How does the “English School” of international relations differ from American approaches?
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international relations
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published 09/02/2008
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Summary
According to Stephen Hawking in A Brief History of Time, "a theory is a good theory
if it satisfies two requirements: It must accurately describe a large class of observations on
the basis of a model which contains only a few arbitrary elements, and it must make definite
predictions about the results of future observations". This definition is of course one that
comes from a scholar of physics, a science where the ability of a theory to predict is a
fundamental element ensuring its survival. It nevertheless demonstrates the rigorous scrutiny
a claim carrying the label of a "theory" undergoes independent of the discipline it belongs to.
The field of international relations (IR) has thus been subjected to the same strict
requirements and demands for empirical proof and outcome prediction. These demands,
could be argued, have been the main challenge the discipline has brought upon itself once it
crossed into the "science" realm and established departments of "political science" in major
research universities across the West.
Table of Contents
- A Brief History of Time, 'a theory is a good theory if it satisfies two requirements'.
- The English School of international relations does not easily render itself to clear-cut definitions.
- The two approaches to the study of international relations - not only different but also diverge based on their countries
- The field is undergoing a serious identity dilemma.
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