CONSTRUCTIVISM

CONSTRUCTIVISM
IN I.R.
• In international relations,
constructivism is the claim that
significant aspects of international
relations are historically and socially
constructed, rather than inevitable
consequences of human nature or
other essential characteristics of
world politics.
TYPES OF CONSTRUCTIVISM

1. Radical Constructivism
• one position of epistemology
• differs maily from other constructivism
• Main message
– does not provide an image of a reality independent of consciousness but that reality of
an individual includes
• 1.) a construction of sensory stimuli
• 2.) memory performance
– objectivity is impossible
TYPES OF CONSTRUCTIVISM

2. relational constructivism
• Relational development of the radical constructivism
• main message
– It picks up the epistemological threads and maintains the radical constructivist idea

• Relational constructivism  relational conditions of human processes of cognition

DEVELOPMENT

Constructivist Scholars
Since the late 1980s and early 1990s, constructivism has become
one of the major schools of thought within international relations.
has been widely accepted within the
mainstream IR community and has
generated vibrant scholarly
Alexander Wendt is the best-known advocate of
discussions among realist, liberals,
social constructivism in the field of international
institutionalist, and constructivists.
relations.
Nicholas Onuf is usually credited with coining the
term "constructivism" to describe theories that
stress the socially constructed character of Radical constructivist
international relations.
take discourse and linguistics more
seriously.
THEORY

• Constructivism primarily seeks to demonstrate how core aspects of international relations are,
contrary to the assumptions of neorealism and neoliberalism, socially constructed, that is, they
are given their form by ongoing processes of social practice and interaction. Alexander Wendt
calls two increasingly accepted basic tenets of Constructivism "that the structures of human
association are determined primarily by shared ideas rather than material forces, and that the
identities and interests of purposive actors are constructed by these shared ideas rather than
given by nature".
• Constructivists must be counted among those scholars who conceive research as a matter of
interpretation rather than explanation.
THEORY

Recent developments
A significant group of scholars who study processes of social construction self-consciously
eschew the label "Constructivist". They argue that "mainstream" constructivism has abandoned
many of the most important insights from linguistic turn and social-constructionist theory in the
pursuit of respectability as a "scientific" approach to international relations. Even some putatively
"mainstream" constructivists, such as Jeffrey Checkel, have expressed concern that constructivists
have gone too far in their efforts to build bridges with non-constructivist schools of thought.
A growing number of constructivists contend that current theories pay inadequate attention to
the role of habitual and unreflective behavior in world politics, the centrality of relations and
processes in constructing world politics, or both.
THEORY

Recent developments
Advocates of the "practice turn" take inspiration from work in neuroscience, as well as that of
social theorists such as Pierre Bourdieu, that stresses the significance of habit and practices in
psychological and social life - essentially calling for greater attention and sensitivity towards the
'every day' and 'taken for granted' activities of international politics. Some scholars have adopted
the related sociological approach known as Actor-Network Theory (ANT), which extends the
early focus of the Practice Turn on the work of Pierre Bourdieu towards that of Bruno Latour
and others. Scholars have employed ANT in order to disrupt traditional world political binaries
(civilised/barbarian, democratic/autocratic, etc.), consider the implications of a posthuman
understanding of IR, explore the infrastructures of world politics, and consider the effects of
technological agency.
CONSTRUCTIVIST LEARNING TOOLS

• The most representative applications as tools of constructivist learning are social networks,
Wikis and blogs. All of them have the potential to stimulate the formation of a social structure
based on communication, values, ideas, visions and exchanges.
• For the use of these applications to be effective, the following must be taken into account:
1. The creation of a creative virtual environment and capable of supporting multiple tools and
materials.
2. The stimulation of the active commitment of each member of the classroom.
3. Effective communication between the student and the teacher.
4. Possibility of collabor.