The use of game theory in international politics is not a new thing. It has been used for a long time and hence very popular (Duncan, 26). The reappearance of the theory is due to its use in the economies of international politics as well as its function in the analysis of the strategies used by military in dealing with political issues. However the game theory does not give weight to the economic status of the military during analysis .Instead, it focuses on how states understand their own politics (Duncan, 31).This one weakness the theory has. One cannot understand the challenges a state faces politically by ignoring the economic aspect.
For the game theory to work well, it should shift its focus from looking at global issues from a traditional point of view to a modern point of view (Duncan, 34). This will enable it to address both the problems of conflict and co operation that are dominant in the current world. The game theory however has proved useful in integrating many issues that have been considered disparate.
The game theory may not be suitable for use in a variety of fields as suggested. For example, questions are raised on its applications in international relations. This has left a lot of questions not answered. One of the questions is who will be the actors and what choices will they be entitled to make (Duncan, 54).Besides, what rules will be applied in such a scenario? Another weakness of the game theory is that it requires a lot of information than is necessary. This raises concerns whether it can be used in situations where there is limited information. As much it demands plenty information, they cannot be incorporated in the theory. This leaves a lot of important information excluded. The ultimate results are a theory with little information on important issues. This is why it cannot be used to adequately address international issues because of the many omissions in it. The game theory thus does not have strong power. The theory can only then be used for descriptive purposes but not for analysis.However, the theory is useful in interpretation of particular events (Duncan, 42).
The power of the game theory is in the generation of new answers and in understanding particular phenomena. But still it may not give the outcomes which are determined by non purposive behaviors (Duncan, 36).
The usage of the game theory in international politics employs the use of similes, metaphors as well as analogy. The terminologies are used interchangeably depending on the situations on the ground. The use of the game theory in international politics has preferred the use of metaphors and analogy. This aim here is to describe the situation in the international development (Duncan, 31).
The use of the game theory in behavior tells us of the relationship that exists between the model and a theory. In such instances, any conclusion arrived at is interpreted in terms of behavior (Duncan, 37). This may give misleading results when the conclusion arrived at is wrong .This because the environment where the observations are made also influences the results. Thus the findings from the game theory are influenced by many factors. The end results may be due to influence of so many factors .However, the conclusions that are always arrived at in most occasions show some relationship with the theory.
As much the game theory is not suitable for international relations, some concepts have been put across to help it suit. These include the use of strategies that are appropriate in international relations. In addition, pay offs have also been used. This has enabled the theory to be used in understanding some aspects of international relations. The strategies used encompass wide ranges of things that happen in the international relations (Duncan, 48). The ability to include a variety of things when understanding particular phenomenon is one advantage of the theory. This has helped in understanding a lot of issues in the environment. However the use of strategy has a lot of limitations. One such limitation is a particular strategy relates to behavior. This is because the use of a particular strategy does not guarantee behavior change.
In conclusion, the most important thing is that whether the game theory helps us in understanding the phenomena relating to the international environment. The theory offers a general approach to handling global issues and is hence based on many assumptions. It use depends on whether it offers solutions to the problems being investigated and its ability to directions that bear some fruits.
Works cited
Duncan. The Game Theory in International Politics. Cambridge University Press, 1985.p.25-57.h ttp://www.jstor.org/stable/2010350
