Theory and Application of the “Generation” in International Relations and Politics

The 'generation' has been largely forgotten in the fields of sociology and political science, especially regarding global politics. This volume re-engages the concept of a 'generation,' utilizing it to explore how it can help us understand a variety of processes and patterns in International Relations and Comparative Politics. Front Matter....Pages i-xi Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Introduction: The Evolution of Generational Analysis and International Theory....Pages 3-24 Never Trust Anyone Who Remembers Jerry Rubin: The Promise of Generational Conflict....Pages 25-46 The “Problem of Generations” Revisited: Karl Mannheim and the Sociology of Knowledge in International Relations....Pages 47-70 Toward a Sociology of Generational Change: Generational Experience and Generational Performance in German Foreign Policy....Pages 71-94 Front Matter....Pages 95-95 The Generational Shift in South African Foreign Policy....Pages 97-121 Generations at Home and Abroad: The Chinese Diaspora....Pages 123-146 Generations and Gender in the 2008 U.S. Democratic Primaries....Pages 147-176 Generational Analysis and the Evolution of Military Doctrine and Strategy....Pages 177-201 Generational Analysis in IR Meets the World Values Survey....Pages 203-228 Lumpy and Sticky: Ideational Change Over Time....Pages 229-246 Back Matter....Pages 247-253 The concept of the "generation" is a popular staple in the media, from the "Greatest Generation" of US World War II veterans to the contemporary "Millennial" generation. Yet there has been remarkably little recent scholarly treatment of the concept, particularly from a comparative global perspective. This volume examines the role of generations as social units in the politics of Europe, Asia, Africa, and the United States, with topics ranging from the modern origins of the concept of generations in the thinking of Karl Mannheim to the role of generations in foreign policy, gender electoral dynamics, world values, diasporic mobilization, inter-generational conflict, and the origins of military doctrine