What does the International Issues unit cover?

This unit has two strands. The first studies a world power in depth, usually the USA: why it is a world power, its political system, and its social and economic issues. The second studies a significant world issue, such as a conflict, terrorism, poverty or disease: its causes and effects, and the responses of individual countries and international organisations such as the UN, NATO, the EU and NGOs. Candidates study one world power and one world issue in depth.

Why is the USA a world power?

The USA is a world power because of its influence across several areas: a very large economy with the dollar as the leading world currency; the largest military budget on Earth with bases around the globe; political influence as a permanent UN Security Council member and a leading NATO member; and cultural soft power through its films, music, technology and brands. It has close allies such as the UK and rivals such as China and Russia.

How is power organised in the US political system?

The USA has a codified constitution that separates power between three branches: the President (executive), Congress (the legislature of the House and Senate), and the Supreme Court (judiciary). They check and balance each other, for example the President can veto laws, Congress can override a veto and impeach the President, and the Supreme Court can rule actions unconstitutional. The USA is also federal, so power is shared between the federal government and the fifty states.

What social and economic issues does the USA face?

Despite its wealth, the USA has wide income and wealth inequality and millions in poverty. Inequality falls unevenly, with Black and Hispanic Americans on average facing lower incomes, higher poverty, poorer health and lower attainment. Health care is a major issue because there is no fully universal system, though Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act offer support. Responses include welfare, affirmative action and education funding, but large inequalities remain.

How does the world respond to a significant world issue?

Individual countries give aid, send peacekeepers or forces, impose sanctions or accept refugees. The UN can authorise peacekeeping and deliver humanitarian aid through agencies such as the World Food Programme and WHO, though action can be blocked by a Security Council veto. NATO provides collective defence, the EU coordinates aid, and NGOs such as Oxfam and the Red Cross deliver relief. These responses save lives but are limited by funding, the veto, lack of cooperation and the scale of the problem.

ScotlandModern Studies

SQA Higher Modern Studies International Issues: a complete overview of the USA as a world power and a significant world issue

A deep-dive SQA Higher Modern Studies guide to International Issues. Covers the USA as a world power, its political system of separation of powers and federalism, its social and economic inequalities, and a significant world issue with the international responses of countries, the UN, NATO, the EU and NGOs.

Generated by Claude Opus 4.816 min readHigherUpdated 2026-06-02

Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed

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What this unit actually demands
A world power: the USA
The political system of a world power
Social and economic issues in a world power
A significant world issue
International responses to a world issue
How this unit is examined
Check your knowledge

What this unit actually demands

International Issues studies the wider world: one world power in depth (here the USA) and one significant world issue. The examiners test your knowledge of how power and inequality work in another country, your understanding of the causes and effects of a global problem, and your ability to evaluate how effectively countries and international organisations respond.

This guide walks through all five key areas, then sets out the patterns the SQA repeats. Each key area has a matching dot-point page with practice questions; this overview ties them together.

A world power: the USA

The unit opens with why the USA is a world power: its economic size and the dollar, its military strength and NATO leadership, its political influence through the UN Security Council, and its cultural soft power.

The political system of a world power

The USA has a codified constitution with a separation of powers between the President, Congress and the Supreme Court, a system of checks and balances, and federalism dividing power between the federal government and the fifty states.

Despite its wealth, the USA has wide income and wealth inequality and poverty that falls hardest on some ethnic groups. Health care is a major issue because there is no fully universal system, though Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act help. Responses are debated.

A significant world issue

A world issue (a conflict, terrorism, poverty or disease) has complex, overlapping causes and effects on individuals, on the country affected, and on the wider world through refugees, prices, instability and security.

International responses to a world issue

Responses come from individual countries (aid, peacekeepers, sanctions, refugees) and international organisations: the UN (peacekeeping and humanitarian aid, limited by the veto), NATO (collective defence), the EU, and NGOs. Their effectiveness is limited and must be evaluated.

How this unit is examined

A typical SQA profile for International Issues:

Describe questions. Setting out features of the world power, such as why the USA is a world power or how its government is organised.
Explain questions. Showing why something is the case, such as why a world issue has the effects it does.
Evaluate questions. Judging the effectiveness of US responses to inequality or of international responses to a world issue.
Source-handling. Detecting bias and drawing conclusions from sources on an international topic.

Check your knowledge

A mix of recall and explanation questions covering the unit. Attempt them, then check against the solutions.

State two reasons the USA is a world power. (2 marks)
Name the three branches of the US government. (3 marks)
Explain what federalism means in the USA. (2 marks)
Give two social or economic inequalities in the USA. (2 marks)
Describe two ways international organisations respond to a world issue. (2 marks)

Sources & how we know this

SQA Higher Modern Studies Course Specification — SQA (2018)