title: Rationality and history in political realism: The predominance of instrumentalism and the problem of theorizing substantive change
metadata.name: dc.contributor.author
metadata.value: Gudalov, Nikolay N.
metadata.lang: -
metadata.name: dc.date.accessioned
metadata.value: 2018-08-16T14:39:27Z
metadata.lang: -
metadata.name: dc.date.available
metadata.value: 2018-08-16T14:39:27Z
metadata.lang: -
metadata.name: dc.date.issued
metadata.value: 2018-06
metadata.lang: -
metadata.name: dc.identifier.citation
metadata.value: Gudalov N. Rationality and history in political realism: The predominance of instrumentalism and the problem of theorizing substantive change. Vestnik of Saint Petersburg University. International Relations, 2018, vol. 11, issue 2, pp. 200–215.
metadata.lang: en_GB
metadata.name: dc.identifier.other
metadata.value: 10.21638/11701/spbu06.2018.206
metadata.lang: -
metadata.name: dc.identifier.uri
metadata.value: http://hdl.handle.net/11701/14737
metadata.lang: -
metadata.name: dc.description.abstract
metadata.value: One of the main criticisms of political realism in International Relations theory has been that it
  poorly explains historical change. While some representatives of realism have paid a great deal
  of attention to historical alterations, realism, in general, does not offer a satisfactory account
  of substantive change. Interestingly, the same problem is largely faced by postpositivists, who,
  while criticising realists, appear to be not very well-prepared to offer a qualitative alternative.
  The present article aims at identifying some problems in the conceptualizations of historical
  change in realism, which are connected to too narrow treatments of rationality by realists. The
  linkage between the treatments of history and of rationality in realism has not been sufficiently
  covered in the literature yet. The problem was considered with reference to a wide range of
  examples of realist approaches which seem relevant and, to some degree, representative. The
  analysis drew on both classical and the most recent works of realists and their interpreters
  and critics. Besides, some contemporary philosophical views of rationality were examined.
  The article demonstrated that predominantly instrumentalist approaches to rationality have
  largely been prevalent in various realist conceptions at different stages of the development of
  realism. They have led, inter alia, to an unhistorical structuralism and/or to an understanding
  of change as limited to the succession of power relations, and to an underestimation of
  substantive change that is linked to rational social learning. The author pointed out some
  ways to correct the respective approaches, which aim at improving the concepts of rationality
  in International Relations theory.
metadata.lang: en_GB
metadata.name: dc.language.iso
metadata.value: en
metadata.lang: en_GB
metadata.name: dc.publisher
metadata.value: St Petersburg State University
metadata.lang: en_GB
metadata.name: dc.relation.ispartofseries
metadata.value: Vestnik of St Petersburg University. International Relations;Volume 11; Issue 2
metadata.lang: -
metadata.name: dc.subject
metadata.value: International Relations theory
metadata.lang: en_GB
metadata.name: dc.subject
metadata.value: realism
metadata.lang: en_GB
metadata.name: dc.subject
metadata.value: rationality
metadata.lang: en_GB
metadata.name: dc.subject
metadata.value: history
metadata.lang: en_GB
metadata.name: dc.title
metadata.value: Rationality and history in political realism: The predominance of instrumentalism and the problem of theorizing substantive change
metadata.lang: en_GB
metadata.name: dc.type
metadata.value: Article
metadata.lang: en_GB
resources.filename: 06-Gudalov.pdf
resources.url: https://dspace.spbu.ru/bitstream/11701/14737/1/06-Gudalov.pdf
resources.format: Adobe PDF
resources.size: 632,16 kB