PLEASE NOTE this is a 2013 reading list—the precise content may change in future years.
Term 1, Week 1
Topic: Introduction to the study of International Political Economy
Lecture: 1st October
Seminars: 6th/7th October
International Political Economy (IPE) does not have a clear, universally agreed set of concerns,
assumptions, or theoretical underpinnings. It has been variously characterised as a ‘field of inquiry’,
‘set of questions’ ‘area of investigation’. Its boundaries and its focus are ‘constantly undergoing
redefinition’. IPE might be termed a ‘hosting metaphor’ – connoting the exploration of the
relationship between power and wealth.
Questions for discussion:

What are the key questions which political economy addresses?

Do these differ from the study of political science more generally?

How does international political economy differ from economics?

What problem(s) does the incorporation of the international dimension present?
Core Reading

Ben Clift (2014) Comparative Political Economy. Introduction and Chapter 2

Robert Heilbroner The Worldly Philosophers Penguin. Introduction and Chapter 1

Robert O'Brien and Marc Williams Global Political Economy, 4th edition (2013). Chapters 1 &
2

Matthew Watson (2014) ‘The Historical Roots of Theoretical Traditions in Global Political
Economy’, in Ravenhill (Ed.,) Global Political Economy, fourth edition. Available here
Supplementary Reading

Paul, D. and Amawi, A. (2013) The Theoretical Evolution of International Political Economy,
Third Edition: A Reader. New York: Oxford University Press, Introduction OR George T. Crane
and Abla Amawi (1997) The Theoretical Evolution of International Political Economy, 2nd
edition, Introduction

Matthew Watson (2005) Foundations of International Political Economy. Introduction and
Chapter 1

Susan Strange States & Markets (1994 or 1997), Introduction & part 1

Susan Strange (1970) International Economics and International Relations: A Case of Mutual
Neglect. International Affairs 46 (2): 304-315

Andrew Gamble, ‘The New Political Economy’, Political Studies, Vol. 43, No. 3 (1995), pp.
516-30. Available here

R.J. Barry Jones (ed.), The Worlds of Political Economy (1988), Chapter 1

Anthony Payne and Andrew Gamble, ‘Introduction: The Political Economy of Regionalism
and World Order’ in Andrew Gamble and Anthony Payne (eds.),Regionalism and World
Order (1996), pp. 1-20. (see also the Conclusion)

Clift, B & Rosamond, B. (2009) 'Lineages of British IPE' in Mark Blyth (Eds.) The Handbook of
International Political Economy (London: Routledge) (available online via library catalogue).

Stilwell, F (2012) Political Economy: The Contest of Economic Ideas O.U.P. Parts 1 & 2.

O'Brien, R. (1995) International Political Economy and International Relations: apprentice or
teacher? In: MacMillan, J. & Linklater, A. Boundaries in Question: New Directions in
International Relations. London: Pinter Ch.5, pp. 89-106. Available here