International relations theory
Constructivism Feminist constructivism
Liberalism Idealism Democratic peace theory Capitalist peace Republican liberalism Liberal institutionalism
Marxism Dependency theory Theories of imperialism Uneven and combined development World-systems theory
Realism Classical realism Neoclassical realism Neorealism Offensive realism Defensive realism Territorial peace theory Democratic peace theory Realpolitik
Other theories Neo-Gramscianism Critical security studies Critical theory English School Intergovernmentalism (liberal intergovernmentalism) International political economy Feminism Green theory Hegemonic stability theory Copenhagen School Functionalism (neofunctionalism) Postmodernism Postcolonialism Intercommunalism
Classifications Postpositivism Rationalism Reflectivism "Great Debates" Inter-paradigm debate
Other approaches International ethics Historical sociology Regime theory State cartel theory Geopolitics
Scholars Michael Barnett Zbigniew Brzezinski Hedley Bull E. H. Carr Daniel Deudney Michael W. Doyle Cynthia Enloe James Fearon Martha Finnemore Robert Gilpin Samuel P. Huntington John Ikenberry Robert Jervis Peter J. Katzenstein Robert Keohane Henry Kissinger Stephen D. Krasner John Mearsheimer Hans Morgenthau Joseph Nye Kathryn Sikkink Susan Strange J. Ann Tickner Immanuel Wallerstein Stephen Walt Kenneth Waltz Alexander Wendt
Categories International relations
Politics portal
v t e

Critical international relations theory is a diverse set of schools of thought in international relations (IR) that have criticized the theoretical, meta-theoretical and/or political status quo, both in IR theory and in international politics more broadly – from positivist as well as postpositivist positions. Positivist critiques include Marxist and neo-Marxist approaches and certain ("conventional") strands of social constructivism. Postpositivist critiques include poststructuralist, postcolonial, "critical" constructivist, critical theory (in the strict sense used by the Frankfurt School), neo-Gramscian, most feminist, and some English School approaches, as well as non-Weberian historical sociology,^[1] "international political sociology", "critical geopolitics", and the so-called "new materialism"^[2] (partly inspired by actor–network theory). All of these latter approaches differ from both realism and liberalism in their epistemological and ontological premises.

References

Campell, David; George, Jim (1990). "Patterns of Dissent and the Celebration of Difference: Critical Social Theory and International Relations". International Studies Quarterly. 34 (3): 269–293. doi:10.2307/2600570. ISSN 1468-2478. JSTOR 2600570.
Cox, Robert W. (2001). "The Way Ahead: Toward a New Ontology of World Order". In Wyn Jones, Richard (ed.). Critical Theory and World Politics. Boulder, Colorado: Lyenner Rienner Publishers. pp. 45–60. ISBN 978-1-55587-802-3.
Devetak, Richard (2005). "Critical Theory" (PDF). In Burchill, Scott; Linklater, Andrew; Devetak, Richard; Donnelly, Jack; Paterson, Matthew; Reus-Smit, Christian; True, Jacqui (eds.). Theories of International Relations (3rd ed.). London: Palgrave MacMillan. pp. 137–160. ISBN 978-1-4039-4865-6. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
Edkins, Jenny (1999). Poststructuralism & International Relations: Bringing the Political Back in. Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers. ISBN 978-1-55587-845-0.
Enloe, Cynthia (2004). The Curious Feminist: Searching for Women in a New Age of Empire. Berkeley, California: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-24381-1.
George, Jim (1994). Discourses of Global Politics: A Critical (Re)Introduction to International Relations. Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers. ISBN 978-1-55587-446-9.
Jabri, Vivienne; O'Gorman, Eleanor, eds. (1999). Women, Culture, and International Relations. Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers. ISBN 978-1-55587-701-9.
Keyman, Emin Fuat (1997). Globalization, State, Identity/Difference: Toward a Critical Social Theory of International Relations. Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey: Humanities Press. ISBN 978-1-57392-605-8.
Linklater, Andrew (1986). "Realism, Marxism and Critical International Theory". Review of International Studies. 12 (4): 301–312. doi:10.1017/S0260210500113865. JSTOR 20097092. S2CID 143765625.
——— (1992). "The Question of the Next Stage in International Relations Theory: A Critical-Theoretical Point of View". Millennium. 21 (1): 77–98. doi:10.1177/03058298920210010601. ISSN 1477-9021. S2CID 144042272.
——— (1996). "The Achievements of Critical Theory". In Smith, Steve; Booth, Ken; Zalewski, Marysia (eds.). International Theory: Positivism and Beyond. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. pp. 279–298. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511660054.015. ISBN 978-0-511-66005-4.
——— (1997). "The Transformation of Political Community: E. H. Carr, Critical Theory and International Relations". Review of International Studies. 23 (3): 321–338. doi:10.1017/S0260210597003215. ISSN 1469-9044. JSTOR 20097484. S2CID 145550812. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
Roach, Steven C., ed. (2007). Critical Theory and International Relations: A Reader. New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-95419-8.
Ross, Carne (2007). "Dispatches from an Unaccountable Elite". Independent Diplomat: Despatches from an Unaccountable Elite. London: C. Hurst & Co. ISBN 978-1-85065-843-6. JSTOR 10.7591/j.ctt1tm7g38.
Sylvester, Christine (2002). Feminist International Relations: An Unfinished Journey. Cambridge Studies in International Relations. Vol. 77. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-79177-9.
Weber, Cynthia (2004). International Relations Theory: A Critical Introduction (2nd ed.). Abingdon, England: Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-415-34208-7.
Roach, Steven C. (2013). Critical Theory of International Politics: Complementarity, Justice, and Governance (1st ed.). Abingdon, England: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-77484-0.

Critical theory

Origins

Concepts

Derivatives

Critical ...	applied linguistics cartography criminology design discourse analysis ethnography geography geopolitics historiography international relations theory language awareness legal studies management studies medical anthropology pedagogy practice psychiatry psychology race theory regionalism security studies social thought technical practice terrorism studies

Theorists

v t e International relations theory
Constructivism	Feminist constructivism
Liberalism	Idealism Democratic peace theory Capitalist peace Republican liberalism Liberal institutionalism
Marxism	Dependency theory Theories of imperialism Uneven and combined development World-systems theory
Realism	Classical realism Neoclassical realism Neorealism Offensive realism Defensive realism Territorial peace theory Democratic peace theory Realpolitik
Other theories	Neo-Gramscianism Critical security studies Critical theory English School Intergovernmentalism (liberal intergovernmentalism) International political economy Feminism Green theory Hegemonic stability theory Copenhagen School Functionalism (neofunctionalism) Postmodernism Postcolonialism Intercommunalism
Classifications	Postpositivism Rationalism Reflectivism "Great Debates" Inter-paradigm debate
Other approaches	International ethics Historical sociology Regime theory State cartel theory Geopolitics
Scholars	Michael Barnett Zbigniew Brzezinski Hedley Bull E. H. Carr Daniel Deudney Michael W. Doyle Cynthia Enloe James Fearon Martha Finnemore Robert Gilpin Samuel P. Huntington John Ikenberry Robert Jervis Peter J. Katzenstein Robert Keohane Henry Kissinger Stephen D. Krasner John Mearsheimer Hans Morgenthau Joseph Nye Kathryn Sikkink Susan Strange J. Ann Tickner Immanuel Wallerstein Stephen Walt Kenneth Waltz Alexander Wendt
Categories	International relations
Politics portal

See also

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

Further reading