The core asks who has power in the world, where it comes from, and how states and other actors use it. These concepts appear in every paper, so define them precisely and use real cases.
Engagement project (IA)· Engaging with a political issue and writing the report · 2 subtopics
Free lesson: Core: Understanding power and global politics
Power
The ability to influence others or outcomes
Sovereignty
A state's supreme authority over its territory and people
Legitimacy
The acceptance of authority as rightful
Types of power: hard (military and economic coercion), soft (attraction through culture, values, diplomacy), smart (a mix of both), and structural (shaping the rules and institutions others operate in).
Sovereignty: internal (authority within borders) and external (recognition by other states and freedom from outside control). Globalisation, international law and supranational bodies can limit it.
Legitimacy can come from elections, constitutions, tradition, performance or international recognition.
Interdependence: actors rely on each other through trade, security and shared problems such as climate change.
Lenses: realism (states seek power and security in an anarchic system), liberalism (cooperation, institutions and trade reduce conflict), constructivism (ideas and identities shape interests).
Worked example
Use the concepts: a country signs a binding climate treaty.
Sovereignty: it accepts limits on its own policy choices.
Interdependence: climate change cannot be solved by one state alone.
Legitimacy: a government may gain domestic and international legitimacy by cooperating.
Realist critique: states will follow the treaty only while it serves their interests.
Common mistakes
Defining concepts vaguely or not at all.
Using hypothetical examples instead of real, specific cases.
Treating states as the only actors.
Describing events without linking them back to concepts.
Quick check
A country attracting others through its films, universities and values uses…
soft power. Soft power works through attraction, not coercion.
Which theory stresses that states pursue power and security in an anarchic system?
Realism. Realism sees self-help as the logic of world politics.
Recognition by other states relates most directly to…
external sovereignty. External sovereignty depends on recognition and independence from outside control.
Which is a non-state actor?
The Red Cross. NGOs act in global politics but aren't states.
Practise this in the app. Interactive diagrams, quizzes, exam-style papers with mark schemes and a personal study planner. Open Global Politics in FortyFive →
IB Global Politics (SL / HL) is organised into: Core: Understanding power and global politics; Thematic study: Rights and justice; Thematic study: Development and sustainability; Thematic study: Peace and conflict; HL extension: Global political challenges; Engagement project (IA).
Are these IB Global Politics notes free?
Yes. The topic pages, key terms and the first lesson are free. The full lessons, interactive diagrams and exam-style practice papers with mark schemes are in the FortyFive app, which you can start for free.