IPE GLOSSARY
Colonial empire an empire in which one of the core states within an interstate system excercises formal political domination over territories abroad. Distingused from “world-Empire” in whicha single state apparatus excersises formal domination over the whole core of a world-system.
Commodity chain a tree-like sequence of production process and exchanges by which a product for final consumption is produced. These linkages of raw materials, labor, the sustenece of labor, intermediate processing, transport, and final consumption materially connect most of the people within contempory world-systems.
Core a region or “zone” in which most of the production activiety is core production. The core comprises a group of states which are not nessarily contiguious with one another.
Core/periphery hierarchy a spatial differentiated continuum of socially structured inequality based on the concentration of different kinds of economic production in different areas. In contemoary world-systems this corresponds with the hierarchy of “developed” and “less-developed” countries.
Core production the production of core commodities using relatively capital intensive technology and relatively skilled and highly paid labor.
Empire formation the transformation of n interstte system into a world-empire.
External arena a region outside the spatial boundaries of a world-system with which there is a trade in preciosities.
Fundamental goods basic goods such as food and raw materials that compose the everyday life material consumption of the masses of people.
Hegemon the most powerful state in an interstate system. In the capitalist world-economy this includes both economic power (comparative advantage in the production of core commodities) and military power.
Hegmonic core a reatively unequal distrubtion of power among states such that one state has a rather large share of both economic and military power. Contrasted with “multicentric core”.
Hegemonic sequence a process in which the core of a world-economics oscilates between a hegemonic and multicentric distrubtion of economic nd military power among core states. This coresonds to the rise and fall of hegmons.
Interstate system a system of unequally powerful and competing sttes which none of the states is powerful enough to dominate the whole system.
K-wave the Kondratieff long business cycles in which production and prices oscillate between growth and stagnation phases within approximately 40-60 year cycles.
Logical boundaries major distinctions between the logics of modes of production.
Modes of production the deep structural logics of socio-economic systems. Major modes are normative (kin-based), tributary, capitalist, and socialist.
Multicentric core a relatively equal distribution of economic and milatry powere among core states.
Peripheral production the production of peripheral commodities and technology which is relatively low in capital intensity and labor which is low cost and is usually politically coerced compared to labor in core production.
Peripheralization the processes by which regions are incorporated into world-system nd become located in peripheral postion in the periphery hierarchy.
Perihery those regions in hich periphery production is predominatent.
Preciosities luxuary goods which have high value due to scarcity into which they are imported, but have much lower value at their point of orgin.
Semiperiphery those regions which contain contain either a relatively balanced of core and peripherial production, or in which production s predominately intermedediate levels of capital intensity ad labor remuneration.
World-economy a type of world-system in which the territorial network of economic exchange is politically structured as an interstate system.
World economy the total sum of economic relationships contained in the world-system, including intrantionl, trnsational, and international production and exchange.
World-empire a type of world-system in which territoril economicnetwork is largely contained within a single state apparatus.
World-system a whole social system composed of cultural, normative, economic, political, and military relations which is bounded by a a territorial network of regularized exchange of material goods.