Culture and Foreign Policy

Abstract

During the Cold War years, one could argue that the constraints of the bipolar rivalry dwarfed in large part the domestic idiosyncrasies of nations. Now, however, nations often define national interest in terms of particularistic domestic motivations and imperatives--a change that calls for systemic study of the effect of societal culture on foreign policy. This collection introduces the reader to the evolution of thinking about culturue and foreign policy. The authors also assess the current state of the field, clarify theoretical concepts and frameworks, and investigate approproate and innovative methodologies for empirical study