Constructivism and reflexivism in international relations theory

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Since the publication of Wendt’s Anarchy is what States Make of It (1992), there has been a deep shift into a constructivist alternative in International Theory. Indeed, constructivism tries to shrink the classical epistemological gap between reflexivism and rationalism ; it also endorses the ambition of reshuffling traditional core themes of international relations, that is, anarchy, balance of power, interest, system, structure and institution. While enlisted in Wendt’s article, our project tackles respectively the statute of reflexivity and rationality within the discipline. We then examine constructivist-sociological axioms in the one hand, and the concept of « identity » in the other hand. Through a reflexive approach, we end our journey by a comparative analysis of realism and constructivism. – Summary AFRI-2002