ABSTRACT
This chapter seeks to clarify issues and operations of global interactions and the global political economy, while simultaneously provoking recognition of the ambiguous and complex context within which global actors conduct business. By using cases that examine the conduct of non-U.S. actors in a variety of settings—security, economics, human rights, the environment—international relations students, scholars, and practitioners are compelled to consider if and how the behavior of these actors varies from US theoretical assumptions or predictions. “International Political Economy,” a survey course, examines the dynamic reciprocity between politics and economics in the global political economy. The number of non-U.S.-based cases is miniscule compared to the large library of cases that do incorporate the United States as a major player. US hegemony of world politics and of the field of international relations offers only a partial explanation for this situation.
