Security and strategic studies within international relations: theoretical delineation, developmental trajectories, and contemporary challenges
Security and strategic studies within international relations: theoretical delineation, developmental trajectories, and contemporary challenges
Author(s): Radoslav IvančíkSubject(s): Political Philosophy, Political Sciences, Military history, International relations/trade, Security and defense, History and theory of political science
Published by: Vysoká škola evropských a regionálních studií, z. ú.
Keywords: Security studies; strategic studies; international relations; security science; interdisciplinary research;
Summary/Abstract: The article examines the evolving relationship between strategic and security studies within the broader framework of international relations. These subfields, originally intertwined during the Cold War, have undergone substantial theoretical and methodological differentiation in response to changing dynamics of global and regional security developments. The article identifies strategic studies as a subfield focused on how actors – primarily states – use military means to achieve political objectives, whereas security studies are understood as a broader, interdisciplinary field dealing with both military and non -military threats. Through historical -process, content and comparative analysis, the author traces conceptual shifts in the understanding of security, highlighting the growing relevance of hybrid threats, technological advances and renewed prominence of conventional warfare. The author argues for the complementary use of both strategic and security studies in contemporary research and policymaking, emphasizing the need for a pluralistic, dynamic and practic e-oriented security science. In conclusion, the article highlights the normative and epistemic challenges that society faces and calls for integrated research frameworks capable of addressing strategic uncertainty, instability, and transformations in global power structures.
Journal: Auspicia
- Issue Year: 2025
- Issue No: 2
- Page Range: 19-32
- Page Count: 14
- Language: English
