Talk:Relative gain (international relations)

Realism argues that states are rarely likly to cooperate because of the problem of relative again. States always have to baware of how much thet are gaining compared with the state they are cooperation with.

Relative gains concerns

The realist argument asserts that states are tempted to increase their own power through cooperation, but the issue thwarting such cooperation is the division of absolute gains among the states cooperating. This is not a zero-sum argument, since there is no doubt about an increase in the power of actors participating. The question is how much of an impact the increase of power of two actors will have on their power in relation to one another. The cited definition's reference to balance of power is not very clear in this regard. Consider the following scenario: before cooperation A has power equal to 60 and B has power equal to 120. The power ratio between them in 1:2. Cooperation promises to provide 60 units of power. How should the pie be divided? A would like a 50-50 split, but this would shift power toward A, changing the ratio to 120:180 or 2:3. B seeks more power than A in the deal, of course, so no deal can be struck. So the topic is more about concerns over relative gains rather than relative gain itself. Such concerns are evident in many of the criticisms of US participation in NAFTA.