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This paper offers a constructivist theory of governance. It begins by challenging rational choice and institutionalist accounts for neglecting meanings. If we are to take meanings seriously, we need to allow for the constructed nature of governance -- governance depends on concepts that are themselves in part products of wider webs of belief. The paper then argues, first, that constructivism is compatible with various forms of realism, and, second, that constructivism is strengthened by recognition of situated agency. Finally, the paper identifies the kind of aggregate concepts associated with this type of constructivism. Adapted from the source document.

Since the start of the European integration, many theoretical and empirical approaches have focused on the intricate relationship between the European political project and the social and cultural changes within European borders. I begin recalling the academic debate on European identity and analyzing how the main theoretical perspectives deal with the study of the social dimension of Europe and the European identity construction process: Neofuntionalism, Institutionalism and Constructivism. I then delve into the sociological definition of identity explaining the concepts found in the scientific literature and the sociological contribution to the debate. In the final part I present some findings from empirical researches on this topic and the distinctive features of identity in a transnational context. ; 1 ; open ; Non definito ; open ; Scalise, Gemma ; Scalise, Gemma

Obiettivo della tesi è indagare il concetto di stato di eccezione, in particolare nella sua declinazione internazionale e in quello che la Scuola di Copenaghen chiama "processo di securitizzazione". Si è indagata la relazione tra anarchia internazionale ed eccezione e l'idea che l'eccezione vada intesa come "processo correttivo" e non come un "evento", utilizzando alcune categorie di pensiero ebraico/kabbalistiche ed il "Costruttivismo evolutivo" di Emanuel Adler. Ci si è anche soffermati su come il neoliberismo "tecnologico" potrebbe controllare questo processo. La tesi è divisa in tre capitoli. Nel primo capitolo si cerca di delineare un'attinenza internazionale al concetto di stato di eccezione e si sono approfonditi autori chiave del pensiero sull'eccezione, come Carl Schmitt, Walter Benjamin e Giorgio Agamben. Nel secondo capitolo si è introdotto il concetto affine di "emergenza", per poi introdurre la Scuola di Copenaghen ed il suo concetto di securitizzazione, concludendo con un'indagine sulle origini schmittiane della stessa Scuola. Infine nel terzo capitolo si è introdotta la tematica dell'anarchia internazionale, spostando poi l'attenzione su un discorso di "anarchia umana", utile ad introdurre una discussione "ebraico-kabbalistica" dell'eccezione incentrata sulla categoria del "tikkun" (correzione) e del Costruttivismo di Adler, concludendo con un'analisi sul neoliberismo tecnologico. ; The aim of this thesis is to investigate the concept of the state of exception, in particular its international declination and what the Copenhagen School calls the "securitization process". The relationship between international anarchy and exception is investigated along with the idea that exception should be regarded as a "corrective process" rather than an "event", using some Jewish / Kabbalistic categories of thought and Emanuel Adler's "Evolutionary Constructivism". We also focus on how "technological neoliberalism" could control this process. The thesis is divided into three chapters. The first chapter seeks to outline the international relevance of the concept of the state of exception. For this, key authors on the subject have been explored, namely: Carl Schmitt, Walter Benjamin and Giorgio Agamben. In the second chapter the concept of "emergency" and Copenhagen School's concept of securitization were introduced, concluding with an investigation on the Schmittian origins of the aforementioned School. Finally, the third chapter focuses on the theme of international anarchy then shifting attention to a discourse of "human anarchy", useful for introducing a "Jewish-Kabbalistic" discussion of exception centered on the category of "tikkun" (correction) and Adler's Constructivism, concluding with an analysis of technological neoliberalism.

This article traces the formation of a new discipline -- international political economy (IPE) -- in terms both of concepts & theoretical debates, & of the social process of its institutionalization, as shown by journals, textbooks, course offerings, & Internet Websites. In its first part, this article presents some well-known definitions of IPE & illustrates different types of theory. Special attention is given to Robert Gilpin, because of the importance of his work & the evolution of his thinking about IPE. In the second, the 30-year life of IPE is analyzed to identify the most important events leading to the creation of a new field of social research: the organization of conferences in the early 1970s; the publication of important books written by unorthodox economists like Kindleberger & Hirschman; & theoretical debates. The work of R. W. Cox, which is related to the "Gramscian turn" in international relations, is a particular focus of attention. Finally, the consequences of the "Fourth Debate" on positivism in international relations are considered in terms of the connection of IPE with constructivism, historical sociology, & the "cultural turn" in the social sciences. The third part shows how the debate on IPE has moved from being fully internal to (American) political science, to include general concerns about the social sciences at the beginning of the 21st century. An extensive bibliography follows. 210 References. Adapted from the source document.

In this essay the author maintains that the brelationship with the ideality of being is characterised by the well- promising convergence of truth's revelation with justice's assurance. The being's truth is attested by the stability of good. Being is being comme il faut, as it must be in order to be good, as it must be in order to be fine. From this point of view, post-modern conscience is criticised. The author argues that modern conscience is something different both from the figures of illuministic subjectivity, and from the figures moulded by historical conscience: it is not diachronic in relationship with the projectual, constructive, emancipatory orientation of freedom, but it is not synchronic either, as on the contrary structuralism (functionalism, constructivism, contractualism) wrongly maintain because of its need of coherence. We could define it chronic: linked to symbolic values of temporal flood and distrustful of any stability of being in its different ties (as truth and as justice). Distrustful, because it has separated being from its connections. In this way the contemporary drift of European secularisation has generated a new figure: that of an agnosticism interested in religion and uninterested in faith. The author gives an accurate analysis of this type of agnosticism by treating it as a figure of post-modern secularity.

Nella scuola della società globalizzata, se si considera ciascun individuo come portatore di una 'cultura', un percorso educativo-didattico non può che essere inter-culturale, si è scelto così di centrare il focus del lavoro sulla classe e, soprattutto, su chi ne ha in carico la gestione. Nello specifico, a motivare l'attività di ricerca sono stati i seguenti interrogativi: quali riferimenti pratici, gnoseologici e assiologici possono rivelarsi funzionali per gli insegnanti in servizio (e in formazione) impegnati nelle odierne classi 'globali'? Provando a delineare alcune possibili risposte agli interrogativi sovraesposti, il progetto di ricerca è stato articolato in quattro parti. Nella prima parte, attraverso tre esemplificazioni, si sono evidenziate le principali caratteristiche che permettono di qualificare, in senso deweyano, come democratica una pratica formativa. Offrendo agli studenti opportunità per riflettere e condizioni per esperienze in grado di prepararli, come futuri adulti, a vivere e ad agire in modo responsabile in un mondo che diventerà, prima o poi, il loro mondo, si è scelta l'educazione democratica per il valore aggiunto che può apportare a un percorso scolastico di qualsiasi ordine e grado. Nella seconda parte, utilizzando il paradigma costruttivista, in particolare il costruttivismo socio-culturale, attraverso i lavori di Gardner e Bruner si è proposto per i docenti impegnati in classi multiculturali un modus operandi dinamico, pluri-centrato sul gruppo classe e centripeto rispetto a ogni singolo allievo, rifuggendo al contempo da qualunque senso di reificata identità. L'inter-cultura presuppone il considerare ogni studente soprattutto come espressione di un'unicità, al di là di quelle che possono essere le appartenenze categoriali attribuite. Nel terzo capitolo, presentando tre diverse tipologie di spazi di apprendimento (closed space, why space, further space) caratterizzati da un diverso grado di democraticità inter-culturale, si è introdotto il concetto di libertà-per. Se l'inter-cultura presuppone la democrazia, ai discenti dovrebbe essere data la possibilità di muoversi, all'interno di setting educativo-didattici diversi, per imparare – apprendendo – a confrontarsi con l''autorità'. Nell'ultima parte, riguardante la ricerca di una prospettiva assiologica, indagando il concetto di umanità in ambito formativo, attraverso il lavoro di Maslow su quelli che l'autore considera i bisogni fondamentali per un essere umano, l'argomentazione ha avuto per oggetto l'idea di umanità come un a-priori situazionale possibile, un orizzonte di senso (morale/etico) attraverso il quale l'insegnante può relazionarsi a ogni discente come a un dato (di vita) vissuto bisognoso, per comprendersi, di essere compreso. ; In the school of globalized society, considering each and every student as a 'culture', education and teaching cannot be but inter-cultural, so the focus of this work will be on the class and above all on those in charge of its management: the teachers. Specifically, the research was motivated by the following questions: what practical, gnoseological and axiological references can be useful for teachers (and future teachers) involved in today's 'global' classes? In order to answer these questions, the research project was divided into four parts. In the first part, through three experiences as examples, we highlighted the main features that make an inter-cultural scholastic training actually democratic. Offering to the students the opportunity to think about the sociopolitical issues and the conditions for civil and civic experiences that will be able to help them, as adults, to live and act responsibly in a world that will become sooner or later their own world, democratic education, according to Dewey's meaning of democracy, adds value to the educational process of all levels. In the second part, following the constructivist paradigm, especially the socio-cultural constructivism, through Gardner and Bruner's works, we proposed the need to develop a multi-centered and centripetal mind for teachers involved in multicultural classrooms, considering each and every student first of all as a unique human being and not as representative of a specific religion or affiliation. Furthermore, we supported the idea of identity as a process. Presenting three different types of learning spaces (closed space, why space, further space), characterized by a different degree of inter-cultural democracy, in the third chapter we introduced the concept of liberty-for. In educational terms, democracy needs responsibility but responsibility presupposes liberty-for learning, so the students should be given the chance to move within different educational settings in order to learn confronting themselves with the 'authority'. The last part is about the values. Considering Maslow's hierarchy of human needs, for multicultural educational contexts, we discussed about the idea of humanity as a situated possible a-priori: a moral/ethic horizon of meaning through which a teacher can express his/her professional humanity considering each learner as a given of lived life in need of being understood to understand him/herself. ; Dottorato di ricerca in Relazioni e processi interculturali (XXVI ciclo)