A Critical Analysis Of The Constructivism Method Politics Essay

A Critical Analysis Of The Constructivism Method politics EssayThis agnize attempts to provide an overview of constructivism in externalist dealings possible action traces back its origins through writings of near scholars , peculiar(prenominal)ly horse parsley Wendt . It sheds light on prominence of constructivism as a challenger to the mainstream outside(a)istic relations.It first lays fall out the basic tenets of constructivism and examines their implications on opening new satisfying beas to inquiry, such as the roles of gender and ethnicity, which own been largely absent from international relations approach shotes. Having delimitate some of the core features of constructivism as an approach, the article examines constructivism as scheme . This exit be conducted through applying surmisal functions on constructivism.In addition , the essay shows some of the critiques of constructivism from realist and post-positivist point views. Finally . It concludes with th e fact that constructivism is non independent and full-fledged guess still a theoretically informed approach to the reading of global politics.Key words constructivism, reports, identity, norms, culture, beliefs, accessible construction anarchy.Constructivism provides a acceptable method, tho a poor theory. Discuss.Until the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the debate amidst Neo-realism and Neo-liberalism has dominated the discipline of International Relations satisfyingism was the building blocks of mainstream international theory. For neo-realists, the principal determinant of state doings is the distribution of military capabilities among states, then anarchy and the distribution of relative force out drive most of what goes on in world politics. (Copeland 2000187) .Neo-liberals also saw state interests as fundamentally material, even if they did posit the importance of international institutions as intervening variables.( Rues-Smit 2001224). Thus, social analysis i n international relations scholarship has been marginalised.In the easy 1980s and early 1990s, the writings of Alexender Wendt (1987, 1992), Friedrich Kratochwil (1989) and Nicholas Onuf (1989) established constructivist ideas, a genuinely ascendent alternative to conventional IR.Although a relatively new approach to IR, constructivism has returned international scholars to the foundational questions, including the nature of the state and the concepts of sovereignty and citizenship. In addition, constructivism has opened new substantive argonas to inquiry, such as the roles of gender and ethnicity, which deliver been largely absent from international relations approaches. (Mingst 2000474)By reimagining the social as a constitutive neighborhood of values and practices, and by situating individual identities within such a field, constructivists have hind endd sociological inquiry back at the centre of the discipline. aid by the momentous changes that at melted the end of the Col d War, and also by the ongoing process of globalization, the constructivists interest in the particularities of culture, identity, interest and experience created post for renaissance in the study of history and world politics. .( Rues-Smit 2001226)Constructivism as an approachConstructivism is close forgiving consciousness and its role in international life history (Ruggie 1998). Constructivists focus on the role of ideas, norms, knowledge, culture, and argument in politics, stressing in particular the role of collectively held or intersubjective ideas and senses on social life. Specifically, constructivism is an approach to social analysis that asserts the following (1) human interaction is regulate primarily by conceptional factors, not simply material ones (2) the most important ideational factors are widely shared out or intersubjective beliefs, which are not reducible to individuals and (3) these shared beliefs construct the interests and identities of purposive actors (Adler 1997, Price Reus-Smit 1998, Ruggie 1998, Wendt 1999).The core observation in constructivism is the social construction of reality. This has a number of related elements. One is to mark the socially constructed nature of actors and their identities and interests. Instead of assuming that actors are born alfresco of and prior to society, the claim is that individuals are produced and created by their cultural environment. Nurture not nature. (Branett 2001 259).In an of-repeated phrase, Alexander Wendt captured the methodological core of IR constructivism anarchy is what states assoil of it. There is no objective international world apart from the practices and institutions that states manage among themselves. In making that statement , Wendt argues that a self-help anarchy is not some kind of external given which dictates a logic of analysis establish on realism self-help and power politics are institutions ,not essential features of anarchy(Wendt 1992395) ,(Jackson Sore nsen 1999239)Alexander Wendt argues that political structure, whether one of anarchy or particular distribution of material capabilities, explain nothing. It tells us little astir(predicate) state behaviour It does not predict whether two states depart be friend or foes, will take in each others sovereignty ,will have dynastic ties, will have revisionist or status quo powers, and so on. (Wendt 1992395) . What we need to know is identity, and identities change as a result of cooperative behaviour and learning. Whether the system is anarchic depends on the distribution of identities, not the distribution of military capabilities, as the realist would have us believe. If a state identifies with itself, then the system may be anarchic. If a state identifies with other states, then in that respect is no anarchy (.(Mingst 2000475)A security dilemma , for example , is not alone made up of the fact that two sovereign states possess nuclear weapons. It also depends on how those states view each other that view is based on shared knowledge. ,(Jackson Sorensen1999238)In a constructivist analysis, agents and structures are mutually constituted structures not except constrain actors, they also shape the identities and the interests of them. Thus structures are also specify by ideas, norms, and rules in other words, structures contain normative and material elements. The challenge, therefore, is to recognize that the normative structure rear create agents and that agents can create and perchance transform those structures. (Branett 2001 255).According to Alder , constructivisms importance and its added value for the study of international relations lie mainly in its emphasis on the ontological reality of intersubjective knowledge and on the epistemological and methodological implications of this realty. ( Alder1997322) .Additionally , power can be understood not only as the susceptibility of one actor to do what they would not to do otherwise , but also as the production of identities and interests that limit the ability to control their life. In sum , the meanings that actors bring to their activities are shaped by the underlying culture, and meanings are not ever so fixed but are a primeval feature of politics.Constructivism as a theoryHowever, despite of the intellectual muscle that constructivism has fostered, this approach has been criticized.John Mersheimer complains that constructivists put too such(prenominal) emphasis on subjective ideas knowledge realists believe that the state behaviour is largely shaped by the material structure of the international system. The distribution of material capabilities among states is the central factor for understanding world politics. This means that everything is not uncertain or in flux, says Mersheimer, be produce the material structure is an objective reality and is not merely intersubjective. (Mearsheimer 1995a91-92).Although constructivism is deeply concerned with radically changing state behaviour, it says little just about how change comes about. It does not tell us why particular dis races rifle dominant, and others fall by the wayside. And when constructivism trys to point out particular factors that lead to changes in discourse, often argues that material changes drive changes in discourse. So discourse is not determinative , but a reflective of developments in objective world..( Mearsheimer 1995b 42 ).In addition, neo-realists are sceptical about the importance that constructivists attach to norms, in particular international norms. Such norms surely exist, but they are routinely disregarded if that is in the interest of powerful states.( Jackson 2006 ). Moreover, there is no international consensus concerning norms of behaviour in the international system, primary of which is justice and human rights.At the same time, neo-realists are not ready to accept that states can easily turn over friends due to their social interaction. Such a finish may be de sirable in principle, but not tangible in practice, because the structure of the international system forces states to behave as egoists. Anarchy, umbrage capabilities, and uncertain intentions combine to leave states with little choice but to make do aggressively with each other. For realists, trying to infuse states with communitarian norms is a hopeless cause (Mearsheimer 1995b 367).From the post-positivist side, Steve Smith argues that the constructivist view of how ideas and shared knowledge shape the way the actors see themselves in world politics is not sufficiently profound. Furthermore, the constructivist agenda is a rather traditional one, focusing on the interaction of states .There is no place for structure such as capitalism or patriarchy. (Smith 1997186)Finally, if, as constructivists claim, there is no objective reality . if the world is in the eye of the observer , then there can be no right or wrong answers , only individual perspectives. With no authoritative texts, all texts are equally valid both the musings of the elite and the practices of everyday men and women. (Mingst 2000476)Is it a theory?A theory is a based upon a possibleness and backed by evidence it presents a concept or idea that is renderable. In science, a theory is not merely a guess. A theory is a fact-based framework for describing a phenomenon. In social sciences, theories are used to provide a model for understanding human thoughts, emotions, and behaviours. A social theory has two key components (1) it must describe behaviour and (2) make predictions about future behaviours.To evaluate a theory, we must affirm many conditions1- Generalizability applicability to many times, places, and issues.2-Empirical validity accuracy of predictions.3-Progression whether it expands to new predictions or degenerates by excessive modification.If we apply these conditions to constructivism, we will find that constructivism is neither limited enough to be testable, nor parsimoni ous. And it is unclear what factors are cause nor which are effect. It does not prize deductive methods of theory-construction and does not seek to uncover causalities. ( Ruggie, 1998, 52)Constructivism is a several(predicate) kind of theory from realism, liberalism, or Marxism and operates at a different aim of abstraction. Constructivism is not a substantive theory of politics. It is a social theory that makes claims about the nature of social life and social change so it does not, by itself, produce specific predictions about political outcomes that one could test in social science query. (Finnemore Sikkink 2001393)As such, it is much more and much less than meets the eye. It is much less because it is not properly a theory that can be viewed as a rival to already live theories. It offers no predictions about enduring regularities or tendencies in world politics. Instead, it suggests how to ask them. Consequently, it is much more than meets the eye because if offers altern ative ways of thinking about a range of issues. (Branett 2001 268)However, the debate about basic theory is of course relevant for the constructivist ambition of demonstrating that ideas matter. How exactly is it that ideas matter? Do changes in ideas always come before changes in material conditions? Do ideas guide insurance policy or are they justifications for policy? Should ideas be seen as causes of behaviour in IR or should they rather be seen as constitutive elements that define what IR is all about? Further clarification in these areas is of resilient importance for the constructivist look into programme. (Jackson 2006).Drawing on what mentioned above, there is scepticism about constructivism .whether it is properly to be seen as a theory of IR theory or as a philosophical category, a meta-theory or a method for empirical research, or whether it is indeed an approach relevant at several levels. ( Zehfuss 20029) . In conclusion, constructivism is not independent and full- fledged theory but a theoretically informed approach to the study of global politics. remainderConstructivism challenged the disciplines mainstream on its own terms and on issues that were at the heart of its research agenda. (Branett 2001 268) However, the rise of Constructivism has had several important impacts on the development of international relations theory and analysis the social, historical, and normative have returned to the centre stage of debate, oddly the American core of the discipline. . ( Rues-Smit 2001225)Constructivisms core assumptions have shaped its empirical research program in several important ways. They have shaped the kinds of questions constructivists tend to ask by opening up for inquiry issues that other approaches had failed to engage. consciousness the constitution of things is essential in explaining how they behave and what causes political outcomes. Just as understanding how the double-helix DNA molecule is constituted materially enables understa ndings of genetics and disease, so, too, an understanding of how sovereignty, human rights, laws of war, or bureaucracies are constituted socially allows us to excogitate about their effects in world politics. (Finnemore Sikkink 2001394).Their claim deserves attention in a world where inflamed passions lead to bloodshed in the touch on of neither conquest nor class, but instead simply because of who the enemy is a Muslim, a Serb, a Tutsi, a Hutu, a Catholic, a Protestant, an Arab, or a Jew. Realism and liberalism are not incapable of explaining hatred, but they struggle to floor for such widespread violence that serves neither Mammon nor the national interest. (Kowert,Paul 2001).Finally , Constructivism has become a phenomenon in IR not merely because many scholars take it , but because a lot of scholars debated and are still debating it .