This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Eriksson, J. Articles by Giacomello, G. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

The Information Revolution, Security, and International Relations: (IR)relevant Theory?

Giampiero Giacomello

Department of Political Science, Södertörn University College, SE-141 Huddinge, Sweden; johan.eriksson{at}sh.se

The purpose of this article is twofold: to analyze the impact of the information revolution on security and to clarify what existing international relations theory can say about this challenge. These pertinent questions are initially addressed by a critical review of past research. This review shows that the concern for security issues is largely confined to a specialist literature on information warfare and cyber-security, while neither the general literature on information society nor security studies pay any serious attention to information-technology-related security issues. The specialist literature is mostly policy oriented, and only very rarely informed by theory, whether from the international relations discipline or any other field. In this article, three general international relations "schools" (realism, liberalism, and constructivism) are scrutinized with regard to what they can say about security in the digital age. It is argued that the liberal focus on pluralism, interdependence, and globalization, the constructivist emphasis on language, symbols, and images (including "virtuality"), and some elements of realist strategic studies (on information warfare) contribute to an understanding of digital-age security. Finally, it is suggested that pragmatism might help to bridge the gap between theory and practice, and overcome the dualistic, contending nature of international relations theories.

Key Words: Information technology • International relations • Practice • Security • Theory

International Political Science Review, Vol. 27, No. 3, 221-244 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/0192512106064462


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?