IB Diploma Programme · SL & HL
Key concepts defined, theoretical perspectives, source evaluation and extended response frameworks — plus guidance on the engagement project and the HL extension.
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Aligned with the latest 2026 syllabus and board specifications. This sheet is prepared to match your exam board’s official specifications for the 2026 exam series.
Global Politics rewards the precise use of its own conceptual vocabulary applied to real, named cases. An answer that discusses 'a country doing what it wants' scores poorly; the same point framed through sovereignty, legitimacy and interdependence, evidenced with a named case, scores well. This reference sheet gives you the concepts, the theoretical lenses and a structure for each assessment.
Every key concept defined, with how to deploy it
Source evaluation framework for the stimulus paper
Extended response essay structures
Engagement project and HL extension guidance
Define the concept, then apply it to a named case. Definition alone is knowledge; application is where the marks are.
The ability of an actor to shape the behaviour or outcomes affecting others.
Naming the type of power is the single most useful analytical move in this course.
Hard power — coercion through military or economic force
Soft power — attraction through culture, values and legitimacy
Smart power — a deliberate combination of both
Structural power — control over the rules and institutions themselves
Relational power — power exercised in a specific relationship
Supreme authority over a territory and population, recognised by other states.
Internal sovereignty — ultimate authority within borders
External sovereignty — recognition by other states
Westphalian sovereignty — non-interference in internal affairs
The tension to exploit: sovereignty vs humanitarian intervention and R2P
The acceptance of an actor's right to rule or to act, by those subject to it.
Legal legitimacy — conformity with law or mandate
Democratic legitimacy — derived from consent and representation
Performance legitimacy — derived from delivering outcomes
Legality and legitimacy can diverge — a powerful essay point
Mutual reliance between actors, such that each is vulnerable to the other's decisions.
Symmetrical vs asymmetrical interdependence
Complex interdependence — multiple channels, no clear hierarchy of issues
Interdependence constrains sovereignty in practice
Universal entitlements held by virtue of being human, codified in international instruments.
Civil and political vs economic, social and cultural rights
Universality vs cultural relativism — a standard debate
Progressive realisation — rights requiring resources over time
Codification, monitoring and enforcement are three distinct problems
Distributive justice — how goods and burdens are allocated
Procedural justice — fairness of the process
Retributive and restorative justice — punishment vs repair
Negative liberty (freedom from) vs positive liberty (freedom to)
Equality of opportunity vs equality of outcome
Quote at least one measure with a figure where you can. Specificity separates top answers.
Development as growth vs development as capability and freedom
Measures: GDP per capita, HDI, Gini coefficient, multidimensional poverty
Globalization — economic, political, cultural and technological strands
Inequality within states and between states are different problems
Sustainability — intergenerational justice and the limits of growth
The negative/positive peace distinction is the most frequently rewarded framework in the peace and conflict material.
Negative peace — the absence of direct violence
Positive peace — the absence of structural and cultural violence too
Direct violence — physical harm by an identifiable actor
Structural violence — harm built into social and economic arrangements
Cultural violence — norms that legitimise the other two
Non-violence — civil resistance as a strategy, not merely an ethic
A named lens turns description into analysis. Use two in tension rather than one in isolation.
States are the primary actors in an anarchic system, pursuing national interest defined as security and power.
Anarchy, self-help, the security dilemma
Balance of power and relative gains
Explains: arms races, alliance shifts, the limits of international law
Weakness: underweights non-state actors and cooperation
Cooperation is possible and rational; institutions, trade and democracy reduce conflict.
Absolute gains, institutions, regimes, democratic peace theory
Explains: the growth of IGOs, trade integration, treaty compliance
Weakness: struggles to explain persistent great-power conflict
Interests and identities are socially constructed; norms and discourse shape what actors want.
Norm entrepreneurs, norm cascades, norm internalisation
Explains: changing attitudes to intervention, landmines, climate obligation
Bringing in a critical perspective where others have used only realism and liberalism is a reliable way to show depth.
Marxist and world-systems — core, periphery, dependency
Feminist — gendered power, whose security counts
Postcolonial — the legacy of empire in present structures
A realist reading would hold that…, whereas a liberal account emphasises…
This is better explained by…, because the evidence shows…
Judge between the lenses rather than listing them
Source-based questions are not comprehension. Every mark above the lowest band requires evaluation.
Purpose and omission are the two highest-value strands. Most students stop at authorship.
Who produced it — state, IGO, NGO, journalist, academic, activist?
When, and in what political context?
For what purpose and for which audience?
What does its position allow it to see — and obscure?
What is absent that you would expect to be present?
Both treat … as the central problem, but differ on who bears responsibility
The disagreement follows from their differing purposes: … while …
Explain disagreement through provenance, not just content
Where a question asks you to evaluate a claim using sources and your own knowledge, both are required.
Integrate sources into your argument — do not summarise them in sequence
Add a named case the sources do not mention
Name the concept the sources are circling without naming
Do not paraphrase sources one after another. Do not dismiss a source as biased and move on — bias is evidence of a position, and positions are the subject matter.
An answer organised as 'Source A says… Source B says…' is capped, however accurate.
Essay questions are conceptual and comparative. They expect named cases, a named lens and a judgement.
Defining the concept in your own terms at the start is high-value: it demonstrates conceptual command and frames the whole answer.
Define the key concept in the question, and say how you are reading it
State your thesis — an answer, not a plan
Two or three analytical sections, each with a named case
A counter-argument taken seriously, not a token one
A judgement that explains the criterion on which you decided
Every claim needs a real, named case. Unnamed generalisation is the main reason strong-sounding essays score in the middle.
Name the state, organisation, treaty, conflict or programme
Give a date and, where possible, a figure
Prepare a bank covering different regions — not all from one continent
Have at least one case that complicates your own argument
You need roughly two reusable cases per thematic area, each usable from more than one angle.
Depth beats breadth. Six cases you know with figures are worth more than twenty you know by name only.
Power and sovereignty: an intervention, a contested recognition, a sanctions regime
Human rights: a treaty body case, a national controversy, an enforcement failure
Development: one success and one stalled programme, with figures
Peace and conflict: one negotiated settlement and one unresolved conflict
On balance, … is the stronger explanation because it accounts for …
This holds in cases where …, but breaks down where …
Judged by outcomes rather than intentions, …
Describe / Outline — features only
Explain — reasons with causal chains
Analyse — break into parts and show their relationships
Compare and contrast — both, in the same paragraphs
Evaluate / Discuss / To what extent — a supported judgement is required
A political issue you can genuinely engage with, linked explicitly to the course concepts.
The commonest weakness is an issue chosen for its importance rather than for the student's actual access to it.
Local and accessible, but conceptually connected to the global
Narrow enough to investigate properly within the word limit
Must allow real engagement, not only reading about it
Explicit links between your local experience and course concepts
Multiple perspectives on the issue, fairly represented
Analysis of the experience, not a diary of it
Reflection on what the engagement revealed that reading did not
HL students investigate challenges in depth and present on them. Depth and multiple perspectives are the point.
Choose challenges with genuinely contested explanations
Draw on more than one theoretical perspective per challenge
Use current, cited sources — and evaluate them
Present an argued position, not a survey of the literature
This is a course where currency is credited. Cases from the last few years read as stronger than textbook staples.
Keep a running file of cases with dates, figures and the concept each illustrates
One entry per week is enough to build a strong bank over the course
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Opening an essay by defining the key concept on your own terms frames the whole answer and demonstrates conceptual command immediately.
'Some developing countries' scores at the bottom. Name the state, the treaty, the programme, and attach a date and a figure.
Setting realism against liberalism, or adding a critical perspective, turns a descriptive answer into an analytical one.
The negative/positive peace distinction unlocks a huge number of questions — it lets you argue that an absence of fighting is not the same as peace.
One entry a week — case, date, figures, concept illustrated. By the exam you will have a case bank no revision guide can give you.
Quick answers about this free PDF and how to use it for exam revision and active recall.
Yes. This Tutopiya formula sheet is free to use and you can download it as a PDF from this page for offline revision. There is no payment or account required for the PDF download.
This page groups key Global Politics formulas in one place for revision. Reference sheet for IB Diploma Global Politics (SL & HL). The key concepts defined, source evaluation frameworks, extended response essay structures, theoretical perspectives, engagement project guidance and the HL ex… Always cross-check with your official syllabus and past papers for your exam session.
No. In the exam you must follow only what your exam board allows in the hall—usually the official formula booklet or data sheet where provided. This page is a revision and teaching aid, not a replacement for board-issued materials.
It is written for students preparing for assessments at IB Diploma Programme in Global Politics, including classroom revision, homework support, and independent study. Teachers and tutors can also share it as a quick reference.
Work through past paper questions, quote the correct formula before substituting values, and check units and notation every time. Pair this sheet with timed practice and mark schemes so you see how examiners expect working to be set out.
Explore Tutopiya’s study tools, past paper finder, and revision checklists linked from our tools hub, or book a trial lesson with a subject specialist for personalised support alongside this formula reference.
Build a case bank and sharpen source and essay technique with a specialist IB Global Politics tutor.
Next step
Most marks are lost to technique, not content — describing when the question says explain, missing the mark scheme trigger, or misreading the command word. The Exam Technique Cheat Sheet breaks down what each command word demands and what examiners actually reward, question type by question type.
Browse exam technique cheat sheets →Pair this reference sheet with past papers, revision checklists, and planners — all free on our study tools hub.
This reference sheet covers the key concepts, theoretical perspectives and assessment technique for IB Diploma Programme Global Politics at SL and HL.
The assessment components, their weightings, word limits and the structure of the HL extension are set by the IB subject guide for your cohort, and the guide has been revised in recent years. Always check the current guide and your teacher's guidance before relying on any structure described here.