TY - CHAP

T1 - Analysing international relations

T2 - Theories, choices and pictures

AU - Corry, Olaf

PY - 2014

Y1 - 2014

N2 - Presented with conflicting evidence and interpretations, how do we evercome to valid conclusions about complex questions of continuity andchange in global politics? In any analytical task you need to consider a number of things and this final chapter will take you through some of them including the different purposes of theory, how theory can be used to shape your analyticalstrategy and some of the pitfalls you need to be aware of. Throughout Irefer to theories and concepts from across the module that you will befairly familiar with by now. But I will also make some new distinctionsto give a better understanding of what theories are, a clearer sense ofwhat they can be used for, and a greater awareness of their differences,strengths and limitations. The chapter proceeds as follows:In Section 1 I look at what theories are and how they work – eitherby simplifying reality or complicating matters by depicting reality innew ways. I then show how different theories rely on different‘pictures’ of what makes up the international system.Section 2 shows how theories differ in terms of their scope, theiraims and their purposes.Section 3 explores some of the choices to be made when usingtheories to ‘explain’ international relations and distinguishes betweendifferent kinds of explanation.In Section 4 I look at how different theories have been grouped –first according to their underlying views of what is valid knowledge,and second in terms of different accounts of how history works.

AB - Presented with conflicting evidence and interpretations, how do we evercome to valid conclusions about complex questions of continuity andchange in global politics? In any analytical task you need to consider a number of things and this final chapter will take you through some of them including the different purposes of theory, how theory can be used to shape your analyticalstrategy and some of the pitfalls you need to be aware of. Throughout Irefer to theories and concepts from across the module that you will befairly familiar with by now. But I will also make some new distinctionsto give a better understanding of what theories are, a clearer sense ofwhat they can be used for, and a greater awareness of their differences,strengths and limitations. The chapter proceeds as follows:In Section 1 I look at what theories are and how they work – eitherby simplifying reality or complicating matters by depicting reality innew ways. I then show how different theories rely on different‘pictures’ of what makes up the international system.Section 2 shows how theories differ in terms of their scope, theiraims and their purposes.Section 3 explores some of the choices to be made when usingtheories to ‘explain’ international relations and distinguishes betweendifferent kinds of explanation.In Section 4 I look at how different theories have been grouped –first according to their underlying views of what is valid knowledge,and second in terms of different accounts of how history works.

M3 - Book chapter

BT - International Relations

ER -