”