International Relations Theory and Human Rights

Abstract

The article is an overview of the theoretical approaches that are the most prominent in the contemporary International Relations and of the stance on human rights these approaches acquire due to their theoretical premises. The aim of the article, apart from growing a comprehensive picture on IR theories on human rights is twofold. First, it is to reveal strengths and weaknesses of each of the surveyed theoretical approaches when they are applied to a human rights inquiry. The second, it discusses the examples of such studies to substantiate the claims the authors makes about those theoretical approaches within the IR discipline. In conclusion, the authors gives the arguments in favor of inclusion IR analytical tools into human rights studies.
Key words: human rights, human rights theory, international relations, international relations theory, realism, liberalism, neo-liberalism, institutionalism, game theory, regime theory, hegemonic stability, constructivism, boomerang theory, norm entrepreneurs, norm analysis.