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| 1 |
ID:
130926
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2014.
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| Summary/Abstract |
This paper examines the use of short writing assignments in undergraduate international relations courses. It gives instructors ideas about thinking beyond traditional research papers and instead focuses on shorter assignments that demand critical thinking skills. The ability to write concisely is useful for students with future careers in government, business, nonprofits, journalism, electoral politics, or academia. By requiring application of theoretical frameworks (perhaps as policy recommendations in a memo), students can see how policymakers employ international relations theories, thereby simulating the work inside the National Security Council or US State Department. This highlights the connections between theory and policy. Short papers can also better showcase role playing and connect with active learning techniques. Research papers of 10 pages or more may not be as useful as shorter assignments that focus students' attention on analyzing an issue, presenting a case study, or writing a policy brief.
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| 2 |
ID:
130921
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| Publication |
2014.
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| Summary/Abstract |
This paper develops a framework for interpreting state international policy by treating national identity as inherently contested. Building on insights from constructivist literature, it proposes a technique for establishing the meaning of foreign policy action on several interrelated levels: state-based, society-based, and international. The paper illustrates the benefits of the approach by selecting the example of Russia's European diplomacy under President Dmitri Medvedev. By studying how officials themselves justify their policies and how these policies are then perceived in broader social and international settings, we have an opportunity to develop a rich understanding of a particular state action, as well as tentatively assess the chances of this action's success or failure.
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| 3 |
ID:
130920
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| Publication |
2014.
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| Summary/Abstract |
This paper asks whether the recent "reset" in Russia-US relations parallels the Cold War reprieve from East to West tensions during Détente. The author considers the enthusiasm for this reset shared by Presidents Medvedev and Obama and acknowledges the benefits accrued for Russia as a result of better relations with the United States. In so doing, the paper argues that the Medvedev-Obama reset is not the result of a convergence of liberal-minded principles shared by the leadership, due in large part to the absence of a meaningful commitment on the part of Medvedev to bring about meaningful liberal reforms in Russia. In fact, the reset seems more the result of a desire by both leaders to shed past ideological disagreements in favor of a more pragmatic approach to relations, based upon mutual benefit. The paper then concludes that the current reset is not a temporary warming of relations akin to a second-generation détente because there was no "new Cold War" to abate. The paper contributes to the growing body of opinion that acknowledges a need for analysts and practitioners to search for a better lens through which to view Russia-US relations than the Cold War prism that persistently frames our analysis.
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| 4 |
ID:
130924
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| Publication |
2014.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Some international relations (IR) scholars lament the divide that exists between the academic community and the policy community. Others celebrate it. In this article, we test a core proposition advanced by advocates of bridging the policy-academy divide: that direct engagement in the policy-making process will make international relations scholars more adept at designing, undertaking, and communicating research in ways that are useful and relevant to policymakers. Using a difference-in-differences estimation strategy, we evaluate whether and to what extent direct exposure to the policy-making process influences how IR scholars select publication outlets. We define and evaluate policy-making exposure in two ways: periods of public service in which faculty members temporarily vacate their university positions to work for governments or intergovernmental organizations; and instances in which faculty members undertake substantial consulting assignments for government agencies and intergovernmental organizations. Our findings suggest that "in-and-outers"-faculty members who temporarily leave the ivory tower to accept policy positions-return to the academy with new perspectives and publication priorities. By contrast, we find no policy-making exposure effect among "moonlighters." Our results suggest that IR scholars are no more likely to publish in policy journals after doing part-time consulting work for governments and IOs.
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| 5 |
ID:
130925
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| Publication |
2014.
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| Summary/Abstract |
This paper challenges the commonly held perception that grand theory is irrelevant for policy. Policy, it is often argued, is in need of detailed case-oriented empirical analysis and instrumental policy recommendations rather than any sweeping generalizations or lofty ideas emanating from grand theory. Notwithstanding, this paper argues that grand theory has an underestimated relevance for policy. To be able to see and appreciate this, the notion of policy relevance must be expanded. Whereas grand theory and grand concepts such as Realism, Liberalism, Constructivism, or Marxism do not provide case-specific knowledge or recommendations, they provide general roadmaps, conceptualization of world affairs, and also have a symbolic function, legitimating or challenging established policy paradigms. Policymakers, akin to grand theorists, arguably like to make sweeping statements and generalizations. Drawing on theory and findings in public policy studies, here applied to international relations and foreign policy, this paper suggests conditions under which grand theory can be relevant for policy.
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| 6 |
ID:
130923
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| Publication |
2014.
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| Summary/Abstract |
This paper explores a number of success stories of scholar-practitioner interactions on issues such as democracy promotion, fostering economic development, reducing extreme income inequality, and foreign policymaking toward the United States, among others, to argue that the so-called scholar-practitioner gap in International Relations might not be as wide as it may seem. It also highlights some of the salient limits to effective relations between the worlds of ideas and policy, and it discusses the main transmission belts-both individual and institutional-through which scholarly outputs influence the different stages of policymaking. The paper closes by proposing a number of "best practices" to enhance effective scholar-practitioner relations in inter-American affairs and beyond, including tying research to significant world events, synthesizing research findings into digestible components, developing relations of trust with allies in government, providing concrete policy recommendations based on rigorous research and cost-effectiveness analyses, and integrating practitioners into academic departments, among others.
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| 7 |
ID:
130922
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| Publication |
2014.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Russian ethnic press in the United States was examined to understand how political identity and loyalties are negotiated in conflictual situations. News coverage of eight foreign policy controversies was studied in terms of tone, emphasis-or lack thereof-on the conflict between the US and Russia, and attributes the newspapers assigned to the two countries. Most of the coverage was neutral in tone. The conflict was mostly de-emphasized. Attributes assigned to the two countries were in the middle of the conflict-cooperation spectrum, avoiding the extremes. These findings suggest that Russian American ethnic newspapers provide a balanced coverage of both the country of origin and that of adoption, thereby pointing to a hybrid political identity of their readers. However, when US security interests are perceived to be at stake, the said press tends to be more pro-American.
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