Classical and Neo Theories of IR MCQs 2026

Offensive realism (Mearsheimer) argues great powers

1. Aare satisfied with minimal power✓
2. Bnever compete✓
3. Creject all alliances✓
4. Dseek regional hegemony when possible✓

The security dilemma in realism arises because

1. Ameasures one state takes for defense appear offensive to others✓
2. Bstates always intend aggression✓
3. Claw eliminates fear✓
4. Dalliances end all rivalry✓

Balance of power theory predicts

1. Apermanent unipolar stability always✓
2. Bno alliances ever form✓
3. Cstates align or arm against a threatening hegemon✓
4. Dautomatic world government✓

Bandwagoning means

1. Aforming a coalition against a threat✓
2. Bignoring all power shifts✓
3. Cdissolving the state✓
4. Daligning with a stronger threatening power rather than balancing✓

Neoliberal institutionalism is associated with

1. AMorgenthau and Carr only✓
2. BWendt only✓
3. CFoucault only✓
4. DKeohane and Nye✓

Keohane's After Hegemony argues institutions

1. Arequire eternal US dominance only✓
2. Bare useless after one day✓
3. Ccan sustain cooperation even without a hegemon✓
4. Dprevent all conflict permanently✓

Neoliberal institutionalism accepts

1. Athat world government exists✓
2. Bthat states are not rational✓
3. Canarchy but emphasizes institutions and reciprocity✓
4. Dthat power is irrelevant✓

Complex interdependence (Keohane/Nye) features

1. Asingle military channel dominance only✓
2. Bmultiple channels, issue fragmentation and reduced military salience✓
3. Czero transnational contacts✓
4. Dcomplete autarky✓

Soft power in Nye's formulation is

1. Acoercion through military force only✓
2. Bpayoffs through sanctions only✓
3. Cthe ability to shape others' preferences through attraction✓
4. Dterritorial annexation only✓

Hard power relies on

1. Aonly public diplomacy✓
2. Bmilitary and economic coercion or inducements✓
3. Conly educational exchange✓
4. Donly moral suasion✓

Reciprocity in neoliberal theory supports

1. Apermanent betrayal as optimal✓
2. Bone-shot games only✓
3. Cabolition of treaties✓
4. Dtit-for-tat cooperation in repeated interactions✓

Absolute gains concern

1. Atotal benefits from cooperation regardless of relative shares✓
2. Bonly relative advantage over rivals✓
3. Conly military rank✓
4. Donly colonial prestige✓

Relative gains concern

1. Aonly absolute welfare increases✓
2. Bonly domestic GDP growth✓
3. Conly cultural exchange✓
4. Dhow much one state gains compared to a partner✓

Classical liberalism in IR links peace to

1. Arepublican government, commerce and international law✓
2. Bsecret alliances and autocracy✓
3. Cpermanent imperial rivalry✓
4. Disolation from trade✓

Wilsonian collective security envisions

1. Aeach state fighting alone always✓
2. Brewarding aggression✓
3. Cignoring breaches of peace✓
4. Djoint action against aggressors through an international organization✓

Morgenthau distinguished political power from

1. Aall power being identical✓
2. Bpower being irrelevant✓
3. Claw replacing power✓
4. Dsocial power, economic power and military power as related but distinct✓

The six principles of political realism (Morgenthau) include

1. Autopian faith in perfect harmony✓
2. Bdenial of national interest✓
3. Cpolitics governed by objective laws rooted in human nature✓
4. Drejection of prudence✓

Carr's "utopian realism" pairing means

1. Amoral purpose must be joined with power analysis✓
2. Bmorality should be abandoned entirely✓
3. Cpower alone suffices✓
4. Dideals need no politics✓

Idealists after WWI supported

1. Arenewed secret military alliances only✓
2. Bthe League of Nations and legal disarmament✓
3. Cunlimited arms races✓
4. Dcolonial partition wars✓

Neo-realism differs from classical realism by

1. Aemphasizing systemic structure over human nature alone✓
2. Brejecting anarchy✓
3. Cfocusing only on leaders' biography✓
4. Ddenying power✓

Waltz's three images correspond to

1. Aeconomic, cultural and religious only✓
2. Bindividual, domestic and international system causes of war✓
3. Cland, sea and air only✓
4. Dpast, present and future only✓

Neoliberalism differs from neorealism by

1. Adenying anarchy✓
2. Bhighlighting institutions and absolute gains more✓
3. Crejecting all science✓
4. Dignoring states✓

Functionalism in liberal thought stresses

1. Atechnical cooperation spillover into political integration✓
2. Bmilitary conquest as integrator✓
3. Cisolation of economies✓
4. Drejection of IOs✓

Neofunctionalism (Haas) argued

1. Asector integration creates pressures for further integration✓
2. Bintegration always fails instantly✓
3. Cstates never delegate authority✓
4. Dwar is unrelated to economics✓

The "Hobbesian" metaphor in IR suggests

1. Aperfect perpetual peace✓
2. Binternational life without Leviathan is insecure self-help✓
3. Cworld government already exists✓
4. Ddomestic law governs all✓

Thucydides is often cited by realists for

1. Ademocratic peace proofs✓
2. Bcommercial pacifism✓
3. Cpostcolonial theory✓
4. Dthe Melian Dialogue and power-politics lessons✓

Grotius contributed to IR by

1. Afounding neorealism✓
2. Binventing the UN✓
3. Cwriting Perpetual Peace✓
4. Ddeveloping systematic international law on war, peace and trade✓

Collective security in liberal theory requires

1. Aeach state staying neutral always✓
2. Bidentifying aggression and mobilizing united response✓
3. Crewarding the aggressor✓
4. Dabolishing the UN✓

Arms control agreements illustrate

1. Apure bandwagoning only✓
2. Bend of diplomacy✓
3. Cliberal-institutional cooperation to manage security competition✓
4. Ddenial of sovereignty✓

Economic interdependence (liberal view) can

1. Aguarantee zero conflict always✓
2. Bincrease costs of conflict and encourage diplomacy✓
3. Celiminate all states✓
4. Dremove need for strategy✓

Mearsheimer's "tragedy of great power politics" argues

1. Apeace is easy and automatic✓
2. Bweak states dominate✓
3. CIOs end rivalry✓
4. Dgreat-power competition is endemic under anarchy✓

Waltz's bipolarity argument is that

1. Amultipolarity is always most stable✓
2. Bunipolarity never exists✓
3. Cbipolar systems may be more stable than multipolar ones✓
4. Dsmall states dominate✓

Keohane's "international regimes" are

1. Adomestic criminal codes only✓
2. Bmilitary units only✓
3. Cprinciples, norms, rules and decision procedures around issue-areas✓
4. Drandom customs without expectations✓

Nye's three dimensions of power include

1. Amilitary, economic and soft power✓
2. Bonly legal power✓
3. Conly religious power✓
4. Donly geographic power✓

Liberal institutionalists argue institutions matter because they

1. Aeliminate state interest✓
2. Babolish anarchy formally✓
3. Cend all cheating permanently✓
4. Dreduce transaction costs and increase information✓

Realists are skeptical of international law because

1. Alaw never exists✓
2. Btreaties are never signed✓
3. Cenforcement is weak without a sovereign✓
4. Dstates never comply at all✓

Wilson opposed secret diplomacy because

1. Asecrecy always wins wars✓
2. Bpublic opinion is irrelevant✓
3. Copen covenants openly arrived at build trust and public accountability✓
4. Dalliances are illegal✓

Carr's realist lesson for policymakers is

1. Aignore power completely✓
2. Bpursue ideals without limits✓
3. Creject all negotiation✓
4. Dcombine utopian goals with realistic means✓

Neorealism predicts balancing against

1. Aevery small state equally✓
2. Ball international law✓
3. Ca rising or hegemonic power threatening others✓
4. Dall trade agreements✓

Neoliberalism predicts cooperation when

1. Athere is only one interaction✓
2. Bshadow of the future is long and cheating can be punished✓
3. Cinstitutions never exist✓
4. Dstates are irrational✓

Morgenthau warned against

1. Aany ethical reasoning✓
2. Ball diplomacy✓
3. Cmoralism and crusading that ignore national interest✓
4. Dscientific study✓

Classical realism in IR emphasizes

1. Apower politics, human nature and the struggle for security✓
2. Bperpetual peace through commerce only✓
3. Cabolition of the state✓
4. Dtechnological determinism only✓

Hans Morgenthau's realism is grounded in

1. Ahuman nature and the pursuit of power✓
2. Bperfect rational markets✓
3. CKantian perpetual peace✓
4. Dpostmodern discourse only✓

For Morgenthau, the key test of a sound foreign policy is

1. Awhether it wins popularity polls only✓
2. Bwhether it serves the national interest defined in terms of power✓
3. Cwhether it eliminates all ethics✓
4. Dwhether it copies allies exactly✓

E.H. Carr criticized interwar idealism for

1. Abeing too cynical about law✓
2. Brejecting all diplomacy✓
3. Copposing science✓
4. Dignoring power and the realities of international politics✓

Carr argued that morality in international politics

1. Ais always absolute and identical everywhere✓
2. Bmust be related to political context and power realities✓
3. Chas no role whatsoever✓
4. Dreplaces military capability✓

Idealism (liberal internationalism) in the interwar period stressed

1. Ainternational law, disarmament and collective security✓
2. Bbalance of power alliances only✓
3. Cimperial expansion✓
4. Disolation from all institutions✓

Immanuel Kant's Perpetual Peace proposed

1. Apermanent war among states✓
2. Brepublican constitutions, federation of states and cosmopolitan law✓
3. Cabsolute monarchy as peace formula✓
4. Dcolonial conquest for order✓

Kant argued republics are less war-prone because

1. Acitizens bear the costs of war✓
2. Bmonarchs always love peace✓
3. Carmies become unnecessary✓
4. Dtrade ends all conflict automatically✓

Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points emphasized

1. Aself-determination, open diplomacy and a league of nations✓
2. Bsecret treaties and annexations✓
3. Cpermanent colonial empires✓
4. Dunlimited reparations only✓

Liberalism in IR holds that

1. Awar is the only outcome always✓
2. Bcooperation is possible through institutions, democracy and interdependence✓
3. Cstates are identical billiard balls only✓
4. Dideas never matter✓

Democratic peace theory claims

1. Aall states fight democracies constantly✓
2. Bautocracies never fight✓
3. Cwar is random only✓
4. Dliberal democracies rarely fight each other✓

Commercial liberalism argues trade

1. Aalways causes war directly✓
2. Beliminates states✓
3. Craises the opportunity cost of war and fosters cooperation✓
4. Dends sovereignty✓

Institutional liberalism focuses on

1. Ainternational organizations reducing uncertainty and facilitating cooperation✓
2. Babolishing all treaties✓
3. Crejecting diplomacy✓
4. Dpure power politics only✓

Neorealism (structural realism) is chiefly associated with

1. AImmanuel Kant✓
2. BKenneth Waltz✓
3. CWoodrow Wilson✓
4. DEdward Said✓

Waltz argues the primary cause of state behaviour is

1. Aindividual leaders' psychology only✓
2. Bthe structure of the international system✓
3. Cdomestic culture only✓
4. Drandom accidents only✓

In neorealism, anarchy forces states to

1. Aworry about survival and relative power✓
2. Bignore security completely✓
3. Cdisband all militaries✓
4. Dtrust all neighbours blindly✓

Waltz distinguishes causes as

1. Aonly economic and cultural✓
2. Bonly legal and illegal✓
3. Cfirst-image (individual), second-image (domestic), third-image (systemic)✓
4. Donly ancient and modern✓

Neorealism treats states as

1. Aunique cultural actors only✓
2. Bnon-sovereign cities✓
3. Cpurely ideological movements✓
4. Dfunctionally similar unitary actors (like units)✓

Defensive realism (e.g., Waltz) suggests states seek

1. Aglobal domination always✓
2. Bzero military capability✓
3. Csecurity rather than unlimited power✓
4. Dcomplete trust in rivals✓