This book brings together the work of well known scholars in the field of belief systems, a concept central to the study of international relations. A major feature is that there is both a theoretical and empirical treatment in the investigation which demonstrates the ways in which the concept aids the study of international relations, as well as offering a critical view of the ways in which it has been used in developing explanations of international political events. By looking at both group and personal belief systems, from belief systems and ideology to Macmillan and detente, the many facets of the concept are exposed.