Explaining and Understanding in the Social Sciences: Is it Beneficial for our Understanding of IR to Combine Positivist and Post-Positivist Philosophies of Science?

The essay explores the ongoing Third Debate in International Relations, which questions the methodologies used to study society compared to those applied to nature. It reflects on the discipline's evolution over 85 years and examines the implications of treating social phenomena with the same analytical frameworks as natural sciences. Through this discussion, the author delves into the philosophical underpinnings and challenges within the field, contributing to a deeper understanding of international politics and its theoretical foundations.