IB Global Politics Study Guide
Comprehensive IB Global Politics guide covering power & sovereignty, human rights, development, and peace & conflict. Includes the Engagement Activity framework, structured paper technique, and HL extension support.
The Prep Den IB Global Politics study guide is your complete companion for revising the course: full topic-by-topic coverage, spaced-repetition flashcards, practice quizzes with worked explanations, a key-terms bank, and exam-technique tips. Use it as your main study guide or as a supplement to your textbook and class notes.
Topics Covered
What you get
1. Framing Global Politics: Actors, Systems & Power
HOW TO READ THIS GUIDE: PRESCRIBED CONTENT vs ENRICHMENT. The IB syllabus prescribes topics and content (the four key concepts, the three thematic studies, the HL topic areas): exam questions address these. It does not prescribe specific theories, theorists, or named case studies: no theory or theorist is required by name, and the official guide names thinkers and examples only as possible support. Throughout this guide, treat the concepts, classifications and prescribed lists as required, and the named theorists (Wallerstein, Enloe, Said, Nussbaum, Berlin, Singer, Pogge, Moyo, etc.) and specific cases as useful enrichment that deepens analysis but is not required by name. Deploy them when they genuinely illuminate a case.
Sample Flashcards
Distinguish hard, soft, and smart power with contemporary examples.
- Hard power: coercion via force, sanctions, threats. Examples: Western sanctions on Russia (2022+); US strikes on Iran-backed militias; Chinese coercion of Australia (2020).
- Soft power (Nye): attraction through culture, values, foreign policy.
What is the difference between an actor and a stakeholder, and why does it matter?
An ACTOR has the agency and means to act on a political issue. A STAKEHOLDER is affected by it but may lack the capacity to act.
Why it matters:
- Limiting analysis to actors privileges the powerful and overlooks who bears costs and benefits.
- Many political issues affect groups (subsistence farmers, disp…
Sample Key Terms
Actor vs. Stakeholder
An ACTOR has the agency and means to act on a political issue; a STAKEHOLDER is affected by it but may lack the capacity to act. Both must be considered in good analysis.
IGO (Intergovernmental Organisation)
Body established by treaty among states (UN, WTO, IMF, AU, ASEAN, NATO, EU). Operates within mandates set by member states; effectiveness depends on member compliance.
NGO (Non-Governmental Organisation)
Non-profit organisation independent of government, often operating across borders (Amnesty, Greenpeace, MSF, Human Rights Watch). Influences agenda-setting and norm-building rather than commanding force.
What's Covered
- 1. Framing Global Politics: Actors, Systems & Power
- 2. Sovereignty in Global Politics
- 3. Legitimacy in Global Politics
- 4. Interdependence: Global Governance, the UN & International Cooperation
- 5. Theoretical Perspectives: Realism, Liberalism & Critical Theories
- 6. Rights & Justice (Thematic Study)
- 7. Development & Sustainability (Thematic Study)
- 8. Peace & Conflict (Thematic Study)
- 9. HL Extension: Global Political Challenges
- 10. Assessment: Papers 1, 2, 3 & the Engagement Project
10 topics · 78+ flashcards · quizzes & matching games included
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