Gabriele Abbondanza (editor) - Awkward Powers: Escaping Traditional Great and Middle Power Theory

The series publishes books dealing with important political changes within states and in relations between states. The two key questions it seeks to answer are: to what extent are countries becoming more democratic/liberal, and to what extent are inter-state/inter-regional relations creating/demanding new governance arrangements? The series editors encourage submissions which explore local issues (where the local could be a state, society, region) having global consequences (such as regionally, internationally, or multilaterally), or vice versa, global developments (such as terrorism, recession, WTO/IMF rulings, any democratic snowball, like the Third Wave, Fourth Wave, and so forth) triggering local consequences (state responses; fringe group reactions, such as ISIS; and so forth).

More information about this series at http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/15583

Cover image: Avopix

This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721, Singapore

The idea behind this book owes much to our belief that the structure of the international system is ever-changing, and that traditional categories informing the global hierarchies are struggling to keep up with the pace of such change. We do not aim to reinvent the wheel of International Relations theory, but rather it is our hope that the new concept of Awkward Powers will prompt a fresh debate in the discipline, and one that will lead to a deeper and more nuanced understanding of the multiple power shifts of the twenty-first century. To that end, it seeks to challenge traditional middle and great power theory in order to refine and update it, while shedding light on a number of significant but understudied states.

The core idea behind the Awkward Powers developed informally at the end of the International Political Science Association (IPSA) World Congress of Political Science, held in Brisbane in 2018. Conversations with colleagues with whom we previously collaborated led us towards the unexplored topic of Awkward Powers. On this basis we were able to forge a research team of contributors, including new participants, to achieve an impressive roster of case studies, based upon their respective specialisms. We would like to express our gratitude for the hard work of all of our chapter contributorscolleagues old and newwithout which the volume could not have been realised. The book is testament to their dedication and professionalism. Selected initial findings were presented at the 2019 Australian Political Science Association (APSA) conference in Adelaide, where we received encouragement and precious feedback on the project, for which we thank the colleagues involved.

We are also grateful for the sustained support of the staff at Palgrave Macmillan: Vishal Daryanomel, our commissioning editor, who first heard of our book proposal at APSA and supported us thereafter; Naveen Dass and his colleagues at Springer Nature for their invaluable assistance throughout the project; and A/Prof. Allan Patience and Dr. David Walton, who we now know have reviewed our drafts and provided the flattering reviews.

Last, but surely not least, we are most indebted to our partners and families. For their love and constant support, we remain deeply grateful.

Sydney, February 2021