2011 Catalytic Workshop:
Man, Agency and Beyond;
The Role of Human Nature in IR Theorizing

Workshop Chair: Annette Freyberg-Inan, University of Amsterdam; Daniel Jacobi, Goethe University Frankfurt
Location: Salon 8, Sheraton
Time: 9:00 AM - 5:30 PM, Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Workshop Reports: Notes (PDF); Report (PDF)

Workshop Summary

The workshop examines the role of human nature concepts in IR theory, their nature, status, relevance, and effects. Human nature concepts, as a working definition, are understood as a set of foundational core assumptions which include ideas about what or how human beings are (normally or ideally), what potentialities they have (powers and limits) and under which conditions they act (historical or situational). Epistemologically, different human nature concepts emphasize different analytical goals (e.g., linking human nature to specific types of political actions or structures).

Workshop Participants (tentative)

  • Samuel Barkin, University of Florida
  • Chris Brown, London School of Economics
  • Mauro Caraccioli, Florida State University
  • Annette Freyberg-Inan, University of Amsterdam
  • Siba Grovogui, Johns Hopkins University
  • Rodney Bruce Hall, St. Cross College, Oxford
  • Benjamin Herborth, Ludwig-Maximilian University
  • Daniel Jacobi, Goethe University Frankfurt
  • Oliver Kessler, Ludwig-Maximilian University
  • Richard Ned Lebow, Dartmouth College
  • Jennifer Sterling-Folker, University of Connecticut
  • Colin Wight, University of Exeter