Browsing by Subject "International relations theory"

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6

Open Access
Conceptions of ‘the international’ beyond the core: Turkey in the post-Cold War era
(Routledge, 2018) Küçük, M. N.
International relations (IR) scholarship rests on a conception of ‘the international’ based on the experiences of core actors. A burgeoning literature has asked what IR would look like if non-core actors’ conceptions of ‘the international’ were also considered. This article analyzes conceptions of ‘the international’ in Turkey as an example of a non-core context. In doing this, the article develops and offers a new analytical framework which breaks down the components of conceptions of ‘the international’ into three questions: ‘what’, ‘who’, and ‘where’ of world politics-namely, the main dynamics of world politics, the main actors of world politics, and the location where world politics takes place. I utilize this framework to empirically analyze the election manifestos and party programs of the political parties in Turkey, and tease out their conceptions of ‘the international.’ The article concludes by considering the implications of these findings for IR scholarship in general.
Open Access
“Contrapuntal reading” as a method, an ethos, and a metaphor for global IR
(Oxford University Press, 2016) Bilgin, P.
How to approach Global International Relations (IR)? This is a question asked by students of IR who recognize the limits of our field while expressing their concern that those who strive for a Global IR have been less-thanclear about the “how to?” question. In this article, I point to Edward W. Said’s approach to “contrapuntal reading” as one way of approaching Global IR that embraces diversity and reflects multiple and overlapping experiences and perspectives of humankind. More specifically, I suggest that contrapuntal reading offers students of IR a method of studying world politics that focuses on our “intertwined and overlapping histories,” past and present; an ethos for approaching IR through raising the “contrapuntal awareness” of its students and offering an anchor for those who translate the findings of different perspectives; and a metaphor for thinking about Global IR as regional and global, one and many. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the International Studies Association. All rights reserved.
Open Access
Forum: rethinking neoclassical realism at theory's end
(Oxford University Press, 2021) Meibauer, G.; Desmaele, L.; Onea, Tudor; Kitchen, N.; Foulon, M.; Reichwein, A.; Sterling-Folker, J.
This forum presents a snapshot of the current state of neoclassical realist theorizing. Its contributors are self-identified neoclassical realists who delineate their version of neoclassical realism (NCR), its scope, object of analysis, and theoretical contribution. From the standpoint of NCR, they contribute to and reflect on the “end of IR theory” debate. NCR has come under criticism for its supposed lack of theoretical structure and alleged disregard for paradigmatic boundaries. This raises questions as to the nature of this (theoretical) beast. Is NCR a midrange, progressive research program? Can it formulate a grand theory informed by metatheoretical assumptions? Is it a reformulation of neorealism or classical realism or an eclectic mix of different paradigms? The forum contributors argue that NCR, in different variants, holds considerable promise to investigate foreign policy, grand strategy and international politics. They interrogate the interaction of international and domestic politics and consider normative implications as well as the sources and cases of NCR beyond the West. In so doing, they speak to theorizing and the utility of the theoretical enterprise in IR more generally.
Open Access
Introduction to the forum on Karin Fierke snapshots from home mind action and strategy in an uncertain world Bristol University Press 2022
(SAGE Publications, 2023-11-20) Bilgin, Pınar
Karin Fierke situates Snapshots from Home at the intersection of two bodies of scholarship: one directed toward globalizing the study of world politics and the other drawing from quantum theory's insights to study the social world. The first body of scholarship has a long history. That it did not make a mark on the study of world politics until the mid-2010s has to do with the narrow notion of "science" that dominated the study of world politics, also known as disciplinary International Relations (IR). By way of showing the obsolescence of the narrow notion of "science" that IR has modeled itself on, the body of efforts that draw from quantum theory's insights has the potential to make more room for the first one. Fierke's book, by way of exploring the parallels between quantum physics and Asian philosophies, allows us to identify this potential. The contributors to this special forum each elaborate on different aspects of this potential.
Open Access
Ir theory as an 'areligious' research field: the sources of and critical prospects to overcome the intellectual failure
(Marmara Üni. İktisat Fakültesi, 2016) Sula, İ. Erkam; Lüleci, Çağla
This study is built on an observation that ‘religion’ along with many other factors has a significant impact on international relations. However, religious factors are not incorporated in International Relations (IR) theoretical analysis. Hence, it is deemed necessary to ask: ‘When did IR scholars lose the track of religion in their theories and how to bring religion back in?’ An answer is provided through an analysis of the literature to find out the sources of such neglect and possible ways to overcome it. The study does so in two parts. First, it is argued that the adoption of natural sciences’ methodology in IR- the so-called ‘Behavioralist revolution’- has been quite influential in the lack of interest on religion. Secularism has been an unquestioned part of Behavioralism - the ‘positive science’ update package adopted by scholars of IR theory. The end of the Cold War brought ideational variables back in to the study of IR theory. This process is directed mainly by the emergent ‘Critical’, ‘Constructivist’ or ‘postpositivist’ turn in IR. Therefore, the second part focuses on the critical approaches to IR theory in the post-Cold War era with a specific focus on Critical Theory (CT) in order to develop a possible way to incorporate religion in IR theoretical analysis.
Open Access
Widening the world of IR: a typology of homegrown theorizing
(Center for Foreign Policy and Peace Research, İhsan Doğramacı Peace Foundation, 2018) Aydınlı, Ersel; Biltekin, G.
It is rare that a recognized voice from non-Western world makes an impression in International Relations theory. While a few studies have looked at the structural and institutional constraints that contribute to such lack of recognition, part of the problem stems from confusion around the definition of what theorizing out of the non-Western world actually is. Based on a review of studies that embody indigenous conceptualizations of international phenomena in the periphery, we first define such 'homegrown' theorizing as original theorizing in the periphery about the periphery. By elaborating on these conceptualizations' specific methods in building theories, we then provide a typology of homegrown theories and assess each theory building method in terms of its potential for global acceptance and further development. We substantiate our arguments on global acceptance by drawing on a comparison of the citation counts of 18 homegrown theories. In doing so, we try to give voice to some of the most prominent scholarly and intellectual efforts stemming from the periphery, and provide a guide for Western scholars on how to engage with homegrown theorizing in a more intellectually stimulating manner. The article concludes by highlighting a number of critical factors in opening up space for different voices in the world of IR.