World Out of Balance
International Relations and the Challenge of American Primacy

Presents an analysis of the constraints on the United States' use of power in pursuit of its security interests. This book shows that in a unipolar system, where the United States is dominant in the scales of world power, the constraints featured in international relations theory are generally inapplicable.

Brooks and Wohlforth show that, in actuality, the international environment does not tightly constrain U.S. security policy. "World Out of Balance" underscores the need for an entirely new research agenda to better understand the contours of international politics and the United States' place in the world order.

List of Illustrations ix
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xiii
CHAPTER ONE: Introduction 1
CHAPTER TWO: Realism, Balance-of-Power Theory, and the Counterbalancing Constraint 22
CHAPTER THREE: Realism, Balance-of-Threat Theory, and the "Soft Balancing" Constraint 60
CHAPTER FOUR: Liberalism, Globalization, and Constraints Derived from Economic Interdependence 98
CHAPTER FIVE: Institutionalism and the Constraint of Reputation 148
CHAPTER SIX: Constructivism and the Constraint of Legitimacy 171
CHAPTER SEVEN: A New Agenda 208
Index 219