International Relations deal with human behavior in the largest
of all social groups: the international society. Hedley Bull (1977), one of the founders of
‘international society’ approach states that “The starting point of international relations is
the existence of states, or independent political communities, each of which possesses a
government and asserts sovereignty in relation to a particular portion of the earth’s
surface and a particular segment of the human population”.
International Relations theory is an intellectual treasure trove
of Weberian ideal types of phenomenon, structures, processes, causes, effects and
outcomes. These theories have been used to describe and explain the phenomena of
regional integration, regional organization, and illustrate the role of individuals within
this system. Its approach is both traditional and non-traditional. It is traditional because it
is organized around the major traditions of international relations theory – realism,
idealism, historical materialism, constructivism, gender and globalization. It is non –
traditional because it re-examines these IR traditions by asking about the truth which lies
in the facts and figures being provided. The two major theories that examine the notion of
regional organizations are realism and liberalism.
Individual Rationality/Rational Choice Theory
This theory presumes a structural determination of actor behavior at the individual or
personal level rather than an interactive, dynamic process where the interests and wants
of individuals eventually influence and shape social, economic and political
organizations. Rational choice could plausibly lay claim to being the grand theory of high
modernity. Its principles are fundamentally about the progressive rationalization of the
West and then the rest of the World.
Rational Choice Theory wants to replace Homo sociologicus
with Homo economicus, because the former is regarded as a cultural or structural ‘dope’.
To take a ‘social’ starting-point is, for Rational Choice Theory, to say that social factors,
such as norms and structures, are antecedent to the individual, and that these factors are
therefore the independent variable, with individual behavior being the dependent
variable. ‘Sociological’, or rather, ‘over socialized’, accounts of individuals posit
conceptions of individuals whereby individuals’ attitudes and behavior are determined by
social norms and/or structures. To avoid this, the theory, argues that the individuals are
the independent variable which is antecedent to social factors.
Neo – Functionalism: Haas formulated a theory that he called neo functionalism. He
reformulated Mitrany’s theory in three ways: First, he tried the theory in actual
application to regional groupings or existing international organizations. No
functionalism is a global functionalism revised and reduced to a regional scale. In view of
the euphoria generated by the European Integration process, Haas argues that neo-
functionalism became “one of the most promising models of analysis” in international
relations. Second, Haas modified Mitrany’s theory by attempting to integrate
functionalism and general systems theory. Finally, Haas tried to produce a set of
hypotheses that could be tested in the light of empirical evidence to determine the actual
impact of functionalism or international affairs.
League of Arab
Arab League most commonly known as the League of Arab States
came into existence in 1945 with an aim of providing political expression to the Arab
nations – member states of the League. It comprises of twenty two independent Arab
states. The multipurpose League of Arab States seeks to promote Arab interests in
general, but especially economic and security interests Among the most important
activities of the Arab League have been its attempts to coordinate Arab economic life;
efforts toward this aim include the Arab Telecommunications Union (1953), the Arab
Postal Union (1954), and the Arab Development Bank (1959, later known as the Arab
Financial Organization). The Arab Common Market was established in 1965 and is open
to all Arab League members. The common market agreement provides for the eventual
abolition of customs duties on natural resources and agricultural products, free movement
of capital and labor among member countries and coordination of economic
development.
The theories and articles provided by Noble and Waltz gives a
clear insight on the Arab politics and its relation in terms of the International Relations
theory. Noble began his assessment of the Arab system with a focus on what he termed
‘unit properties’. While Waltz saw no ‘functional differentiation’ among units in the
international system, and thus dropped domestic political variables out of his definition of
international systems, Noble identified the extensive changes in the Arab society and the
original weakness of post-colonial Arab states as common domestic characteristics
among the units of his system that created regular patterns of international outcomes.
Domestic weakness and instability opened Arab states up to intervention - more political
than military –by their neighbors, results in the chronic instability of the regional politics.
As member states of the Arab League became stronger, the Arab world was less
characterized by the meddling in the domestic affairs of neighbors. Here a domestic
political characteristic, the relative strength of the state over its society, varied in the
same direction at the same time among almost all the Arab states, and produces an
important change in Arab statecraft.
Rather than accept the territorially distinct, separate,
and legally equal states bequeathed to them by colonialism, many Arabs saw an
alternative way of organizing their political geography, into a single, hierarchically –
organized Arab unit. The Arab League represented an uneasy compromise between the
two principles, basing itself explicitly on the desire for Arab unity while recognizing the
sovereign rights of the Arab state members. This conflict over organizing principles helps
to understand the common origin of the Arab-Israeli conflict and inter-Arab conflicts, as
both reflected not simply a rejection of the colonial territorial disposition in the region but
the challenge presented to that status quo by an alternative organizing principle, Arabism.
The ‘instability’ seem as so characteristic of regional politics can thus be understood
theoretically as deriving from a clash between opposed organizing principles of the
regional system, though the specifics of regional conflicts were undoubtedly affected by
both regime security issues and by classical balance of power issues. By opening up what
Waltz had declared close, Noble helps us understand at a theoretical level the patterns of
conflict that have characterized regional international relations.
REFERENCES :
à Choi, Y. J, Caporaso, J.A "Comparative Regional Integration" in Carlsnaes, Walter,
Thomas Risse, and Beth A Simmons, eds. (2002). Handbook of International Relations.
Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, ISBN: 0761963057 (hereafter Carlsnaes et al.).
à Dougherty, J.E, Pfaltzgraff,Jr, R.L (2001) Contending Theories of International
Relations: A Comprehensive Survey (New York ; London : Longman)
à Hass, E. Butterworth, R. and Nye, J.S. (1972) Conflict Management by International
Organization (Morristown: General Learning Press)
à Karns, M.P, Mingst, K.A. (2004) International organizations : the politics and
processes of global governance (Boulder, Colo. ; London : Lynne Rienner)
à Mitrany, D. (1968) "The Prospect of Integration: Federal or Functional?", in Joseph S.
Nye (ed.), International Regionalism: Readings. (Boston: Little, Brown)
à Russett, B. and Lilach, G. "Peace and Conflict Resolution" in Carlsnaes, Walter,
Thomas Risse, and Beth A Simmons, eds. (2002). Handbook of International Relations.
Thousand Oaks, CA.
à Ward, H. ‘Rational Choice' in Marsh, D. and Stoker, G. eds. (2002) Theory and
Methods in Political Science (Basingstoke: Macmillan, second edition).
à http://www.ciaonet.org/
à www.wikipedia.en
