一般來說，「霸權」的出現不僅是國際關係中的慣常現象，甚至也是國際 秩序穩定與否的關鍵之一；因此，從霸權興衰或更迭角度來進行觀察，也是我 們瞭解國際體系變遷的重要途徑之一。在本文當中，便試圖以東亞地區為例， 首先從歷史面著手，勾勒出近一個半世紀以來，從中國、英國、日本到美國的 不同霸權階段變化，接著比較其維繫霸權地位政策的差異所在，然後進一步將 焦點放在後冷戰時期以來的發展上，希望能進一步釐清東亞的權力分配現況。 最後，本文也試圖從結構現實主義與自由制度主義等不同研究途徑的對比，藉 以預測東亞安全環境的未來走向。

Generally speaking，so-called “great power” or “hegemony” is not just only a usual phenomenon in international relations, but an important issue to judge the stability of global order. Therefore, it is a key approach for us to observe the transformation of international system through the “power-transition theory” or cstheory of hegemonic stability”. In this paper，we will illustrate the influence of hegemony with the modern history of East Asia since 1842, and try to compare the different hegemonic policies among China, Great Britain, Japan, and the United States. Then, we will focus on the development of the Post-Cold War era, and describe further the condition of power distribution in contemporary East Asia. Finally, we also hope to forecast the future of East Asian security circumstance by contract between structural realism and liberal institutionalism.