Poder, tecnologia e legado: Joseph Nye e as (in)visibilidades do cyberpower nas Relações Internacionais

Abstract

This research aims to analyze Joseph Nye’s theoretical contribution to understanding the contemporary transformations of power within the field of International Relations, with special attention to the changes driven by the growing centrality of digital technologies and cyberpower. The study adopts a qualitative approach, based on a literature review, examining the presence or absence of Nye’s (1971; 1991; 2004; 2008; 2010; 2011; 2020; 2023; 2024) conceptual framework — especially related to power diffusion and cyberpower — in contemporary works addressing the new dynamics of global power. The analytical corpus includes authors such as Castells (2011), Naím (2013), Khanna (2016), Ferguson (2018), Zuboff (2019), Morozov, DeNardis (2020), Clarke (2010), Radu (2014), Kassab (2014), and Souza (2013). Based on the hypothesis that although Nye’s contributions are still frequently cited, his formulation of cyberpower has not been consolidated as a central theoretical reference in recent literature. The findings indicate that his legacy remains more as a historical and terminological milestone than as an effective analytical foundation, especially in contrast to more critical, structural, and technopolitical approaches, which have proven more adequate to explain the new dynamics of power in the 21st century. It is therefore concluded that Nye’s theoretical framework is not fully applicable to the current configurations of power, which are structured by networks, technical infrastructures, and non-state actors.