- The surge of globalization,
- The endurance of U.S. unipolarity,
- The rise of China, and in the foreseeable future, of India as well,
- The emergence of Jihadism.
To understand the post-Cold War world order, we need to answer the major questions:
- Why is the United States faced not with balancing efforts from the other great powers but with terrorist attacks from networks based in the Middle East?
- Can China rise to the position of world hegemon (and replace the United States)?
- Can globalization alter the nature (and outcome) of power competition?
To answer these questions, we need to develop theoretical thoughts about:
- Motivation and mobilization
- Group motivation
- The interplay of power (constraints and resources) and ideas (historical exprience)