Q) Drawing upon developments in the global realm, examine the role of norms and ideas in

International Relations?

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"

-Alexander Wendt

Constructivist theory emerged in the mid-1990s as a serious challenge to the dominant realist and
liberal theoretical paradigms. The theory was not popularized until Wendt 1992 (a direct
challenge to neorealism) and Katzenstein 1996 (cited under Identity) made it a staple of
international relations (IR) syllabi around the world. Constructivist theory emphasizes the
meanings that are assigned to material objects, rather than the mere existence of the objects
themselves. For example, a nuclear weapon in the United Kingdom and a nuclear weapon in
North Korea may be materially identical (though, so far, they are not) but they possess radically
different meanings for the United States. The belief that reality is socially constructed leads
constructivists to place a greater role on norm development, identity, and ideational power than
the other major theoretical paradigms. Indeed, norms, identity, and ideas are key factors in
constructivist theory.

Social constructivist theory says that the interests pursued by states are based on norms and ideas
which define their social identity. In this context, norms do matter. Finnemore and Sikking define
norms as a standard of appropriate behavior for actors with a given identity. This domestic
change in the US became big during the early 1900s. Around this same time there were other
states demanding a change at home, which therefore helped to influence the change to become an
international norm. Domestic changes like this one, that have become international norms, have
also helped to cause other domestic and international changes, such as humanitarian rights. The
basic rights to life, food, shelter, etc have become an international norm. This is because, as
certain states become aware of the need for humanitarian rights at home, they have influenced
other states to look at their own humanitarian domestic changes as well. Then, these states also
want to incorporate their own basic rights to life norms in other countries to make these rights
become an international norm.

Now coming to ideas, Michael Barnett describes constructivist international relations theories as
being concerned with how ideas define international structure, how this structure defines the
interests and identities of states and how states and non-state actors reproduce this structure.
Constructivism most concerns itself with the role of ideas in shaping the international system. By
"ideas" constructivists refer to the goals, threats, fears, identities, and other elements of perceived
reality that influence states and non-state actors within the international system. Constructivists
believe that these ideational factors can often have far-reaching effects, and that they can trump
materialistic power concerns. For example, constructivists note that an increase in the size of the
U.S. military is likely to be viewed with much greater concern in Cuba, a traditional antagonist
of the United States, than in Canada, a close U.S. ally. Therefore, there must be perceptions at
work in shaping international outcomes.

To sum it up, successfully persuading states to negotiate, adopt and implement better policies is
crucial to building consensus in the fields of human rights, environmental and trade regulation, to
name just a few. Consequently, the process of framing and the analysis of that process takes on
greater importance. Potentially, with a more thorough understanding of the way in which nations
build consensus and gradually create new norms and ideas, the international community will
slowly, little by little, move out of its anarchical state towards one where cooperation, peace,
and security may be the norm rather than the exception.

DEWASHISH

SEMESTER: VI/B

ROLL NO: 320