The Language of Foreign Policy

In Ideology and Foreign Policy: Problems of Comparative Conceptualization, Walter Carlsnaes develops a framework for the study of foreign policy based on the concept of action. Functionalist and structuralist theories are thrust aside on the way to a logical clarification of the nature of explanation. Overall, this contribution is evaluated as positive and stimulating. Three points for possible criticism are made: (1) The `action' framework relegates structural factors to a secondary position; (2) the conceptualization in terms of values and perceptions rests on a narrow and rationalist understanding of psyche and language; (3) the concept of `ideology' remains too closely linked to the issue of beliefs (held by individuals) and thereby an important ideational dimension of social reality is missed. The first point is seen by the reviewer as a necessary price to be paid for the clarification of the intentional dimension. Emphasis is put on the second point. Based on a contrasting conception of language it is pointed out how Carlsnaes ends up in a too narrow concept of politics. This is the major source of the problems in the third category, too. The review suggests that the book might form part of a new `Scandinavian Approach' taking a different approach to the role of theory from the dominant US and British approaches to foreign policy analysis. The review indicates lines along which this new approach can be developed.