A Rose by Any Other Name: Neoclassical Realism as the Logical and Necessary Extension of Structural Realism

TLDR

Neoclassical realism, criticized as an ad hoc extension of neorealism, builds on structural realism by positing that while the international system constrains state action, domestic politics and ideas explain deviations from ideal structural behavior. The paper argues that neoclassical realism is a logical and necessary extension of neorealism, correcting the mistaken view that specific paradigms own domestic politics and ideas, and asserting that each paradigm must incorporate these variables. It does so by focusing on mistakes and maladaptive behavior—such as over‑ or under‑balancing—to avoid the trap of merely using domestic politics to make neorealism more determinate and to explain residual variance in foreign‑policy choice. Brian Rathbun, assistant professor at USC and author of *Partisan Interventions*, thanks reviewers and conference participants for their contributions.

Abstract

Abstract Neoclassical realism is often criticized by non-realists for being an ad hoc and theoretically degenerative effort to explain away anomalies for neorealism. In this paper, I argue instead that neoclassical realism is a logical extension and necessary part of advancing neorealism. Structural realism argues that the system constrains but does not determine state action and where foreign policy departs from what would be ideal behavior given a state's structural position, domestic politics and ideas are generally the cause. This focus on mistakes and maladaptive behavior, seen in such neoclassical realist concepts as over-or under-balancing, is necessary to avoid falling into the trap of merely using domestic politics and ideas to make neorealism more determinate and explain residual variance in foreign policy choice unaccounted for by structure. The article attempts to correct the mistaken presumption that particular paradigms own domestic politics and ideas, asserting instead that each paradigm has access to these variables but must make them their own. Brian Rathbun is an assistant professor at the University of Southern California. He is the author of Partisan Interventions: European Party Politics and Peace Enforcement in the Balkans (Cornell University Press, 2004) and has published articles in a number of journals, including International Studies Quarterly and Journal of Conflict Resolution. The author thanks the editors and anonymous reviewers of Security Studies for their incisive comments and the participants at the conference on "Neoclassical Realism and the State" held May 2006 at Concordia University, Montreal, for the inspiration to write the piece.