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Interest in zombies is booming across campuses. International Relations (IR) scholars have likewise begun to pay attention to the undead, as the zombie invasion scenario-envisioned in a variety of movies, television shows, and books-brings to bear many of the key issues and controversies of international relations theory. Here I provide some concrete suggestions for incorporating zombies into undergraduate classes. Drawing from a leading book in this genre (World War Z), I sketch out some of the ways that the zombie wars can be applied to key issues taught in introductory-level IR classes. I then provide specific suggestions to incorporating these insights into the classroom, including discussion guides and simple role-playing exercises. Adapted from the source document.

Though a great deal of scholarship has been devoted to the relationship between economic interdependence and conflict — the 'liberal peace' — the conceptual and analytic focus of this body of literature remains quite narrow. Seeking to improve upon extant literature, I incorporate Deutsch's concept of the 'security community' to provide a broader theoretical foundation for the impact of economic interdependence upon interstate relations. Next, I empirically explore where trade, the key independent variable in this body of literature, fits within the broader web of interactions and transactions that contribute towards the integrative process. I then employ events data to assess the impact of integration upon four different measures of interstate interactions — two types of interactions (conflict and cooperation) across two issue areas (economic and military).

Interdependence is one of the most commonly used concepts within the field of international relations. It has been applied, in one form or another, to most every issue within the study of international relations. Yet empirical assessment of this crucial concept is not commensurate with its conceptual complexity. Rather, works commonly focus on a single facet of interdependence: economic ties. Seeking a more complex, empirically driven measurement of this concept, I explore the multiple dimensions of interdependence, as demonstrated by transactions between states. Specifically, ten separate variables, each representing a different facet of interstate ties, are examined to empirically determine the structure of interdependence. Using factor analysis, three distinct dimensions of interdependence are uncovered.

The structure of the world‐economy is a central issue in world‐systems research. Empirical structural analysis, however, has generally focused on a single structural aspect of the world‐system: delineation of the core, periphery, and semiperiphery. This study examines another important structural facet of the world‐system–blocs within the world trading order. The existence of blocs within the world‐economy, as well as their configuration, have implications for states at all structural positions of the world system. Analysis of blocs which exist among core states can provide insights into issues of hegemonic cycles and decline. Outside of the core, the character of clusters can provide evidence regarding peripheral mobility, fragmentation, or subimperialism. Employing two complementary network methods, asymmetric multidimensional scaling and clique detection, this study examines blocs within the world‐economy at three points since World War II: 1955, 1975, and 1994. Results indicate a somewhat multipolar, though not necessarily antagonistic, core and a somewhat fragmented periphery.

Empirically examines structure of the global economy, as evidenced by trading relations, and assesses relative utility of four alternate "visions" for global trading order, and implications of trading structure on commerce, cooperation, and conflict between countries.