PART I
SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIVISM
Beginning in the 1980s, constructivism has become an increasingly significant approach, especially
in North American IR.
During the Cold War there was a clear pattern of power balancing between two blocs, led by the
United States and the Soviet Union respectively
After the end of the Cold War and following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the situation turned
much more fluid and open.
It soon became clear that the parsimonious neorealist theory was not at
all clear about the future developments of the balance of power.
Neorealist logic dictates that other states will balance against the US because offsetting US power is
a means of guaranteeing one’s own security; such balancing will lead to the emergence of new
great powers in a multipolar system.
But since the end of the Cold War, this has not happened;
Waltz argued that it will eventually happen ‘tomorrow’
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