International Security & Defense Policy

Questions in this quiz

1. 1. Which of these principles is not an element of the responsibility to protect?
   1. The responsibility to prevent.
   2. The responsibility to react.
   3. The responsibility to remain sovereign.
   4. The responsibility to rebuild.
2. 2. Can environmental changes be reconciled with national security interests?
   1. Environmental challenges to economic growth, such as natural resource management and employment, leads to diversification and research which may in the long-term result in technological advancements that bolster military programs.
   2. Environmental changes can undermine national security in many ways; including weakening the economic base that determines military capacity. So if the natural capital base of an economy erodes than so does the long-term capacity of its armed forces. Any developments however, will be 'human' in impact.
   3. The environmental problems encountered by countries are principally internal. External threats remain within a country's control: external military threats will remain unchanged and a primary concern.
   4. All of these options.
3. 3. Which of the following statements could be described as a liberal perspective on future energy security?
   1. The global economy is interconnected, ensuring that energy security for one is dependent upon energy security for all. Thus all core powers have the same interests in maintaining and extending the conditions under which this market operates. As long as this economic order exists, conflict between major powers over energy reserves is highly unlikely.
   2. Energy scarcity is likely to lead to future disruptions in the global system and the emergence of a 'new international energy order', characterized less by liberal free-market trading than by statism and neo-mercantilism.
   3. Oil remains the lifeblood of the current order - an order that is based upon an unequal (and deeply unjust) distribution of wealth and power in favour of capitalist economic elites. Those who benefit most from the prevailing order will ensure that the flow of energy under favourable conditions continues to underpin their position in the global system.
   4. Energy scarcity will signal a return to an era of greater geopolitical confrontation. 'Resource wars', in particular over energy sources, present a clear possibility for a breakdown in international cooperation, as states begin to compete (and eventually conflict) over the control of major reserves.
4. 4. Which of the following is a common criticism of the human security concept?
   1. Human security is neo-colonial.
   2. Human security promotes global capitalism.
   3. Human security is too broad.
   4. All of these options.
5. 5. In what ways have governments responded to the threat of TNC post-Cold War?
   1. State responses to transnational crime have evolved in correlation to the increased threat posed to the integrity of the state. Organized crime has been regarded primarily as a national security threat to be addressed domestically. The institutionalized international approaches for information sharing have been predominately bilateral to the extent of bringing to justice perpetrators of crime that are seeking to evade justice.
   2. With the expansion of TNC in the 1990s, states became increasingly willing to take measures to reduce the asymmetries between countries through harmonization of legislation and increasing police capacity and networking. The government response to transnational crime has focused on targeting the individuals and organizations perpetrating the crime, rather than the criminal markets themselves.
   3. The US war on drugs has heavily influenced the construction of the governmental response to the growing perception that the phenomenon of TNC represents a national security threat. The approach has an emphasis on bilateral and multilateral cooperation on law enforcement combined with sticks on a bi-lateral basis to induce states to increase regulation and enforcement against TNC.
   4. The emergence of norms governing the response to address the spectre of organized crime and to harmonize legislation occurred with the evolving Global War on Terror in which the terrorism-organized crime nexus resulted in the militarization of law enforcement: the use of military technology and intelligence as opposed to addressing the underlying conditions that facilitate illicit trade through an international institutionalist response.
6. 6. What potential problem for policy in the institutionalization of academe-policy interaction emerged?
   1. The main disciplinary context for security studies theorizing was a move away from the disciplinary domination of political science toward multi-academe interaction from sociology, mathematics, psychology, natural and political sciences, and economics.
   2. Policy-academe developments have resulted in the modification of the role of think tanks away from policy towards politicization resistant theory.
   3. Security studies has been marked by the gradual "IR-ification" of the discipline. Security studies became one of International Relations' (IR's) two pillars, the second being International Political Economy. Henceforth IR became the main disciplinary context in which security studies was deliberated.
   4. Think tanks and policymakers are increasingly interrelated. The institutional blurring between universities, think tank, and policy has resulted in policy mergers at every level.
7. 7. Which of the following is not one of the 10 steps of the Washington Consensus?
   1. Fiscal Discipline: budget deficits of no more than 2 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).
   2. Tax Reform: broadening the tax base, cut marginal tax rates, improve tax administration.
   3. Property Rights: legal reforms to secure property rights without excessive costs and to regularize the informal sector.
   4. Nationalization: state enterprises should be protected.
8. 8. Which of the following concepts does NOT form part of the technical discourse on cyber-security?
   1. Business networks
   2. Computer experts
   3. Anti-virus industry
   4. Computer networks
9. 9. What are the characteristics and manifestations of the strategy adopted by the USA in pursuit of energy security?
   1. The deployment of troops in the Persian Gulf is part of the USA's attempt to secure its dominance in the oil-rich region.
   2. All of these options.
   3. The USA has sought to assert its primacy vis-à-vis friendly and rival powers, through the deployment of troops and other interventions.
   4. The USA has actively sought to stabilize oil-rich friendly political actors and secure the economic and political status quo.
10. 10. In what ways do theories of conventional and critical social constructivism differ?
    1. Conventional constructivists view constructivism as a bridge between rationalist and reflectivist approaches, enabling both to benefit from the insights of the other. Conversely, critical constructivists argue that this approach simply reproduces the binary distinctions that characterize positivist methodology.
    2. Critical constructivism regards the strength of social constructivism to be its ability to bridge rationalist and reflectivity approaches. Conversely, social constructivists regard this as an unhelpful regression to positivist binary frameworks of analysis.
    3. Conventional constructivism refers to the earlier works of social constructivist theorists that are characterised by a rejection of positivist methodology. Critical constructivists challenge these theories, embracing positivist methodologies in their work.
    4. Social constructivism is best understood as a uniform approach to the construction of social identities and security; although distinctions exist within the field, these are not easily defined as distinctive separate approaches.
11. 11. Considering commerce and marketing, which of the following present the most significant obstacle to developing IT security?
    1. There is no direct return on investment in building security systems.
    2. Security systems are detrimental to usability and can make IT systems less functional, and therefore less attractive to the consumer.
    3. There is pressure to reduce the time it takes to get a new IT product or system onto the market, so security systems are sacrificed in order to reduce the time-to-market.
    4. All of these options.
12. 12. Which of the following best describes the 'Orient' according to Edward Said?
    1. The Orient is a constructed subject that is imagined as inferior, irrational, and backward, in comparison to the West.
    2. The Orient is a geographical term once used to describe the east Asia.
    3. The Orient is an imagined concept that must be rejected by scholars in order to analyse security.
    4. Where there is an imbalance of power, the Orient is the dominant intellectual force or otherwise superior party.
13. 13. How can we best describe liberalism?
    1. Liberalism is a fundamentally pessimistic approach that regards the international system as destined to the escalation of conflict. It is the dominant conception in the practice of international politics.
    2. Liberalism is a novel conception in the theory of international politics. It is an optimistic approach that defines the ways in which states should relate to one another, particularly during conflict situations.
    3. Liberalism is an optimistic approach, offering an orientation for the better conduct of international affairs in the belief that a more peaceful world is possible. It is the dominant conception in the practice of international politics.
    4. Liberalism does not exist as a mainstream theory within International Relations, but rather offers a set of guidelines and advice for states and political actors wishing to accrue power within the international system independently from the restrictions of traditional security paradigms.
14. 14. Which of the following is not one of the unifying principles of Critical Security Studies, as defined by Krause?
    1. Principle actors are social constructs that are made through political practices.
    2. Natural-science methodology is the best way to study social science, interpretive methodologies lack the coherence required for in-depth analysis.
    3. Knowledge of the social world is not objective, as there is no divide between the social world and knowledge of that world.
    4. The purpose of theory is not explanation in terms of generalizable causal claims, but contextual understanding and practical knowledge.
15. 15. Considering 'offensive' and 'defensive realism', which of these statements is not correct?
    1. Offensive realism defines the international system as an environment in which states seek to achieve security through the acquisition of power.
    2. Defensive realism regards cooperation as the way in which states can achieve security.
    3. Both defensive realism and offensive realism regard power and competition as a means by which security can be achieved for the state.
    4. Offensive realism theorizes that states will pursue hegemony where possible.
16. 16. Following the terrorist attacks of 9/11, what is the predominant paradigm in security and threat perception and to what extent is it an adequate response?
    1. The security paradigm has been the development of multi-level analysis, to aid the understanding of disempowerment and to promote peace research involvement by NGOs, policy-makers, and the academic community.
    2. The security paradigm of US led strategy has been the undertaking of short-term measures, many of which are drawn from research of the peace studies community. They focus on peace-keeping, peace-making, and structural change for preventing further conflict.
    3. The security paradigm of recent years has been to some extent a reversion to 'liddism'; keeping the lid on a potentially fractured international system, without redress to the critical underlying causes of the problems.
    4. The dominant approach to security studies has been a US led initiative which recognizes the need to undertake responsibility for inter-governmental cooperation, particularly for the commitment towards ethical intervention and for securing peaceful transformations alongside demilitarization of the international community.
17. 17. In what ways has the concept of environmental security been contested?
    1. Analysis of environmental security is understood as the integrity of the whole ecological system whose primary threat is human activity. However, it radically challenges security thinking in that it demands a shift in the reason for action from national security interest to the welfare of the entire social-ecological system of the planet.
    2. Environmental security contends that the principle threat to the ecological integrity is human activity and therefore humans can be secured to the extent that welfare is protected at the domestic level. The reason for action is to be found in individual and national interests.
    3. The crossover of common insecurity issue areas is unlikely because not all problems are truly global. Not all states are equally responsible for environmental problems, nor is there such a thing as equality of risk. Systemic interdependence is unlikely to manage those security areas.
    4. The ecological security and human security approaches to environmental security do not challenge the security community to consider alternative objects of security. Ecological security displays continuity with major interpretations of security, which typically centralize the security of the state.
18. 18. How can the origins of weak state insecurity be explained?
    1. Weak state insecurity in a historical framework of analysis represents an abnormal state in the long term state-building process. Bloody and violent conflict between social forces is not consistent with the presence of the centralizing force with the capacity to attain monopoly of control over violence.
    2. The utility of explaining weak state insecurity with a comparison to the historical conditions of state consolidation in Europe does not stand in the contemporary context of global society because of the pervasion of international norms to prevent violent conflict from manifesting in the consolidation process.
    3. The contemporary state-building condition is constrained by the shortened time-frame operating within the established guidelines of international norms, a particular problematic rule of which is sovereignty. Thus, unlike some European entities which could not complete the state-building process and were absorbed into more viable units, weak states will remain quasi entities.
    4. Weak state insecurity originated from the denial of sovereignty as the norm and the corresponding extension of the right to inviolability of statehood. Without protection under international laws the possibility of its national status being revoked and its territory being subsumed into another state threatens the consolidation of the state-building process.
19. 19. Which of the following best describes the 'subaltern' in postcolonialism?
    1. Subaltern refers to those who are located geographically within the southern hemisphere.
    2. The subaltern is a term applied to a specific group of scholars from the global south.
    3. The subaltern refers to populations that are marginalised or outside of the hegemonic power structure.
    4. The subaltern refers to the subcontinent of India.
20. 20. How do biological differences affect the roles that men and women must perform for the state?
    1. Biology determines the female body as weak, ensuring that men continue to dominate state security apparatus in order to protect them. Women are aware of practical biological differences, and by accepting them they allow men to act as their protectors and care-givers. In return, women must act as protectors and care-givers to those less capable than themselves, their children, infants, the elderly, and the infirm.
    2. The most intimate of human activities for women are more important than the demands of the political and religious male dominated elite. Biology determines, and woman's intimate choice exerts, that the considerable responsibility of reproducing a state's population becomes the duty of women alone.
    3. Indiscriminate warfare is gender neutral and in contemporary conflicts there is no gender difference in levels of risk or duty. Men are just as likely to become victims of mass rape (as in the Democratic Republic of Congo or Balkans conflict) as women, and women are equally likely to be conscripted or coerced into military service.
    4. Gender roles are a social construct; the values that we attribute to masculinity or femininity, such as strength or care-giving, are the product of shared social ideals rather than innate biological properties. Men and women are equally able to care effectively for children or to conduct violent and aggressive behaviour. However, social constructs of gender roles are pervasive, and women are likely to be victims of gender-based violence in conflict whilst men are more likely to be involved as perpetrators of violence.
21. 21. According to motivational realism, what might inspire the behaviour of so called 'greedy states'?
    1. Human nature is fundamentally greedy.
    2. All of these options.
    3. State desire to increase wealth and prosperity.
    4. State desire to spread its ideology.
22. 22. In which year was the seminal Human Development Report published?
    1. 1987
    2. 1997
    3. 1994
    4. 2004
23. 23. What does it mean to be secure?
    1. Security means the coercive capability to stop an aggressor. Security is freedom from war, and the ability to deter or defeat aggressive attacks.
    2. Security refers to safety from vulnerabilities (both external and internal) that could harm the state, societies within the state, and the values of those societies.
    3. Security means freedom to enjoy the things that are most important to human survival and well-being, such as food, healthcare, and the opportunity to live well.
    4. All of these options.
24. 24. What has been the effect of biological weapons on national security in the international community?
    1. The West, notably Canada, Britain, and the US, have conducted research into the weaponization of Anthrax, Tularemia, Q-fever, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, and anti-agricultural agents. However biological weapons were generally viewed in the West as lacking military utility. Instead strategists have concentrated on nuclear and conventional capabilities.
    2. The Soviet Union carried out the most extensive research program into genetic engineering to weaponize naturally occurring diseases. However, the Soviets most likely saw their biological weapons program as a counter to the global-strike complex that was emerging in NATO in the 1970s or as a way to inhibit recovery in a nuclear exchange. Biological weapons programs should therefore be regarded in a Cold War context.
    3. Biological weapons make use of living organisms or toxins to weaken or kill, but because these organisms and toxins occur in nature it makes it difficult to differentiate between naturally occurring disease and subversive activities which, moreover, make a state's capacity hard to verify.
    4. All of these options.
25. 25. How are US 'military moms' important to a critical reading of security?
    1. Mothers are not passive objects but the specific target of military recruiters who rely on their active engagement to fuel recruitment.
    2. Examining the role of 'military moms' reveals the extent of gendered strategizing that is required to raise and sustain a military force.
    3. All of these.
    4. Mothers are indispensable to the exercise of military power but often overlooked in traditional security analyses.