| ID | 080889 |
| Title Proper | Case for combining material forces and ideas in the study of IR |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Sørensen, Georg |
| Publication | 2008. |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | Neorealism tends to base itself on a certain, taken-for-granted, view of the material forces in IR, a view which focuses on the relative distribution of capabilities between sovereign states and their consequences in terms of the socialization and competition among states. Social constructivism is preoccupied with the study of ideas, but tends not to question the neorealist view of either socialization or competition or of the material world; the result is that the development and change of how material forces impact with the social world in IR is seriously under-theorized. The present contribution argues in favour of an approach which includes materialist as well as ideational factors; in that sense it advocates `analytical eclecticism'. A rich concept of international structure, which includes materialist as well as ideational factors, is proposed and the consequences of that concept for the analysis of IR are indicated |
| `In' analytical Note | European Journal of International Relations Vol. 14, No.1; Mar 2008: p5-32 |
| Journal Source | European Journal of International Relations Vol. 14, No.1; Mar 2008: p5-32 |
| Key Words | Constructivism ; International Relations Theory ; Materialism ; Transatlantic Relations |