Abstract
In this chapter, students will learn about great power rivalry in contemporary world politics. An adversarial relationship characterized by intense competition and mutual threat perceptions, great power rivalry emerges—and indeed is constructed—over material, ideational, and positional factors. This chapter outlines the main concepts to contextualize and conceptualize the ‘return’ of great power rivalry in world politics: polarity; balance of power; and p ower and hegemonic transition. These broader conceptual debates are then applied to contemporary US-China great power rivalry. Four different domains are examined to capture the complex and multidimensional nature of US-China rivalry: strategic competition in the South China Sea; economic and technological competition; grey zone conflict in cyberspace; and institutional rivalry. The chapter concludes by outlining key strategies to stabilize great power rivalry.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Security Studies: An Introduction |
| Editors | Paul D. Williams and Matt McDonald |
| Place of Publication | New York |
| Publisher | Routledge |
| Pages | 192-209 |
| Volume | 1 |
| Edition | 4th |
| ISBN (Print) | 1032162732 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2023 |