International Political Economy

The Struggle for Power and Wealth
3rd Edition
Thomas Lairson and David Skidmore
From the Author's Preface

This edition of our book carries over many of the objectives and themes central to the first two editions, while also addressing a number of new topics and issues. Once again, our goal has been to produce a clear and readable textbook without sacrificing sophistication or rigor. We recognize the difficulties that students face in mastering a subject that lies at the intersection of two complex fields -- political science and economics. We therefore take great care to explain basic economic concepts and to offer a balanced blend of theory, history and policy. We believe that the resulting volume is accessible enough to be used as a supplement in an introductory course on international relations, but challenging enough to be assigned as a main textbook for upper level courses.

As before, we depict the international political economy as realm of both struggle and cooperation. We show how these contrary imperatives coexist and how the mix between the two varies over time, across countries and within issues. In pursuing this theme, we weave together theory, concepts and arguments throughout and tie these ideas closely to the topics under discussion.

The third edition includes a number of pedagogical aids, including illustrations and tables, anecdotes, an annotated bibliography at the end of each chapter, a glossary of essential terms, a list of acronyms and a list of relevant web links.
The third edition has been updated throughout to reflect current events and new data. The new edition also includes expanded coverage of a number of important topics, including:

• Expanded discussion of global economic interdependence between 1890-1914
• Analysis of the impact of the Euro on the European Union and on the world economy
• New evidence on the political consequences of the globalization of finance
• New evidence on the direction and consequences of foreign direct investment
• Discussion of the impact of multinational corporations on developing states
• The impact of global production networks created by multinational corporations
• Examination of the impact of information technology and the Internet on the political and economic strength of states
• Evaluation of the impact of freer global markets on income inequality, on economic growth, on welfare and tax policies, and on the ability of nations to control their economies
• Extended discussion of the continuing economic crisis in Japan
• Examination of Silicon Valley as a primary example of competitiveness in the information age
• The launching of a new round of global trade negotiations.
• The role of social capital in development.
• Recent efforts to reform official development assistance.
• The emergence of a transnational anti-globalization movement led by non-governmental organizations.
• The consequences and lessons of the Asian financial crisis and its spread to Russia and Latin America.
• New proposals for reforming the international financial system.
• The HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa and other parts of the developing world.
• The debate over the production and trade of genetically modified food products.
• A discussion of the ìtragedy of the commonsî and the relationship of this concept to international negotiations over ozone depletion and climate change.

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