All right, so here's the situation. I'm currently shoulder-deep in wrapping up my honors thesis, which heavily centers on the international relations (IR) theory of constructivism. If I'm not working on it, I'm organizing myself to work on it later, or at the very least trying to avoid thinking about how I should be working on it. You might say it has kind of consumed my life at the moment.

That being said, I apologize if you don't want to learn about the fascinating field of IR, but today y'all are going to get a brief explanation of general IR theory, constructivism, and its importance and necessity in the study of our global system.

What is IR theory?

If you are not a global/international studies/relations major, you may have not even known that yes, there are (many) theories to explain how and why the international community and its various actors function in the ways that they do. Some theoretical perspectives borrow from other fields of study and some are totally unique to the study of IR.

In fact, there are dozens of different viewpoints, each with its own specifics and subcategories. However, most students will briefly cover only a few of the basic and more traditional schools of thought, such as realism, liberalism, economic structuralism, etc.

I could spend quite a bit of time going into detail about some of these theories, what worldviews they advocate, and their roles in international relations, but at the risks of both potentially scaring you away and taking time away from constructivism, I'll leave you to explore the links I've left at your leisure.

For our purposes in explaining the basics of constructivism, all that we need to worry about regarding theories such as realism and liberalism is the fact that they, along with other rationalist IR theories, are built and maintained on presupposed ideas about how the world functions. For example, realism assumes that state action is based on self-interest, the pursuit of power, and the maintaining of security are inherent to the world system, that this is simply how the world is, and that it cannot be changed.

This is to say that a realist would argue that any decisions, actions, and interests that occur will ultimately be traced back to this self-help establishment. Other theories maintain different assumptions on the inherent nature of the global system; however, the basic idea of regarding the starting point as an assumption of some sort remains the same for the majority of mainstream theories.

What is constructivism?

Constructivism takes this concept of worldviews based on assumption and completely turns it upside down. While it is technically considered an IR theory, it is more a new way of approaching theory.

Born out of necessity during the 1990's, constructivist ideas provided an explanation for the unpredictable fall of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War in a way that the longstanding, well-established theories of realism and liberalism could not. This is because constructivism does not hold to the assumption that there is a system of some sort inherently in place in the world and that all events will occur in concordance with this system.

Instead, constructivism focuses on the creation of various identities and interests that in turn shape the conditions, institutions, and norms of the international system. Therefore, the power politics of a self-help global system, for example, is not an inevitably inherent feature but rather an institution formed through the unique identities and interests of international actors and the interactions and experiences that occur between them. Institutions then go on to establish norms, which continue the cycle of shaping the identities and interests of the actors involved.

A key element in the theory of constructivism is the idea of collective meaning (also referred to also collective understanding or collective knowledge). The creation of institutions, norms, identities, and interests all must come via interaction between the actors. This leads to the necessary establishment of collective knowledge and expectations. Nothing has meaning inherently until defined by the identities and interests of the actors within the system.

Collective understandings give us explanations for why certain institutions or norms have formed in our global society. Perhaps the most common example comes through the idea of collective security. These days, we pretty much take for granted the existence of allies and agreements between states; we accept the logic that if many come together to help one another, the individual security of each participating nation will also benefit. However, this, too, is a constructed institution based on normalized collective meaning.

Let's take it back to the Soviet Union example to view constructivism in action. Relations between the United States and the U.S.S.R. were constantly shifting in unpredictable ways. Of course, the basic bipolar global system was still in place, with the two powers remaining at odds with one another overall. However, many policy changes occurred toward the end of the Cold War that did not fall within either the realm of realism nor liberalism.

For example, Gorbachev's inexplicable willingness to work with other states in the name of collective security was such a dramatic shift from traditional Soviet policy that it can be justified by nothing other than constructivism, with its allowance for changing norms and interests.

Why is constructivism important?

There is nothing wrong with advocating any number of the various IR theories; there are many, well-researched arguments in support of realist world systems, liberal establishments, and many others. Constructivism does not seek to destroy these claims nor to take over as the theory of choice. Instead, it pushes us to take things a step further and question how such systems came to be in the first place, and how each is subject to change with shifts in identities and interests.

Constructivism in the field of IR is most commonly applied to state actors and to global society as a whole. However, it also proves to be a useful tool in the study of individuals and other non-state actors. One could argue that each and every one of us is socially constructed based on our unique upbringings, relationships, interests, and experiences. It is we as individuals who therefore influence the establishment and change of institutions and norms in our lives.

Such a theory does not need to be limited to the global system as a whole, because it occurs and is influential on every level of society. For every state and large non-state organization on the international stage is made up of individuals and groups who each bring something unique to the table in the functioning of the global system.

Studying important world leaders, specific groups, and individual trends throughout both current events and modern history through the lens of constructivism reveals far more than originally meets the eye. Taking into considerations the formation and change of identities and interests puts things into a completely new - and necessary - perspective.