Chapter 1: International Relations and

Social Science
by Milja Kurki and Colin Wight
International Relations Theories:
Discipline and Diversity
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 of
disagreement between IR theoretical
positions
Meta-theory
Meta-theory explores the underlying
assumptions that theories hold and
examines 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)

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?
Positivism has traditionally provided the
dominant account of what science is

Great debates
The history of IR has often been narrated in
terms of great debates, although this notion is
not unproblematic
There are four key debates generally
recognised in the discipline:
Idealism vs Realism pre and post-WW I
Science vs Traditionalism 1960s
The Interparadigm debate 1970s and 1980s
Fourth debate late-1980s and 1990s. Present?
Fourth debate
Generally seen as the currently
dominant debate
This debate can be characterised in
many ways: as a debate
- between explaining and understanding
- between positivism and postpositivism
- between rationalism and reflectivism
Explanation vs. understanding
The explanatory theorists seek to
emulate the natural sciences in seeking
general causes
The understanding position 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

Positivism vs postpositivism
Positivism is a philosophy of science that:
1) Advocates science based on systematic
observation that follows clear guidelines
2) Believes in the study of observable
regularities
3) Tends to avoid talking about unobservable
realities
Postpositivism refers to a number of theories,
some of which draw on interpretive theory,
some of which seek a non-positivist version
of science
Rationalism vs. Reflectivism
Rationalism refers to those that apply rational
choice and positivist methods
Reflectivism refers to those that reject these
methods and advocate interpretive and
reflective methodologies
Rationalist theories
neorealism
neoliberalism
Reflectivist theories
critical theory
constructivism
poststructuralism
feminism
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 methodological
pluralism
Case study: different applications of
theory in IR
There are many conceptions of theory in IR
- Explanatory theory
- Critical theory
- Normative theory
- Constitutive theory
- Theory as a lens
There are varying views also on
Objectivity
- Theory-testing
- Theory and practice
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 world
politics we come to see