Within the field of
international relations, national interest has frequently been assumed to comprise the pursuit of
power,
security and
wealth.
Neorealist and
liberal institutionalist scholars tend to define national interest as revolving around security and power. Liberal scholars view national interests as an aggregation of the preferences of domestic political groups.
Constructivist scholars reject that the national interest of states are static and can be assumed
a priori; rather, they argue that the preferences of states are shaped through social interactions and are changeable. According to
Joesph Nye, the national interest is a "slippery concept", as it both seeks to describe and prescribe
foreign policy. In a February 2020 article for
CSIS,
Gordon de Brouwer argued: "The national interest has three components—security, prosperity, and social well-being—and they should all be part of framing the problem and solutions. All three matter. More than ever, they reinforce each other. Security underpins prosperity, prosperity creates power and pays for security, and a well-functioning society reduces economic and security risks." ==See also==