Realism is defined by Morgenthau as a school of thought that believes that human nature produces anarchy and that one must work within the system of anarchy in order to succeed on the international scale. Anarchy is the lack of order or hierarchy in a system and results in uncertainty of the roles and intentions of other actors. Morgenthau also defines Realism as a theory based in historical precedent, as opposed to theory or postulation, that uses case studies to predict future events. Power’s role in Realism, according to Morgenthau, is merely a sort of international equalizer with which nations can understand one another’s motivations. He places the interest of the state above any moral code and justifies any action necessary to ensure the survival of the state.
Introduction - While reading various texts that Ann Brown has written I began to see that her opinion was that the goal of social studies educators is to foster the development of effective citizens. But to properly approach this goal, I seen there needs to be a shift from what Dewey called the “traditional” structure of education (Dewey, 1938). In the current or traditional method, one proposed method to change this process is the application of the theory of social constructivism. Social constructivism focuses on the role that social interaction plays in creating knowledge. According to this, model knowledge is formed based on social interaction and social consensus.
Constructivism: Wendt, Finnemore, Hopf Social constructivism primarily seeks to demonstrate how the core aspects of the international relations are contrary to the assumptions of Neorealism and Neoliberalism within the frame of social construction, taking up forms of ongoing processes of social practice and interaction. Wendt makes the following statement regarding the tenets of Constructivism: “The structures of human association are determined primarily by shared ideas rather than material forces and the identities and interests of purposive actors are constructed by these ideas, rather than given by nature”. (Wendt, 1995) Social constructivism extends the constructivist ideology into various social settings, where groups construct knowledge
Before undertaking any research, Boyle and Schmierbach (2015) suggested that a paradigm needs to be developed to ensure that the philosophical underpinnings used by the researcher are determined. When determining the paradigm, the researcher has to decide on whether to use a positivism approach or to use an anti-positivism approach. When a researcher adopts a positivism approach, the social aspect of research is assumed to have no significance on the results of the study. As such, most such studies adopt a quantitative review where the data collected does not really highlight the relationship with society. An alternative is an anti-positivism approach where the researcher recognizes the impact that social conditions and perceptions may have
2.1.1. The Social Responsibility theory is a variation on the Authoritarian and Libertarian theories. Its main concern is the reconciliation of the ideas about freedom and independence while still adhering to its responsibility towards society. Its proposal puts forward regulatory bodies such as ICASA (Independent Communications Authority of South Africa) and professional bodies such as SANEF (South African National Editors Forum) as possible solutions to the problem of freedom reconciliation with regards to social responsibility (Fourie, 2007:194). 2.1.2.
Political analysts attempt to provide an understanding of the workings of the modern state had necessitated the employment of certain philosophies, thoughts and theories in order to simplify and clarify their assumptions about the political system and how it works. Some of these analytical tools or methods include – the Systems theory, Group theory, Political Development theory, Power theory, Frustration Aggression theory and the Elites theory among others. Given these plethora of theories in the social sciences and bearing in mind that, no meaningful research can be undertaken in the absence of a sound theoretical base, this study adopts the Systems theory in order to explain the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by the United
It is argued effectively that no feelings of right or obligation can be shown to underlie the practice of diplomatic asylum so as to warrant it’s being described as rule of customary international law in this area, and that the several inter-American Conventions dealing with asylum are not helpful in establishing its legal basis. He concludes that this regional institution is extra-legal in character, and deliberately so, for the susceptibility of diplomatic asylum to abuse as a form of intervention by a foreign state in domestic politics makes Latin American states cautions in committing themselves to precise definition of any of the terms of reference of practice. Despite its extra-legal character, however, “the institution of diplomatic asylum is in fact respected” because it serves a useful purpose where unstable political conditions warrant this safety
When Bryman describe ontology view, he introduces the objectivism and constructivism as two antithetical dimensions. (p22) However, Saunders 2009 p.119 advocates that positivism can be understood through both ontology and epistemology views. It raises the confusion whether positivism should belong to ontology view and be connected to objectivism like what Bryman said or positivism should not be tied to objectivism and can also be comprehended through epistemology view like what Saunders proposed. In 2014, Hanson stated that the root of positivism could be constructive instead of being tied only to objectivism. This makes us realize that our thesis might not be limited to the view of Bryman.
Cheek and Gough lies at the heart of the discussion that “postmodernist perspectives in social inquiry are not a uniform set of shared assumptions but, rather, a loose collection of ways of thinking about how to go beyond modernist perspectives without producing alternative metanarratives. On this ground, it is prominent that the postmodernist perspective seeks to instill doubt upon the subject or audience. The postmodernist perspective, in other words, means the freedom that is given to an individual to perceive things beyond what has been considered to be a rule or norm. The postmodernist perspective delivers the idea about the restructuring of political, social as well as cultural boundaries while at the same time recognizing and redefining
Oxford English Dictionaries defines common sense as, “Good sense and sound judgement in practical matters” (2018). However, according to the definition provided in the course study guide, common sense is merely “a type of knowledge that emerges in our social networks” (Sosteric 2015). Dr. Sosteric further explains that common sense is “our generally accepted opinions about things—what we ‘know’ to be true” and “our taken-for-granted ideas about the world” (2015). When considering common sense within the context of this sociological definition, we can understand it as an extension of ideology. This connection is possible because common sense explanations are often biased, uncontested, and circumscribe the possibility of query, objection, or change.