ADVANCED THEORIES OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS REL 440E (original) (raw)
Theories of International Relations* also from reading
Universities and professional associations usually are organized in ways that tend to separate scholars in adjoining disciplines and perhaps even to promote stereotypes of each other and their scholarly endeavors. The seemingly natural areas of scholarly convergence between diplomatic historians and political scientists who focus on international relations have been underexploited, but there are also some signs that this may be changing. These include recent essays suggesting ways in which the two disciplines can contribute to each other; a number of prizewinning dissertations, later turned into books, by political scientists that effectively combine political science theories and historical materials; collaborative efforts among scholars in the two disciplines; interdisciplinary journals such as International Security that provide an outlet for historians and political scientists with common interests; and creation of a new section, "International , and also from reading 2 K. J. Holsti, The Dividing Discipline: Hegemony and Diversity in International Theory (London, 1985).
Theories of International Relations
Universities and professional associations usually are organized in ways that tend to separate scholars in adjoining disciplines and perhaps even to promote stereotypes of each other and their scholarly endeavors. The seemingly natural areas of scholarly convergence between diplomatic historians and political scientists who focus on international relations have been underexploited, but there are also some signs that this may be changing. These include recent essays suggesting ways in which the two disciplines can contribute to each other; a number of prizewinning dissertations, later turned into books, by political scientists that effectively combine political science theories and historical materials; collaborative efforts among scholars in the two disciplines; interdisciplinary journals such as International Security that provide an outlet for historians and political scientists with common interests; and creation of a new section, "International , and also from reading 2 K. J. Holsti, The Dividing Discipline: Hegemony and Diversity in International Theory (London, 1985).
2023
International Relations or International Politics is a recent discipline that did emerge at the beginning of the 20th century in order to help understand the nature and causes of wars following the aftermath of the First World War (WWI). However, some studies believed that the International Relations could be traced back to the Peace Treaty of Westphalia of 1968, which defined the concept of sovereign state. Since then, Holsti, K.J. (1998) and Destradi (2016) found that International politics is essentially different from domestic politics and thus deserves its own corpus of academic conceptualization. However, theoretically, they are mainly shaped, structured and supported by Western's Values and Political Theories and Philosophies that did emerge mainly during the period of Renaissance in Europe. They include Empiricism, Rationalism, Realism, Machiavellism, Idealism and Constructivism. Nevertheless, while the Empiricism, Rationalism, Realism and Machiavellism make it easier for the International Relations to be shaped and structured by Negative and/or Zero Sum Game (Destructive Competition), the Idealism and Constructivism lead to Constructive and Positive Competition, Cooperation and Collaboration in International Relations. In fact, regarding the impact of the Realism on International Relations, commitment to the Realism in International Relations could lead to a Zero sum game mainly when the Realism is led by a Security-driven agenda: a phenomenon called Security Dilemma. For example, according to Glaser (1994-1995), structural realists are pessimistic about the prospects for international cooperation; they believe that competition between the major powers in the international system is the normal state of affairs. Furthermore, the structural-realist argument is driven by the implications of international anarchy, that is, the lack of an international authority capable of enforcing agreements. Moreover, responding to the pressures of anarchy, during peacetime countries will be inclined to deal with adversaries by arms racing and gaining allies, rather than by cooperating via arms control or other approaches for realizing common interests. Anarchy then discourages cooperation and the possibility that adversaries will cheat on agreements. In short, the standard structural-realist argument predicts that cooperation between adversaries, while not impossible, will be difficult to achieve and, as a result, will be rare and contribute relatively little to state's wellbeing. Since then, instead of helping build a ' Multidisciplinary and Multidimensional Global Cooperative and Collaborative Framework' that should have helped built a ' Global Governance Globalization' in order to fix the Destructive Effects of Globalization on the one hand and improve its Capitalisation Effects on the second hand, the commitment to the Realism and by extension to the Structural-realism lead to a ' Negative or Zero Sum Game ' . Regarding the impact of the Machiavellism on the International Relations, studies found that at many different levels, the use of Machiavellism in International Relations could allow the use of Manipulation, Callouness and Indifference to Morality in International Relations that unfortunately can stimulate a ' Negative or Zero Sum Game ' like the Realism. However, Machiavel who is a realist and diplomat has suggested a mix of Diplomacy and Realism in order to reverse the course. Meaning to minimize the risk of Negative or Zero Sum Game and at least to have a Zero Sum Game. Regarding the impact of Rationalism on International Relations, emphasis was mainly on the requirements of global cooperation. Accordingly, rational choice explanations for conflict and the lack of cooperation in international politics frequently point to factors such as incomplete information, and a lack of credibility. Furthermore, according to rationalist analyzes, institutions may facilitate cooperation by increasing information, reducing transaction costs, and reducing collective action problems (Keohane, Robert O. And Martin, Lisa L. , 1995). One of the major contribution of the Empiricism to the International Relations has been the introduction of the Game Theory that help the players to act strategically in the international Relations. Doing so, can help minimize the risk of Negative or Zero Sum Game in the International Relations if all the requirements are met. Furthermore, under some requirements, the mix of Realism and Diplomacy ( cf. Machiavellism) and Idealism and Constructivism on the one hand and integration of Prisoner's Dilemma in the Machiavellism, Rationalism, Empiricism and Realism on the second hand can lead to Zero or Positive Sum Game in International Relations. Empirically, during the Westernization of the Globalization since the 15th century, Empiricism, Rationalism, Idealism, Constructivism, Realism and Machiavellism became the pillars of the The International Theory. Furthermore, generally speaking, Elitism and Elites Democracy have always had very important and strategic role into an International Relations. However and by so doing, Empirism, Realism and Elitism have undermined popular participation, egalitarian social change and other traditional pillars of democratic value. Unfortunately, the rise of Destructive Nationalism and Socialism on the one hand and the predominance of Ideology over Realism, Idealism and Constructivism on the second hand has created the conditions of the WWI and WWII. Since then, the Elites and Elites Democracy have been held accountable for the WWI and WWII because they have been unable to anticipate those events. Fortunately, after the WWI and WWII, there has been significant behavioral change that was compatible to the build of Collaborative and Cooperative Framework at the global level. Since then, the Elites have worked hard to create the Bretton Woods Institutions that have been strong enough to contain the commitment to the Realism, Rationalism and Machiavellism in the International Relations. However, recent structural, behavioral, trade and technological change have tended to restore them. Key Words : International Relations; International Politics; Empiricism; Rationalism; Idealism; Constructivism; Realism; Machiavellism; Multidisciplinary and Multidimensional Global Cooperative and Collaborative Framework; Negative or Zero Sum Game; Positive Sum Game; Destructive Nationalism and Socialism; WWI and WWII.
International Relations Theory.pdf
The third edition of this innovative textbook introduces students to the main theories in international relations. It explains and analyzes each theory, allowing students to understand and critically engage with the myths and assumptions behind them. Each theory is illustrated using the example of a popular film.
THEORIES OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS I
TAYYAR ARI, 2018
The objectivity of studying social and political sciences has always been questioned on the ground that personal values may interfere. In the same vein, it is a challenge to understand and explain international relations, owing to different world views and approaches. This is mainly because there are many ways of studying international relations. First of all, it requires an interdisciplinary and multilevel analysis to explain international phenomena, which may embody conflict, cooperation or both. IR field began to be recognized as a separate discipline during the period between two world wars and since then debates have continued on “what to study” and “how to study”. These questions paved the way to many ontological and epistemological discussions. The realist-idealist debate of the 1950s and the methodological debate of the 1960s are just two examples that have evolved in the discipline. A realist description of International relations is based on competition among states as major actors to pursue their interests, whereas a liberal description concentrates more on harmonious relations of pluralist actors. Theories have also grown out of the need to seek regularities and reflect the quest for a grand theory to explain all observed phenomena, which has truly been an overarching and ambitious attempt. Theories of IR borrow assumptions of each other so to say, and provide feedback for their reconstruction, through the critiques they make against each other. In this book, you will make an introduction to realism, liberalism and economic structuralism as major traditions in the field, their historical evolution and some theories they have given birth to. Chapter 1 is about contending issues and classification of major theories in the field. Chapter 2 discusses the realist theory of IR and its evolution. Chapter 3 provides a close look to liberal tradition and its reflections in IR. Chapter 4 introduces economic structuralism via the Marxist theory and Chapter 5 familiarizes the readers with International Political Economy. Chapter 6 briefly informs the readers on types of international regime theories reflecting different traditions in IR. Chapter 7, the normative theory on the other hand deals with “what should be” in IR instead of “what is” observed. Lastly, in Chapter 8, the English School of IR which argues to be a via media between realism and liberalism is elaborated. Though cases in IR and different issue-areas demand different theoretical perspectives and methods of inquiry; researchers agree on the need to utilize theoretical frameworks as road maps to explain and foresee the future of events. The theoretical approaches and their basic assumptions may sound unfamiliar and abstract at the beginning, However, they will prove to be the alphabet to conceptualize and interpret international phenomena. As editors of this book, we hope you enjoy reading the book and it guides you in observing international arena and motivates for analytical thinking on international relations. We are grateful to our esteemed authors for their collaboration in preparing this course textbook for the International Relations Program. Editors Prof.Dr. Tayyar ARI Assoc.Prof.Dr. Elif TOPRAK