Academia and the Legitimising of International Politics: Studies of democratisation and world politics

Abstract

This article aims to highlight the connection between academic studies and international politics and to provide an academic justification of foreign policies with particular reference to the case of democratisation studies. It embodies a two-way relationship. On the one hand, the conjunctures of international politics influence the nature of academic studies in the discipline of Political Science, on the other hand, academic studies may sometimes be employed as sources of legitimisation of the foreign policies of states. The article discusses these connections, providing particular examples of academic studies of the democratisation process during the Cold War and the post-cold war era. © 2011 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC. © 2012 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.