International Relations and Social Science

8/11/2019 International Relations and Social Science

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Chapter 1: International Relations andSocial Science

by Milja Kurki and Colin Wight

International Relations Theories:

Discipline and Diversity


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Learning outcomes

After this lecture you should be able to:

Appreciate the role of meta-theoretical

inquiry in IR

Understand key debates on science in IR

Understand the divisions characteristic of the

fourth debate in IR

Have an appreciation of the key areas ofdisagreement between IR theoretical

positions


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Meta-theory

Meta-theoryexplores the underlyingassumptions that theories hold andexamines their consequences on

theorising and empirical research All theoretical positions make

assumptions about:

ontology(theory of being)epistemology(theory of knowledge)

methodology (theory of methods)


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Science in IR

There are two key meta-theoretical

questions in IR:

1) Is IR a science or not?

2) What does the scientific study

of world politics entail?

Positivismhas traditionally provided thedominant account of what science is


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Great debates

The history of IR has often been narrated interms of great debates, although this notion isnot unproblematic

There are four key debates generallyrecognised in the discipline:

Idealism vs Realismpre and post-WW I

Science vs Traditionalism1960sThe Interparadigm debate1970s and 1980s

Fourth debatelate-1980s and 1990s. Present?


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Fourth debate

Generally seen as the currently

dominant debate

This debate can be characterised in

many ways: as a debate

- between explainingand understanding

- between positivismand postpositivism- between rationalismand reflectivism


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Explanation vs. understanding

The explanatory theorists seek to

emulate the natural sciences in seeking

general causes

The understandingposition argues that

we should seek to explore what is

distinctive about social life and focus on

interpretation of the internal meanings,reasons and beliefs actors hold


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Positivism vs postpositivism

Positivismis a philosophy of science that:

1) Advocates science based on systematicobservation that follows clear guidelines

2) Believes in the study of observableregularities

3) Tends to avoid talking about unobservablerealities

Postpositivismrefers to a number of theories,

some of which draw on interpretive theory,some of which seek a non-positivist versionof science


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Rationalism vs. Reflectivism

Rationalismrefers to those that apply rationalchoice and positivist methods

Reflectivismrefers to those that reject these

methods and advocate interpretive andreflective methodologies

Rationalist theories

neorealism

neoliberalism

Reflectivist theories

critical theory

constructivismpoststructuralism

feminism


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Scientific realism

Scientific realists have challenged the

positivist framing of visions of science in

IR

For scientific realists observation and

generalisations are not central to social

science. They also advocate

epistemological and methodologicalpluralism


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Conclusion

Being aware of meta-theoretical issues is

important in understanding the nature of

IR theorising because:

All positions in IR advance some meta-

theoretical assumptions, which in turn

has consequences for the kind of

questions we ask and the kind of worldpolitics we come to see

International Relations and Social Science

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