The Wealth of States Hobson Hardback Cambridge University Press 9780521581493

The Wealth of StatesA Comparative Sociology of International Economic and Political Change\nAuthor(s): John M. Hobson\nFormat: Hardback\nPublisher: Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom\nImprint: Cambridge University Press\nISBN-13: 9780521581493, 978-0521581493\nSynopsis\nIn recent years a number of scholars of international relations have developed an interest in neo-Weberian historical sociology, but The Wealth of States is the first sustained analysis of the overlap between historical sociology and international relations. John Hobson develops a new theory of international change using a sociological approach, through a detailed examination of nineteenth-century trade regimes, and the efforts of the Great Powers to increase their military capabilities before the First World War through tariff protectionism. His analysis reveals the importance of the state as an autonomous, 'adaptive' actor in international politics and economics, which is not dependent upon dominant economic.