FORUM – Dynamisch und doch krisenfest? Perspektiven auf die (neue) Relevanz von Normdynamiken in den Internationalen Beziehungen

Graf, Antonia; Loges, Bastian; Niemann, Holger; Stockmann, Nils

Abstract

The crisis phenomena of recent decades are characterised by substantive overlaps, concurrences, normative ambiguities and unclear perspectives for addressing. As they demonstrate, crises are also normative crises. Since pluralisation and the contested validity of normative claims are core features of multiple crises, norms research is able to contribute to explanatory analysis, critical understanding and scholarly accompanied problem-solving of such crisis phenomena. In this introduction, we argue in particular that focusing on the dynamics concerning norms, norm relations and normative orders offers possibilities for analysing multiple crises. Through these different perspectives on norm dynamics, norms research can analytically grasp and critically discuss the concurrences, contradictions and complexities of multiple crises. The relevance of the three perspectives and the potential of norms research for explanatory analysis, critical understanding and scholarly accompanied problem-solving of multiple crises is illustrated with empirical examples of current crises. We argue that norms research is especially relevant for such doings because of its normativity, relationality, and situatedness. An overview of the forum contributions concludes this introduction.