Assessing International Relations Theory: Nonstate Actors, Change and Gender

Abstract

The discipline International Relations has been described as at a major crossroad (Hoffman, 1987). While the tradition of realism still dominates the field in theoretical and research terms, other perspectives are challenging this stronghold. Liberal pluralism, world-system and neo-Gramscian critical theory have disputed realism’s account of international relations and provided some alternative perspectives.1 Given this plurality of approaches, we must evaluate each approach for its receptivity to a framework that would enable us to explain the activities of women’s movements in international organizations. In this chapter I will assess the contributions of realism, liberal pluralism and world-system theory in the light of three different criteria. First, have they incorporated or do they allow space for analysis of nonstate actors in their theoretical perspectives? Nonstate actors are defined as those organizations or groups that are not affiliated with national governments including social movements, international or regional nongovernmental organizations and multinational corporations. The different perspectives will be assessed on their ability to incorporate nonstate actors as a significant part of the international order; the place they give nonstate actors in this order; the relationship between nonstate actors to change in the international order; the means used to distinguish between nonstate actors; and the incorporation of both nongovernmental organizations and social movements in their analysis.KeywordsSocial MovementGender RelationWorld PoliticsNonstate ActorFeminist StandpointThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.