a. For making and Enforcing rules

b. For Allocating Assets

c. For Conducting other Authoritative Tasks in a system can range from hierarchical (vertical) to anarchical (horizontal).

• Vertical Authority Structure• Horizontal Authority Structure

a. States as Actors (National Actors) - States (countries) are the principal actors on

the world stage.

b. Intergovernmental Organizations as Actors (IGOs)

- An international organization, whose membership consists of countries.

c. Transnational Organizations as Actors - These organizations operate internationally,

but unlike IGOs their membership is private.• Nongovernmental organizations• Multinational corporations (MNCs) or

transnational corporations (TNCs)• Terrorist Group

•A third structural characteristics of any political system is the scope (range), frequency, and intensity (level) of interactions among the actors.

a. System Pole• Single country or empire• An Alliance• A Global IGO (such as UN)• Regional IGO (such as EU)

a.1 Unipolar Systemsa.2 Bipolar Systemsa.3 Tripolar Systemsa.4 Multipolar Systems

A pole is a major power center, but not all major powers are equal. This inequality affects how the system operates because the system stability varies in part according to the degree to which power is concentrated or diffused among the various poles.

• Sources of Power• Conditions within Major Actors• Balance-of-Power Politics

• Specific Changes in Power• Power Transitions and System Stability