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Momna Sheikh

This document provides an overview of constructivism in international relations. It defines constructivism as the claim that significant aspects of international relations are socially constructed rather than inevitable consequences of human nature. Constructivists believe that identities and interests are shaped by social interactions, norms, and culture rather than being fixed. The document outlines the key assumptions of constructivism and discusses major constructivist theorists like Nicholas Onuf, Alexander Wendt, and Martha Finnemore who emphasize the role of ideas and social norms in international politics.

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27 views24 pages

Momna Sheikh

This document provides an overview of constructivism in international relations. It defines constructivism as the claim that significant aspects of international relations are socially constructed rather than inevitable consequences of human nature. Constructivists believe that identities and interests are shaped by social interactions, norms, and culture rather than being fixed. The document outlines the key assumptions of constructivism and discusses major constructivist theorists like Nicholas Onuf, Alexander Wendt, and Martha Finnemore who emphasize the role of ideas and social norms in international politics.

Uploaded by

mano rajput
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Constructivism in

International Relation
Presented by
Asfand Yar
Farooq Ahmad
Muhammad Akhtar
Momna Sheikh
Broad layout
 Introduction
 What is constructivism
 Rise of constructivism
 Key assumptions
 Major constructivist
 Theory
 Visualizing theory
Introduction
Constructivism theory emerged in mid
1990 as a serious challenge to dominant
realist and liberal theoretical paradigm.
What is constructivism?
 In international relation, the
constructivism is a claim that
significant aspects of I.R are
historically and socially constructed
rather then inevitable
consequences of human nature.
 The behavior of humans is determined
by their identity, which itself is shaped
by society’s values, history, practices
and institutions.
 Constructivists holds that all
institutions, including the state are
socially constructed.
Rise of constructivism
 Failure of dominant IR theories to explain the
end of cold war ( cold war did not end through
conflict).
Key Assumptions
 Identities, norms and culture play
important role in world politics.
 Identities and interest of state are
simply structurally determined but are
rather produced by interactions, norms
and culture.
 According to view the fundamental
structure of international politics are
social rather then strictly material.
 Constructivism primarily seek to
demonstrate how core aspects of I.R
are socially constructed.
 Challenges realist and liberals on their
conceptions of the state and state
interest, arguing that both are
constructed and subject to change.
 Ideas (separate from power) plays an
important role in shaping international
relations.
Major constructivists
 Constructivist are called Constructivist
because they focus on how reality is
socially constructed:
 Nicholas Onuf
 Alexander Wendth
 Martha Finnemar
Nicholas Onuf
 Nicholas Onuf is an American scholar and
author born in 1941.
 He was the first theorist
who used the term
“constructivism” in I.R.
Alexander Wendeth
 Alexander Wendt (born 12 June 1958) is
a political scientist who
is one of the core 
social constructivist 
scholars in the field of 
I.R.
Wendt theory
 He challenge the assumption of neo realism
that casual power attributed to structure.
 He said that structure is constructed by social
practices.
 In 1992, an article by Wendt “ Anarchy is what
state makes of it: the social construction of
power politics” lead the theoretical ground work
of constructivism.
Martha Fennimore
 Martha Fennimore born in 1959 is a
prominent constructivist
scholar of I.R.
 Her work circles around
social values, norms and
culture, not power.
 Martha Fennimore suggests that the
norm of international society affect
state identities and interest.
 State behavior is defined by identities
and interest.
 The identities, ideas and norms lead to
new social construct.
Constructivism theory
Ideas

Norms

Social Construct
Ideas
 Ideas are building blocks of constructivism.

 Ideas defined and can transform world


politics, how ideas influence state
identities, interest and foreign policies.
Norms
 Principles or believes about cassations and how
social process work.

 For constructivist, the principles and norms are


embedded in system and define the actor that
are part of system.

 Change in norms lead to change the state


behavior.
Social construct
 Social construct formed through shared
norms.

 The new social construct should


replaces the old one with the passage
of time.
Example
Visualizing theory
Realism Constructivism
(Power) (Idea)

Liberalism
(Institution)

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