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The paper compares the rational and the constructivist approach to the study of international political economy (Ipe). In doing so, the paper focuses on the ontological and epistemological features that allow distinguishing between the two approaches. This distinction is further itemized in the illustration of the two main, contemporary Ipe schools: the American and the British school. The article concludes by reflecting on the modalities through which recent studies have attempted to reconcile the rational and the constructivist approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at answering the following questions: which dimensions best describe governments' decision-making potential in parliamentary democracies? How Italy (1979-2008), Germany (1976-2009), Great Britain (1979-2010) and Spain (1982-2008) can be categorized in terms of such dimensions? I try to achieve these aims by proposing a complex, multidimensional index combining the most important sources of governments' decision-making potential., namely: the ideological cohesion of the executive (the most important feature); the «colour» of the government compared with the previous one (alternation in office); the number of partisan veto-players; the institutional context i.e. the relationship between government and parliament; the size of parliamentary majority (the least important feature). This index fits quite well with qualitative literature on comparative governmental systems, and seems a reliable tool that scholars could use when studying the decision-making potential of parliamentary governments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]