Wilsonian idealism

Wilsonian idealism (also Wilsonianism) is a type of foreign policy that comes from the ideas and proposals of United States president Woodrow Wilson. He issued his famous Fourteen Points in January 1918 as a basis for ending World War I and promoting world peace. He was a leading advocate of the League of Nations to enable the international community to avoid wars and end hostile aggression. Wilsonianism is a form of liberal democratic internationalism.

Wilson's 1887 essay "The Study of Administration" is a foundational text in American liberalism and progressivism that covered elevating "administration" – the practical execution of government work – to a distinct field of scientific inquiry. Writing during the late 19th century, Wilson aimed to professionalize a government system he viewed as increasingly inefficient, corrupt, and hindered by the "spoils system". Wilson drew on Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel's treatment of law and the state in Elements of the Philosophy of Right, especially Hegel's picture of how public institutions arise and mediate social conflict.