Hegemony and World Orders

A contribution to a symposium on Torbjorn L. Knutsen's The Rise and Fall of World Orders (1999) summarizes the contents & critically examines its primary themes. Knutsen's valuable contribution to discussions about hegemony & world orders is acknowledged & two significant features of his account of historical world orders are explored: the overstretch hypothesis, & social capital trust/transaction costs. Knutsen claims overstretch (the notion that great powers decline because they overextend themselves) is more obvious in the Spanish & Dutch cases than with the British. It is contended that he not only fails to consider the historical context of norms/values within which leaders must operate, but there are inconsistencies in his analysis of the relation between wealth & force. However, Knutsen presents a strong argument about social capital, trust, & transaction costs, & his ideas about the role of trust/social cohesion in maintaining hegemony are important additions even though problems related to those concepts are automatically brought into the analysis. Current prospects for world order is discussed. 2 References. J. Lindroth