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Systemism and Foreign Policy Analysis: A New Approach to the Study of International Conflict

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Advancing Interdisciplinary Approaches to International Relations

Abstract

This work expands on the concept of “systemism,” which is a basic framework that can help in thinking more broadly about world affairs. Rather than theorizing strictly at the level of the system or its components, systemism (not to be confused with David Easton’s [1953. The Political System: An Inquiry into the State of Political Science. New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf] “systems theory”) allows for linkages operating at multiple levels of analysis—at the macro- and micro-levels.

any discipline that borrows nothing from, and gives nothing in return to, other disciplines is worthless (Bunge 1996: 267).

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Correspondence to Patrick James .

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James, C.C., James, P. (2017). Systemism and Foreign Policy Analysis: A New Approach to the Study of International Conflict. In: Yetiv, S., James, P. (eds) Advancing Interdisciplinary Approaches to International Relations. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40823-1_10

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