Why is clear military superiority, such as that enjoyed by the United States, seemingly unable to influence the behaviour of targets in many instances? Does China's rapidly growing economy endow it with a potent economic instrument of power? Is the soft power of the West declining amid global financial crisis and domestic political turmoil? Who is winning the contest of great powers in the 21st century? This course focuses on puzzles like these, examining how power is accumulated and wielded in international relations, and the conditions under which its use can be successful. States are the primary focus of the course, and five primary modes of power will be studied: military power, economic power, technological power, soft power and hegemonic power. The objective of this course is to provide the student with a broad and deep understanding of how power can be conceptualised, measured, and deployed in international relations, and the conditions for its successful use. The course considers a wide range of contemporary issues and case studies and will analyse both the capacity of and limitations on states to wield different types of power successfully.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- identify, compare and evaluate different types of power and instruments of power in international relations;
- analyse the conditions under which the use of different types of power deployed by states will succeed or fail;
- debate and evaluate different approaches to major issues;
- apply the various analytical frameworks relating to to the use of power to contemporary case studies; and
- develop and demonstrate sound research and writing skills.
Indicative Assessment
- In-class quizzes (4 x 30 mins) (20) [LO 1,2,4]
- Take-home exam, 1,800 words (35) [LO 1,2,3,4]
- Research essay, 3,000 words (45) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
130 hours of total student learning time made up from:
a) 35 hours of lecture content (25 hours) and in-person interactive seminars (10 hours) over a two-week period.
b) 95 hours of independent student research, reading and writing.
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Please see class summary for prescribed readings.
Preliminary Reading
David Baldwin, 1985, Economic Statecraft (Princeton).
Daniel Byman and Matthew Waxman, 2002, The Dynamics of Coercion: American Foreign Policy and the Limits of Military Might (RAND).
Joseph Nye, 2004, Soft Power: The Means to Succeed in World Politics (Public Affairs).
Felix Berenskoetter and M.J. Williams (Eds.), 2007, Power in World Politics (Routledge).
David Baldwin, 2016, Power and International relations: A Conceptual Approach (Princeton).
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 14
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2025 | $4680 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2025 | $6360 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Spring Session
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9399 | 01 Oct 2025 | 24 Oct 2025 | 24 Oct 2025 | 31 Dec 2025 | In Person | N/A |