Социология на промяната в американската теория на международните отношения
The Sociology of Theoretical Change in American International Relations

Author(s): Angelina Markovska
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, Politics, Economy, Supranational / Global Economy, Political Sciences, Sociology, International relations/trade, Methodology and research technology, Sociology of Politics, Socio-Economic Research
Published by: Университет за национално и световно стопанство (УНСС)
Keywords: american international relations theory; fragmented adhocracy; paradigmatic evolution; government funding; sociology of science
Summary/Abstract: In recent years, the central role of grand, paradigmatic theories in American International Relations (IR) theory has weakened, with the resulting vacuum rapidly filled predominantly by hypothesis-testing research lacking a solid theoretical foundation. Despite the emergence of a lively debate regarding the implications of this trend for the development of the discipline, few scholars have attempted to analyze it systematically. This study offers precisely such an analytical framework, based on the conceptual model developed by sociologist Richard Whitley. To interpret the observed transformation, three external factors are examined that contribute to the erosion of the “reputational autonomy” of American IR theory: the corporatization of American higher education; the sharp increase in access to research funding from the Pentagon and other defense-related agencies; and the enduring institutional embeddedness of American IR theory within the discipline of political science.

• Details
• Contents