World History II (HIST 102) Cold War, Containment, and Decolonization Study Guide
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
World History II (HIST 102) | Study Guide

Overview
A World History II review guide connecting Cold War containment, proxy conflicts, decolonization movements, nonalignment, and global political realignment after 1945.

Key topics
•containment doctrine and Cold War blocs
•proxy wars and superpower influence
•decolonization in Asia and Africa
•Non-Aligned Movement and postcolonial states
•economic and political consequences after independence

Suggested study tasks
•build a 1945-1991 timeline with 15 entries
•compare two decolonization movements
•write 8 cause-effect explanations
•define 12 key Cold War terms
•outline a thesis for a continuity/change essay

Common pitfalls
•making the Cold War only a US-USSR story
•ignoring local independence movements
•confusing decolonization dates and regions
•listing events without causation
•forgetting economic consequences