Hard power

Hard power

Hard power is a term describing power obtained from the utilisation of military and/or economic power to influence the behaviour or interests of other political bodies. As the name would suggest, this form of political power is often aggressive, and is most effective when imposed by one political body upon another of lesser military and/or economic power.

Original Definition

Hard power is a term used in international relations. Hard power is a theory that describes using military and economic means to influence the behavior or interests of other political bodies.It is used in contrast to soft power, which refers to power that comes from diplomacy, culture and history.

While the existence of hard power has a long history, the term arose when Joseph Nye coined 'soft power' as a new, and different form of power in a State's foreign policy. Hard power is mostly placed in the International Relations discipline of Realism, where military power is seen as the expression of a states' strength in the international community.

Hard power lies at the command end of the spectrum of behaviours and describes a nation's ability to coerce or induce another nation to perform a course of action. This can be done through military power which consists of coercive diplomacy, war and alliance using threats and force with the aim of coercion, deterrence and protection. Alternatively economic power can be used which relies on aid, bribes and economic sanctions in order to induce and coerce. Example: "Mr.Kindleburger often uses hard power in the classroom, upon his students. He often scolds them and threatens them with detentions daily." Hard power is often threatening.

ee also

*Gunboat diplomacy
*Moral authority

External links

* [http://blog.washingtonpost.com/postglobal/drg/ Global Power Barometer]

Further reading

*Kurt Campbell and Michael O'Hanlon, "Hard Power: The New Politics of National Security".
*Joseph S. Nye, Jr, "Soft Power: The Means to Success in World Politics".


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Hard Power — Le hard power (ou puissance coercitive) est un concept utilisé principalement par le réalisme dans les relations internationales. Il désigne la capacité d un corps politique d influencer le comportement d autres corps politiques à l aide de… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Hard power — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Power. Le hard power (ou puissance coercitive ou encore puissance dure) est un concept utilisé principalement par le réalisme dans les relations internationales. Il désigne la capacité d un corps politique d… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Power metal — Origines stylistiques Heavy metal Speed metal NWOBHM Origines culturelles Europe et États Unis pendant le milieu des années 1970 Instrument(s) typique(s) Chant, Guitare, basse, batteri …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Power politics — Power politics, or Machtpolitik (borrowed from German), is a state of international relations in which sovereigns protect their own interests by threatening one another with military, economic, or political aggression. The term was coined in… …   Wikipedia

  • Power in international relations — The chamber of the United Nations Security Council Power in international relations is defined in several different ways. Political scientists, historians, and practitioners of international relations (diplomats) have used the following concepts… …   Wikipedia

  • Power projection — USS John C. Stennis, and HMS Illustrious, two aircraft carriers on a joint patrol, and an important role of a blue water navy. Power projection (or force projection) is a term used in military and political science to refer to th …   Wikipedia

  • Power (philosophy) — Powerful redirects here. For other uses, see Power (disambiguation). Power is a measurement of an entity s ability to control its environment, including the behavior of other entities. The term authority is often used for power perceived as… …   Wikipedia

  • Hard disk drive — Hard drive redirects here. For other uses, see Hard drive (disambiguation). Hard disk drive Mechanical interior of a modern hard disk drive Date invented 24 December 1954 [1] …   Wikipedia

  • Power Mac G4 — The Graphite Power Mac G4 Developer Apple Inc. Release date August 31, 1999 Discontinued June 9, 2004 …   Wikipedia

  • Hard Truck — is a series of trucking simulators, published in the United States by ValuSoft. The series currently has 3 released installments, with a fourth to be released soon. Hard Truck were simple, usually had 2 or 3 routes to reach the destination, and… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”