Overview
There is a widening divide between the data, tools, and knowledge that international relations scholars produce and what policy practitioners find relevant for their work. In this first-of-its-kind conversation, leading academics and practitioners reflect on the nature and size of the theory-practice divide. They find the gap varies by issue area and over time. The essays in this volume use data gathered by the Teaching, Research, and International Policy (TRIP) Project over a fifteen-year period. As a whole, the volume analyzes the structural factors that affect the academy’s ability to influence policy across issue areas and the professional incentives that affect scholars’ willingness to attempt to do so. Individual chapters explore these questions in the areas of trade, finance, human rights, development, environment, nuclear weapons and strategy, interstate war, and intrastate conflict. Each substantive chapter is followed by a response from a policy practitioner, providing their perspective on the gap and the possibility for academic work to have an impact. Bridging the Theory-Practice Divide in International Relations provides concrete answers and guidance about how and when scholarship can be policy relevant.
Full Product Details
Author: Daniel Maliniak ,
Susan Peterson ,
Ryan Powers ,
Michael J. Tierney
Publisher: Georgetown University Press
Imprint: Georgetown University Press
Weight: 0.431kg
ISBN: 9781626167827
ISBN 10: 1626167826
Pages: 328
Publication Date: 01 May 2020
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: Manufactured on demand
We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier.
Reviews
Of the many ways Beyond the Gap contributes to broader academic-policy world bridging efforts, the scholar-practitioner author pairings, the similarities and differences across the eight foreign policy issue areas, and the empirical data drawn on and made available are especially valuable. Kudos to the editors for such a creative and insightful approach. -- Bruce Jentleson, William Preston Few Professor of Public Policy, Duke University This marvelous book makes a unique contribution to our understanding of the divide between academia and the policy world. Through the direct engagement of leading practitioners with top scholars, the chapters provide an extraordinary window into how each community thinks about the opportunities and challenges involved in producing policy-relevant research across core issue areas in the field of international relations. -- James Goldgeier, co-director, Bridging the Gap Project This collection deserves our gratitude. Scholars have long been aware of the gaping divide between theory and practice in international relations. But never before has the problem been so thoroughly dissected and explained. A must read for everyone with an interest in the future of the IR field of study. -- Benjamin Cohen, Louis B. Lancaster Professor of International Political Economy, University of California, Santa Barbara
This marvelous book makes a unique contribution to our understanding of the divide between academia and the policy world. Through the direct engagement of leading practitioners with top scholars, the chapters provide an extraordinary window into how each community thinks about the opportunities and challenges involved in producing policy-relevant research across core issue areas in the field of international relations. -- James Goldgeier, co-director, Bridging the Gap Project This collection deserves our gratitude. Scholars have long been aware of the gaping divide between theory and practice in international relations. But never before has the problem been so thoroughly dissected and explained. A must read for everyone with an interest in the future of the IR field of study. -- Benjamin Cohen, Louis B. Lancaster Professor of International Political Economy, University of California, Santa Barbara Bridging the Theory-Practice Divide in International Relations makes a unique contribution by offering scholars of international relations insightful pathways to translate basic research into forms accessible and relevant to practitioners. It also underscores the need for practitioners to draw on scholarly work in order to make more informed, better policy decisions. The gap between the two is wide and must be narrowed. This important book provides a constructive way forward. -- Robert Gates, former Secretary of Defense and former Director of Central Intelligence Of the many ways Bridging the Theory-Practice Divide in International Relations contributes to broader academic-policy world 'bridging' efforts, the scholar-practitioner author pairings, the similarities and differences across the eight foreign policy issue areas, and the empirical data drawn on and made available are especially valuable. Kudos to the editors for such a creative and insightful approach. -- Bruce Jentleson, William Preston Few Professor of Public Policy, Duke University
Author Information
Daniel Maliniak is an assistant professor of government at William & Mary. Susan Peterson is the Wendy and Emery Reves Professor of Government and International Relations and codirector of the Global Research Institute, both at William & Mary. Ryan Powers is an assistant professor of international affairs at the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs. Michael J. Tierney is the George and Mary Hylton Professor of International Relations and codirector of the Global Research Institute, both at William & Mary.
