Workshop on New Approaches to Security: Organizational Theory and International History

Resulting in part from the end of the Cold War, the study of international security has been infused with innovative approaches to international history and organizational theory. The MacArthur Consortium workshop brings together participants primarily from three scholarly communities: political scientists and sociologists who have studied organizational issues in security-related problems; historians, particularly those interested in international, diplomatic, and military history; and organizational theorists concerned with institutional origins, evolution, and learning. Our goal is to review recent innovative scholarship in these fields and to develop an inter- and multidisciplinary research agenda that will be of interest to scholars in all three communities. The workshop encourages political scientists to take the historical dimension of their work more seriously, enrich the study of international history by exploring problems that might be studied using insights from organizational theory, and encourage organizational theorists to think about and investigate international security problems. Anthropologists and others interested in international organizations or organizations that can have an impact on the outbreak of deadly conflict or its resolution are also very welcome. The workshop draws on recently completed work or work in progress. Discussion focuses on the problems being investigated, the arguments being made, the broader class of problems being addressed, new questions being raised, and research issues among various disciplines.