Lecture 6 Flashcards
What is Constructivism
paradigm based on the premise that world politics is a function of the ways that states construct and then accept images of reality and later respond to the meanings given to power politics; as consensual definitions change, it is possible for either conflictual or cooperative practices to evolve.
People have agency and can reflect on their environment and change
What is the Constructivist Worldview?
Our understanding of the world is individually and socially constructed
–Intersubjective human action (thought communities/ prevailing attitudes create beliefs, based on shared social experiences, etc.)
–We “Build” reality through ideas & values; The world is not a given, but “made” & “remade” (Imagined Communities)
Identity, norms, social interactions matter
–Meaning of concepts depends on shared knowledge
–How the world works, what is unchangeable, what can be reformed
Social Context is important to understanding the international system/ international relations
–No set national interest; elements of sovereignty can/will change and evolve
–Importance of NGOs & human rights
–Not state-centric
Ideas and interests of actors can/may change
Norms
–Generalized standards of behavior that, once accepted, shape collective expectations about appropriate conduct.
Constructivism – some examples … Where do these come from??
Sovereignty
–Rule for state behavior & diplomatic practice
–Slowly eroding?
–International human rights norms – R2P
–Limiting civilian casualties in warfare
When did militaries become concerned and why?
–Europe – Years and years of conflict
1945-present 🡪 “zone of peace”
–Realism = continued conflict
–Why not?
Constructing Norms of Humanitarian Intervention
Why do states intervene for human rights concerns?
–Explanations based on interests [realism & lib-int] are inadequate
–Answer: Changing set of norms for intervention
–International norms for who deserves protection has broadened
–Norm of multilateral intervention – approved by UN [legitimacy]
These norms do not ensure intervention but creates conditions for more frequent intervention.
What other norms might be included in this discussion?
How important are these norms in explaining state behavior?
Importance of norms?
Country Y wishes to invade Country X and remove a troublesome government ….
Which is more important?
–Country Y easily has the power to do so, has much to gain by the invasion, and would suffer little material cost to do so.
–Country Y would face significant international criticism for these actions and its’ actions would be viewed as illegitimate in the eyes of the international community.
The Evolution of Constructivist Thought
Emerged after fall of Soviet Union, rise of religious fundamentalism, and growth of micro-nationalism
Peaceful end to the Cold War not foreseen by liberalism or realism
Social constructivism
–variant of constructivism that emphasizes the role of social discourse in the development of ideas and identities
Agent-oriented constructivism
–variant of constructivism that sees ideas and identities as influenced in part by independent actors.
New norms
A new strand of constructivism emphasizes intersubjective instability and the role of psychology in shaping ideas and practices
Limitations of Constructivism
General social scientific framework as opposed to a theory or a paradigm
Lacks specific assumptions about world politics
Not sure which factors cause which ideas to become dominant
Supplements rather than supplants realism and liberalism
Pioneering Influences on Constructivist Thought
Many constructivists have been influenced by critical theory, especially as it was developed by Max Horkheimer (1947), and Jurgen Habermas (1984). Rather than viewing the world as a set of neutral, objective “facts” that could be perceived apart from the situation in which observation occurred, critical theorists saw all phenomena as being embedded within a specific sociohistorical context ascribing normative meaning to information.
Although constructivists have offered “path-breaking perspectives in the study of international politics” that share certain distinctive themes, some argue that constructivism is not a theory as such, but rather a general social scientific framework or “meta-approach.” Whereas theoretical paradigms embrace a set of assumptions about how politics work, “constructivism is a set of assumptions about how to study politics,” and hence is compatible with a variety of paradigms. Along this line of argument, constructivism supplements rather than supplants realism and liberalism.
Final Thoughts: International Theory and the Global Future
Difficult to simplify world’s problems into one theory
Theories challenged with global events
Important to use theories to gain different perspectives and to question world politics
Other Theoretical Perspectives
The Feminist Critique and the The Marxist Critique
Feminist theory:
body of scholarship that emphasizes gender in the study of world politics.
Feminist theory is concerned with
the gender bias inherent in both mainstream theory and the practice of international affairs, and seeks to demonstrate how gendered perspectives pervade world politics.
The Feminist Critique
Feminist theory
Fundamental gender bias
Reformulation of core concepts
Incorporation of the female perspective
Scientific study of world politics
Critics point out an inherent bias and lack of testable hypotheses and objectivity
Incorporation of the female perspective
Feminist scholars argue that realists overvalue the role of the state and deemphasize the individual and, when this occurs, there is even less acknowledgement of the female individual.
The Marxist Critique Focuses on
class conflict that emerges from conflicting material interests of the bourgeoisie and the proletariat
Underlying antagonism and class struggles affect international relations
Imperialism
Dependency theory
World-system theory
Socialism
economic system characterized by private ownership of the means of production and distribution so individual choice emerges through a free market
