In Search of the Missing Middle

Abstract

In a recent article in RIPE, Benjamin J. Cohen suggests that a deep divide exists between two schools of IPE: the American and the British. While, at a certain level of generality, obvious differences do exist between how international relations generally, and IPE more specifically, are studied in the US and the UK, various dimensions of Cohen's argument are problematic, and may inadvertently hinder his professed desire to build bridges across the Atlantic. In particular, Cohen's approach is ambiguous as to exactly what the defining characteristics of the 'British' approach are, appears to conflate different traditions of theorizing, and presents a very narrow characterization of the field of IPE in the United States.