naser yosefzehy; Vahid Sinaee
Abstract
Constructivism is one of the most widely used theoretical approach for analizing foreign policy. But this approach has failed yet to provide the researches with a coherent and modeled framework. Therefore, many studies have not been sufficiently aware of the theoretical, methodological and conceptual ...
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Constructivism is one of the most widely used theoretical approach for analizing foreign policy. But this approach has failed yet to provide the researches with a coherent and modeled framework. Therefore, many studies have not been sufficiently aware of the theoretical, methodological and conceptual necessities that should have been considered in foreign policy analysis. For this reason, they have undergone superficial analysis and "theoretical reductionism". For example, constructivists in ontology have not addressed "anthropology" and "socialization." Such a "problem" stems from the nature of constructivism; because constructivism is a buffer and synthesis of positivism and post-structuralism, has included a paradoxical combination of objective and subjective elements in foreign policy analysis. Therefore, empirical studies require methodical theoretical studies. With the aim of compiling a research guide for constructivist researchers, the question is addressed: based on constructivism what are the theoretical foundations and requirements of research in foreign policy analysis. According to our findings, the study of foreign policy requires the analysis of constructivism in the five dimensions of ontology, epistemology, methodology, typology and conceptology. In ontology, "level of analysis" and "units of analysis" must be specified: micro level (anthropology, socialization and stateology) and macro level (international system, international organizations, international law, international structures and agents). In epistemology, the relationship between knowledge and value, subject and object, explanation and interpretation, reality and truth, material and meaning are analyzed. Ontology and epistemology determine the method of research: quantitative or qualitative. Then the type of constructivism is chosen: interpretive, critical, and post-modern or positivist. Finally, the basic conceptual constructs are extracted and defined: inter-subjectivity, constructivism, culture, identity, idea, knowledge, norm, and socialization. These five requirements indicate the complexity and difficulty of constructivist analysis of foreign policy.
naser yosefzehy; morteza mendhadi
Abstract
The shape and form of social action in post-Taliban Afghanistan is different than that of the past. Government repression, militarism and the religious politics used to dominate Afghanistan in the Taliban era. However, the recently formed EnlightenmentMovement (2016) follows a peaceful approach to achieve ...
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The shape and form of social action in post-Taliban Afghanistan is different than that of the past. Government repression, militarism and the religious politics used to dominate Afghanistan in the Taliban era. However, the recently formed EnlightenmentMovement (2016) follows a peaceful approach to achieve its demands. Understanding this movement requires a basic knowledge of the modern dynamics of the political sociology of Afghanistan. This economic movement was the response of Hazara ethnicity to the shift of the electricity transmission line from Bamyan to Salang. This research investigates the background of peaceful occurrence of the Enlightenment Movement and its consequences. According to our hypothesis, democracy and modernization in Afghanistan have paved the way for the emergence of civil movements such as the Enlightenment. The hypothesis has been tested based on the collective behavior theory of Smelser. According to the findings, the increasing demand for economic justice and political participation by ethnic and religious minorities is a result of democracy in Afghanistan. Consequently, economic movements and peaceful competition over the fair distribution of energy resources (wealth) are a new form of collective action in post-Taliban Afghanistan.
