Methodology of the American and British schools of international political economy: Confrontationist or Cooperation

According to many scholars, the birth and emergence of the field of International Political Economy (IPE) relate to the early 1970s and stem from certain theoretical and practical deadlocks in international relations. It is during this period that figures such as Strange, Cox, Keohane, Nye, Gilpin, Katzenstein, and Krasner present their discussions within the framework of the two schools: British and American. Although there appear to be significant differences between the prevailing perspectives of these two schools, the objective is to answer the question of what methodological outlook the American and British schools possess. To this end, the historical conditions and contexts of these two schools are examined, and the methodological positions of the aforementioned schools are discussed. In this context, an exploration of the intellectual history of the formation of this field also reveals the differences between the two schools, indicating that these two approaches have adopted different methodological positions for analyzing and studying the complex link between economic activities at the international level. The conclusion drawn from the research is that a kind of confrontation and methodological division has emerged between the two schools, which could jeopardize the integrity of this field of study, which, in addition to geographical distinctions, also possesses intellectual and methodological differences. Therefore, although the transition from international relations to international political economy is more evident within the framework of the British analytical tradition due to its deeper insights and interdisciplinary, multidimensional analyses, a combination of both approaches is beneficial for a more comprehensive understanding of global phenomena, as this interaction can lead to the production of more comprehensive and effective knowledge in the field of International Political Economy. The research method is descriptive and analytical, and the schools of International Political Economy are considered as data.