Sectoral conflict and foreign economic policy, 1914-1940 Jeff Frieden The period from 1914 to 1940 is one of the most crucial and enigmatic in modern world history,and in the history of modern U.S.foreign policy. World War I catapulted the United States into international economic and political leadership,yet in the aftermath of the war,despite grandiose Wilso- nian plans,the United States quickly lapsed into relative disregard for events abroad:it did not join the League of Nations,disavowed responsibil- ity for European reconstruction,would not participate openly in many inter- national economic conferences,and restored high levels of tariff protection for the domestic market.Only in the late 1930s and 1940s,after twenty years of bitter battles over foreign policy,did the United States move to center stage of world politics and economics:it built the United Nations and a string of regional alliances,underwrote the rebuilding of Western Europe, almost single-handedly constructed a global monetary and financial system, and led the world in commercial liberalization. This article examines the peculiar evolution of U.S.foreign economic policy in the interwar years,and focuses on the role of domestic socioeco- nomic and political groups in determining foreign policy.The American interwar experience powerfully demonstrates that the country's interna- tional position and economic evolution do not sufficiently explain its foreign policy.Indeed,although the contours of the international system and the place of the United States in it changed dramatically during and after World War I,these changes had a very different impact on different sectors of The author would like to acknowledge the comments and suggestions of Beverly Crawford, Robert Dallek,Amy Davis,Barbara Geddes,Judith Goldstein,Joanne Gowa,Stephan Hag- gard,John Ikenberry,Robert Jervis,Miles Kahler,Paul Kennedy,Robert Keohane,Charles Kindleberger,Steve Krasner,David Lake,Mike Mastanduno,William McNeil,John Ruggie, Stephen Schuker,Jack Snyder,Arthur Stein,and Richard Sylla. International Organization 42,1,Winter 1988 1988 by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the World Peace FoundationSectoral conflict and foreign economic policy, 1914-1940 Jeff Frieden The period from 1914 to 1940 is one of the most crucial and enigmatic in modern world history, and in the history of modern U.S. foreign policy. World War I catapulted the United States into international economic and political leadership, yet in the aftermath of the war, despite grandiose Wilso￾nian plans, the United States quickly lapsed into relative disregard for events abroad: it did not join the League of Nations, disavowed responsibil￾ity for European reconstruction, would not participate openly in many inter￾national economic conferences, and restored high levels of tariff protection for the domestic market. Only in the late 1930s and 1940s, after twenty years of bitter battles over foreign policy, did the United States move to center stage of world politics and economics: it built the United Nations and a string of regional alliances, underwrote the rebuilding of Western Europe, almost single-handedly constructed a global monetary and financial system, and led the world in commercial liberalization. This article examines the peculiar evolution of U.S. foreign economic policy in the interwar years, and focuses on the role of domestic socioeco￾nomic and political groups in determining foreign policy. The American interwar experience powerfully demonstrates that the country's interna￾tional position and economic evolution do not sufficiently explain its foreign policy. Indeed, although the contours of the international system and the place of the United States in it changed dramatically during and after World War I, these changes had a very different impact on different sectors of The author would like to acknowledge the comments and suggestions of Beverly Crawford, Robert Dallek, Amy Davis, Barbara Geddes, Judith Goldstein, Joanne Gowa, Stephan Hag￾gard, John Ikenberry, Robert Jervis, Miles Kahler, Paul Kennedy, Robert Keohane, Charles Kindleberger, Steve Krasner, David Lake, Mike Mastanduno, William McNeil, John Ruggie, Stephen Schuker, Jack Snyder, Arthur Stein, and Richard Sylla. International Organization 42, 1, Winter 1988 O 1988 by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the World Peace Foundation