VOLUME IX – NUMBER 1
Richard B. Finnegan
Abstract: Research in the past few years has pointed out various areas of agreement and disagreement in international relations research, various theoretical and methodological schools, particular trends and developments, and finally proposed agendas for future work. In order to ascertain what scholars in the field have been thinking, an open-ended question was addressed to scholars, which asked: “in your opinion what significant problems confront the field of international relations today”? The 214 usable responses can be divided into six categories. First, are responses that pointed out a lack of clear definition of the field, its central concepts, and its problems. Some believe that the problems of definition and integration would be hindered by increased interdisciplinary work, while others believe that more interdisciplinary emphasis is needed in the field. Second, a large number of respondents saw many important current policy problems as being researched sufficiently. Third, respondents took different stances regarding current methodology, data, and theory in the field. Fourth, a considerable number (20) felt that there was an over-emphasis on quantification, models, and scientific approaches in general. Fifth, some respondents saw a major problem in the field with synthesis of the behavioral or scientific approach and the traditional approach. Finally, respondents whose problems fell outside of the previous five categories argued that the field lacks historical training, research sources, or that it is mired in parochialism.
Keywords: International Relations, Methodology, Interdisciplinary work
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