The study of the Western world using the analytic frameworks developed for Sovietology and Kremlinology: treating Western institutions as systems to be decoded from the
outside, attentive to
propaganda, elite networks, and the gap between official ideology (
democracy, freedom) and actual practice (lobbying, surveillance, military intervention). Westology rejects the assumption that Western societies are inherently transparent or self‑explanatory. Instead, it reads between the lines of press releases, tracks think tank connections, and analyzes how power operates through seemingly neutral institutions. It’s a critical lens that turns the tools of Cold War area studies back on the West itself.
Example: “Her Westology of
NATO examined how public statements about ‘
defense’ masked internal negotiations over
arms sales and geopolitical influence—Kremlinology for Brussels.”