ABSTRACT
This introductory chapter sets the overall context of the book. It first lays out the guiding question for the volume, namely, how does hegemony figure in contemporary world politics? The chapter then develops a general definition of hegemony as ‘legitimated rule by dominant power’, underlining also that the book takes a primarily sociological (rather than normative) approach to the issue. The chapter further summarises how various theories of world politics elaborate this general concept. The review covers liberal, realist, world-systems, neo-Gramscian, postcolonialist, feminist, constructivist and ecological theories. The introduction stresses the book's important novel contribution in fostering conversation among authors from multiple world regions who apply diverse theoretical perspectives on hegemony to a wide range of policy fields.
