International Security Studies
During the period of the Cold War, International Security Studies was overwhelmingly concerned with the nation-state and the protection of its sovereignty: the safeguard of territorial integrity and political autonomy, largely through the deployment and use of military force; so-called ‘national security’. Since the beginning of the 1990s, however, the focus of Security Studies has been both ‘broadened’ and ‘deepened’; away from military concerns to include, amongst others, economic, societal, and environmental sectors, and away from the state towards notions of global and human security.
This course will concentrate on the disciplinary evolution of International Security Studies, from the more traditional ‘Strategic Studies’ through to ‘c(C)ritical’ approaches. The aim is to provide a general introduction to the major theories, concepts, and debates within the discipline; in particular, to evaluate the continuing utility of Realist and neo-Realist thinking, and to reflect on the value of both non-state and non-military formulations.