Replication in International Relations

Abstract

Replication is widely seen as an important way to promote transparency and quality control of published work in the social sciences. In international relations, the replication movement moved forward with a panel at the International Studies Association in 2002, subsequently published in this journal. The publication included a joint statement by four editors of leading quantitative journals in international relations, pledging their journals to a set of minimum replication standards and urging other editors to follow suit. Over the years, these and other journals have posted hundreds of data sets. Nevertheless, progress has been slow, and many journals still have no policy on replication or fail to follow up in practice. In this forum, we discuss how improvements can be made to current policies and practices and how replication can be used systematically in teaching international relations and extended to qualitative work.