Contemporary Global Security

Essay Titles

1. Critically define the term ‘weapon of mass destruction’ and evaluate their continuing salience, possession and potential use.  Assess the contribution of Realism to our understanding of this issue.

1. Identify the principles of social constructivism and analyse its contribution to the politics andsecuritisationof identity with close reference to contemporary terrorism concerns.

1.  Identify the principal tenets of Marxism and explore its relevance to the current security concerns that emerge from issues within so-called development debates.

1. Define and explain the concept of securitisation with close reference to a range of contemporary empirical examples. Use your analysis of the contemporary situation, to evaluate the processes of ‘securitisation’ as a positive or negative feature of global politics.

1.  The concept of ‘human security’ is gaining increasing attention and acceptance. Analyse the concept with close reference to its contribution (or otherwise) to the security issues of either poverty and unequal development, or global networks of organised crime.

1. With reference to current developments in the Middle East critically examine the view that Liberalism’s objectives and democratic values are a form of Western imperialism. In a neo-liberal era of high tech globalisation and so-called ‘smart power’ are there other options?

1. Define ‘environmental security’. With reference to appropriate empirical examples, assess how far it concerns the impact of humans on the environment and/or the impact of environmental processes on human values and behaviours.

1.  Explore and explain current concerns about either climate change or ‘energy security’. How do the major theoretical perspectives differentially identify and evaluate the relevant security concerns?

1. It has been suggested that the greatest global security threat will arise from a viral pandemic. How far would you agree?  Give evidence for your response with close reference to the impact of and responses to the recent Ebola crisis.

1. Recent technological developments in information technology and artificial intelligence have created a new security arena in ‘cyber space’ resulting in a range of potentially critical security concerns. Identify these concerns and analyse their potential impacts.