In the discipline of international relations, constructivism is the application of constructivist epistemology to the study of world affairs. Main International Relations Theories and derivates Realism & Neorealism Idealism, Liberalism & Neoliberalism Marxism & Dependency theory Functionalism & Neofunctionalism Critical theory & Constructivism International relations theory attempts to provide a conceptual model upon which international relations can be analyzed. ... Main International Relations Theories and derivates Realism & Neorealism Idealism, Liberalism & Neoliberalism Marxism & Dependency theory Functionalism & Neofunctionalism Critical theory & Constructivism The term realism or political realism collects a wide variety of theories and modes of thought about International Relations that have in common that the motivation of states is in the... Main International Relations Theories and derivates Realism & Neorealism Idealism, Liberalism & Neoliberalism Marxism & Dependency theory Functionalism & Neofunctionalism Critical theory & Constructivism Neorealism or structural realism is a theory of international relations, outlined by Kenneth Waltz in his 1979 book, Theory of International Politics. ... Main International Relations Theories and derivates Realism & Neorealism Idealism, Liberalism & Neoliberalism Marxism & Dependency theory Functionalism & Neofunctionalism Critical theory & Constructivism Former President of the United States Woodrow Wilson, considered to be a founder of idealism. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Liberal institutionalism. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... International Relations Theory Realism Liberalism Idealism Neoconservatism Institutionalism Functionalism Marxism Critical theory Isolationism Marxist and Neo-Marxist international relations theories are positivist paradigms which reject the realist/liberal view of state conflict or cooperation; instead focusing on the economic and material aspects. ... Main International Relations Theories Politics Portal This box:      Dependency theory is a body of social science theories, both from developed and developing nations, that create a worldview which suggests that poor underdeveloped states of the periphery are exploited by wealthy developed nations of the centre, in order to sustain economic... Main International Relations Theories Politics Portal This box:      Critical international relations theory is a set of schools of thought in international relations (IR) that have criticized the status-quo—both from positivist positions as well as postpositivist positions. ... International Relations Theory Realism Liberalism Idealism Neoconservatism Institutionalism Functionalism Marxism Critical theory Isolationism Functionalism is a theory of international relations that arose principally from the experience of European integration. ... Main International Relations Theories and derivates Realism & Neorealism Idealism, Liberalism & Neoliberalism Marxism & Dependency theory Functionalism & Neofunctionalism Constructivism Neofunctionalism is a theory of regional integration, building on the work of David Mitrany. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      International relations (IR), a branch of political science, is the study of foreign affairs and global issues among states within the international system, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations (IGOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and multinational corporations (MNCs). ... Constructivism is a perspective in philosophy that views all of our knowledge as constructed, under the assumption that it does not necessarily reflect any external transcendent realities; it is contingent on convention, human perception, and social experience. ... Constructivism is a perspective in philosophy that views all of our knowledge as constructed, under the assumption that it does not necessarily reflect any external transcendent realities; it is contingent on convention, human perception, and social experience. ...

Development

This field is perhaps most closely associated with Alexander Wendt, as he has applied the ideas of social constructionism to the field of international relations. Wendt’s article "Anarchy is What States Make of It: the Social Construction of Power Politics" (1992) in International Organization laid the theoretical groundwork for challenging what he considered to be a flaw shared by both neorealists and neoliberal institutionalists, namely, a commitment to a (crude) form of materialism. By attempting to show that even such a core realist concept as "power politics" is socially constructed—-that is, not given by nature and hence, capable of being transformed by human practice--Wendt opened the way for a generation of international relations scholars to pursue work in a wide range of issues from a constructivist perspective. Alexander Wendt is one of the core social constructivist scholars in the field of international relations. ... For the learning theory, see Social Constructivism (Learning Theory). ... Main International Relations Theories and derivates Realism & Neorealism Idealism, Liberalism & Neoliberalism Marxism & Dependency theory Functionalism & Neofunctionalism Critical theory & Constructivism Anarchy in international relations posits that the world system is leaderless: there is no universal sovereign or worldwide government. ...

Since the late 1980s and early 1990s, constructivism has become one of the major theories in the field of international relations. John Ruggie^[1] and others have identified several strands of constructivism. On the one hand, there are constructivist scholars such as Martha Finnemore, Kathryn Sikkink, Peter Katzenstein, and Alexander Wendt whose work has been widely accepted within the mainstream IR community and has generated vibrant scholarly discussions among realists, liberals, institutionalists, and constructivists. On the other hand, there are radical constructivists who take discourse and linguistics more seriously. Richard Ashley, Friedrich Kratochwil, Nicholas Onuf, and others still work in this area of constructivism, albeit largely outside of both mainstream IR and mainstream constructivist literature. John G. Ruggie is the Evron and Jeane Kirkpatrick Professor of International Affairs, and Frank and Denie Weil Director of the Sharmin and Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government. ... Peter Katzenstein (b. ... Friedrich Kratochwil studied at the University of Munich before migrating to the United States. ...

Theory

Many constructivists analyze international relations by looking at the goals, threats, fears, cultures, identities, and other elements of "social reality" on the international stage as the social constructs of the actors. In a key edited volume, The Culture of National Security (New York: Columbia University Press, 1996), constructivist scholars (Elizabeth Kier, Jeffrey Legro, Peter Katzenstein, and many others) challenge many traditional realist assumptions about how the international system operates, especially with regard to military security issues. Another approach is offered by "Defending the West" (Cambridge: Polity Press, 2005), in which James Gow studies contemporary issues of peace and security through empirical studies of the Western powers. Social scientists and literary scholars have claimed that many things are social constructions or social constructs, or that they have been socially constructed. ...

By focusing on how language and rhetoric are used to construct the social reality of the international system, constructivists are seen as more optimistic about progress in international relations than versions of realism loyal to a purely materialist ontology. Main International Relations Theories Politics Portal This box:      For other uses, see Realism (disambiguation). ...

Constructivism is often presented as an alternative to the two leading theories of international relations, realism and liberalism, but is not necessarily inconsistent with either. Wendt shares some key assumptions with leading realist and neorealist scholars, such as the existence of anarchy and the centrality of states in the international system. However, Wendt renders anarchy in cultural rather than materialist terms; he also offers a sophisticated theoretical defense of the state-as-actor assumption in international relations theory. This is a contentious issue within segments of the IR community as some constructivists challenge Wendt on some of these assumptions (see, for example, exchanges in Review of International Studies, vol. 30, 2004). Main International Relations Theories Politics Portal This box:      For other uses, see Realism (disambiguation). ... Liberalism is an ideology, philosophical view, and political tradition which holds that liberty is the primary political value. ... Main International Relations Theories and derivates Realism & Neorealism Idealism, Liberalism & Neoliberalism Marxism & Dependency theory Functionalism & Neofunctionalism Critical theory & Constructivism Neorealism or structural realism is a theory of international relations, outlined by Kenneth Waltz in his 1979 book, Theory of International Politics. ...

Notable constructivists in IR

• P. Stephen Waring
• Michael Barnett
• Patricia Goff
• Ted Hopf
• David Evangelidis
• Nicholas Onuf
• Elizabeth Kier
• Martha Finnemore
• Peter J. Katzenstein
• Richard Ned Lebow
• John Ruggie
• Frank Schimmelfennig
• Kathryn Sikkink
• Alexander Wendt
• Ole Wæver
• Barry Buzan
• Thomas Risse
• Chris Reus-Smit
• Maja Zehfuss
• Audie Klotz
• Ernst B. Haas
• Wasim Ahmed
• Emanuel Adler
• Jeffrey T. Checkel
• Anthony Clark Arend
• Friedrich Kratochwil
• James Gow

Michael N. Barnett is a major constructivist scholar in the field of international relations. ... Peter Katzenstein (b. ... Richard Ned Lebow is an American political scientist best known for his work in international relations and U.S. Foreign Policy. ... John G. Ruggie is the Evron and Jeane Kirkpatrick Professor of International Affairs, and Frank and Denie Weil Director of the Sharmin and Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government. ... Frank Schimmelfennig (* 1963, Marienberg) is a professor of European politics at the Center for Comparative and International Studies at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland. ... Alexander Wendt is one of the core social constructivist scholars in the field of international relations. ... Ole Wæver is a Professor of International Relations at the Institute for Political Science, University of Copenhagen. ... Barry Buzan is a Professor of International Relations at the London School of Economics, and honorary professor at the University of Copenhagen. ... Chris Reus-Smit (b. ... Anthony Clark Arend (born October 24, 1958) is Professor of Government and Foreign Service at Georgetown University. ... Friedrich Kratochwil studied at the University of Munich before migrating to the United States. ...

See also

• Constructivism
• Constructivist epistemology

The constructivist psychologies theorize about and investigate how human beings create systems for meaningfully understanding their worlds and experiences. ... Constructivism is a perspective in philosophy that views all of our knowledge as constructed, under the assumption that it does not necessarily reflect any external transcendent realities; it is contingent on convention, human perception, and social experience. ...

External links

• IR theory database
• Global Power Barometer

Notes