I’m glad to say that I have a new article accepted for publication at the journal International Politics, which is edited by Michael Cox at the London School of Economics. IP is a great, lively journal that publishes relatively short, engaging (and often argumentative) pieces. It is (I think) gaining prominence in the UK and elsewhere. They recently had a great special issue on responses to regional powers that is very relevant to anyone interested in regionalism or the role of Brazil in South America. My CIDE colleague Mark Aspinwall also published a great, counter-intuitive article about Mexican influence on U.S. drug policy in the journal a few weeks ago.
My own article certainly seeks to fit the journal’s argumentative mode. It is titled “It’s Not the Size, It’s the Relationship: From ‘Small States’ to Asymmetry.” The basic thrust of the argument is as follows: decades of debate over how we should define the term “small state” has not produced much consensus (everyone agrees on this). Furthermore, the debate has had some negative consequences, like limiting theory-building, comparison, and two-way conversation with IR theory. Instead, I argue that we should more fully embrace a relational approach that places small states within the context of asymmetrical relationships instead of treating them as a coherent category.
I don’t have a publication date or link yet, but I will update when I do.
*Intentionally sophomoric title. But it actually makes sense!
Tom Long, PhD 