International Relations Theory & Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation

This course integrates the two courses ‘IR Theory’ and ‘Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation’ into one course in order to combine theory and practice. That is to say, the study of Asia-pacific cooperation will be based on the IR theories and constitutes empirical part of this course. 

Theoretically, this class will focus on the three mainstream theories: Realism, Liberalism, and Constructivism. Class discussion topics serve as a foundation for student presentation on these theories. Students are also welcome to apply alternative theories in the Asia-Pacific empirical study, such as dependency theory or world system theory.

Empirically, this class will try to describe and explain the regional cooperation process in the Asia-Pacific area, which will focus on the construction and conflict surrounding the regional institutions. Certainly, the construction and conflict should be analyzed through case studies as detailed and deep as possible.