Between Stability and Chaos: The State in the Face of 21st Century Political and Economic Challenges

Contemporary states operate in a state of permanent equilibrium between stability and chaos. The pursuit of order and predictability coexists with the inevitability of crisis and transformation. Political and economic systems, once regarded as pillars of security and rationality, are increasingly subject to disruptions – wars, technological crises, populism, climate change, and the erosion of the global order. The COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the politicization of information, and growing economic inequalities have all exposed the fragility of institutional structures that, for decades, were considered resilient.

These developments unfold in the context of an emerging systemic transition in the global order. The long-standing dominance of Western liberal democracies is being increasingly contested by alternative governance models, most notably by China’s state-centric capitalism and authoritarian resilience. China’s rise as a global power is not merely economic or geopolitical – it also challenges prevailing assumptions about the relationship between political legitimacy, economic performance, and stability. In an increasingly multipolar world, the diffusion of power and the diversification of institutional frameworks raise fundamental questions about the future architecture of international relations and the normative foundations of statehood itself.

In the face of these overlapping turbulences, the very notion of “stability” demands renewed reflection: is it a tangible objective or merely a rhetorical veil concealing profound systemic instability? Moreover, how should stability itself be conceptualized? Should it be understood statically – as a state of unchanging equilibrium despite external shifts – or dynamically, through the lens of adaptability and the state’s capacity to respond to evolving political and economic realities?

The aim of this Research Topic is to explore how contemporary states navigate the uncertain terrain between order and disorder, continuity and collapse, governance and improvisation. We invite contributors to reflect on the ways in which political institutions, economic systems, and societies are adapting – or failing to adapt – to the accelerating pace of global transformations. Stability is proposed here not merely as a static condition, but as a dynamic process of balancing, negotiating, and redefining political and economic legitimacy in an era marked by constant flux and change.

The thematic scope of the Research Topic includes, but is not limited to, the following areas:

• political and economic resilience in times of global crises and systemic shocks

• governing under conditions of uncertainty: how states develop new public policy tools in response to contemporary complexity

• the redefinition of stability in hybrid regimes, fragile democracies, and post-conflict societies

• the interdependence of populism, nationalism, and technocracy in shaping governance models

• economic security and sustainable development as emerging dimensions of state stability

• the role of digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and disinformation in sustaining – or undermining – political order

• energy, migration, and climate change as structural tests of modern statehood

• philosophical and normative dimensions of stability: is chaos an inevitable component of political evolution?

• authoritarian resilience and global multipolarity: systemic competition and the future of political legitimacy.

This Research Topic adopts an interdisciplinary and comparative perspective – bridging political science, economics, sociology, and international relations. By analyzing state responses to contemporary turbulence, it aims to map the evolving architecture of global order and highlight the tension between stability as a political aspiration and chaos as an inherent condition of the modern world.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Conceptual Analysis
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• ... View all formats

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Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Conceptual Analysis
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Registered Report
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: State stability, Systemic transition, Authoritarianism, Populism, Multipolarity, Disinformation

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.