Constructivism: A Conceptual Framework for Understanding the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Foreign Policy

Subject Areas : Journal of Law and Politics

علیرضا Azghandi ¹ ( ندارد )

Received: 2015-02-18 Accepted : 2015-02-18 Published : 2005-01-20

Keywords: constructivism, Foreign policy, Iranian Foreign&#x0D, &#x0D, Relations, International System, International Relations,

Abstract :

In this article, the author intends to explain the IslamicRepublic of Iran’s foreign relations in the post Iran-Iraq war era,using the constructivist theory and emphasizing the awareness of the characteristics of the fourth debate in internationalrelations field. The application of the above theory, which isanalyzed as the most recent approach in international relations,is intended to answer the question that whether constructivismcould play an explanatory and interpretative role in the studyof Iran’s foreign policy and relations. This article coversthree sections the first of which describes constructivism ininternational relations and the next sections scrutinize AlexanderVent’s opinions on constructivism, and the Iranian foreign policyfrom this perspective. The author reaches the conclusion thatas long as the structure of international system differentiatesbetween the actors constituting the system and there is a lackof a realistic recognition of the nature of the structure, none ofthe approaches including realism, liberalism and constructivismis an appropriate choice in the study and analysis of the IslamicRepublic’s foreign policy.