An Interview with Peer Schouten, Chief Editor of Theory Talks

28 Mar 2013

Here's an interview with Peer Schouten, who is the founder and chief editor of Theory Talks, which is an interactive discussion forum that features interviews with prominent specialists on international relations theory and world politics. In this particular interview, Mr. Schouten describes how Theory Talks was born, why IR materials and information should be openly available to everyone, and why talking about theory is not boring.

The first question is, quite simply, what inspired you to start Theory Talks?

I think Theory Talks actually arose from a combination of factors, or perhaps I should say a combination of frustrations. The first frustration was with the absence of theory in an international relations (IR) graduate degree I pursued in 2008. The course of study told me a lot about international law, treaties, and other formal aspects of international politics. It was great fun and I learnt a lot, but having come from a more philosophical background, it felt like I was only learning about the surface details of a world that had so much more to it.

Now this meant I could do two things: either read up on IR theory all by myself or engage with it in a different way. At the time, I was watching a lot of Harry Kreisler’s Conversations with History - hour-long video interviews with some of the giants of contemporary thought. [A note to ISN partners: the ISN video library includes many of these interviews.] These interviews really made an impact on me; largely I think because Kreisler managed to get a lot of complex thought out of his interviewees in a simple, straightforward way. He inspired me to believe that I could do something along his lines.

So I approached journal after journal and proposed to them that they recurrently feature short interviews with IR theoreticians, which I would conduct. Now here we got to my second frustration: nobody seemed interested, which then got me thinking. If the established journals are not interested, well, then I should go ahead and produce something by myself. Hence Theory Talks was born. Funnily enough, the biggest minds in the field proved enthusiastic from the start, and people such as Alexander Wendt and Robert Keohane were a great support - even before the site actually existed.

A common criticism of international relations theory is that its abstract nature makes it an uninspiring area of study. How do you deal with this problem in Theory Talks?

IR theory is indeed considered boring by many, so my main concern was to make it accessible. I wanted to convey the enthusiasm I felt myself when I was a student. IR, as I experienced it at the University of Amsterdam, was like a mental door opener. With every new theory I got a new pair of glasses that stuck on me when simply walking around or reading the news.... IR, in other words, struck the perfect balance for me between high theorizing and empirical rootedness - a balance (or tension) that still keeps me going.

Yet indeed, many people around me continued to complain about theory being boring and irrelevant. So this is a challenge: how can you convey your own sense of enthusiasm without preaching, while conveying complex thought without becoming dull? In a way, IR theory needed to become ‘cool. Having been a journalist, I knew that doing spoken interviews greatly simplifies complex subjects - and that interviewees tend to give examples, insecure as they are about not being as clear as they might be if they had the time to sit down and think. And as an interviewer, you’re a bit of a dictator, because you can steer the direction of the conversation and push for more examples, specificity, etc.

I guess the format works for now. Theory Talks has a gotten a dedicated group of followers from a number of countries; people that really identify with this approach towards IR Theory. That, plus the fact that Theory Talks is very participative, which means anyone can approach us with suggestions, and, under certain conditions, even become an editor.


As in the case of the ISN, all of your publications are open-source and freely available. Why is it so important that the wider international relations community has open access to Theory Talks and, indeed, other relevant materials?

I think you touch upon a core issue facing not only the discipline of international relations but academia more generally - its ‘capitalist’ bias. I’m normally a bit hesitant to deploy such potentially loaded terminology, but it is my personal opinion that IR scholarship is increasingly losing its inherent ‘academic logic’ to market-based publishing houses that measure productivity in terms of quantity and profitability.

To me, Theory Talks (and the ISN, I might add), help fight this unfortunate trend. ‘Entrance fees’ in whatever guises are inimical to a free market place of ideas, especially in parts of the world where something as simple as subscription fees to peer-reviewed journals are a bridge too far. (Africa immediately comes to mind.) So, that’s why I immediately said yes to ISN’s offer to partner together. It follows the same ambition - to promote intellectual democracy. And so much needs to be done. When in Congo, for example, I see eager students devouring copies of copies of French IR textbooks from the 70s - they simply don't have other study materials. I’d love to be able to bring them printed copies of textbooks and Theory Talks in French. But it is great to have a following in such places as Georgia, Indonesia, and Egypt, where Theory Talks is already being translated into local languages and printed in cheap book or journal format for further dissemination.

To end this point, I think the next concrete big thing for IR is to develop an open access journal of high quality. This means first attracting an editorial board composed of progressive IR scholars of sufficient standing, and second convincing people to not just submit what didn't get accepted elsewhere, but really getting good submissions. I know it’s still a catch 22 for individual scholars, but this end is both worthy and necessary.


Theory Talks was created in conjunction with your own postgraduate studies. How has it shaped your academic research and indeed your personal understanding of International Relations?

Wow, great question. I feel it is an enormous privilege being able to talk personally to all these great minds, and to reflect with them on some of my own concerns. Yet, the sheer variety of views is overwhelming! I think the greatest lessons I’ve learnt from the by now 50+ Talks we’ve done is (1) that everything about IR is controversial and should be - it’s the sign of a vibrant discipline; and (2) that if you want to make it out there, be both dedicated and bold. That means think big, ask important questions and read widely. That said, Theory Talks has given me the opportunity to interact not only with major IR thinkers, but also to form the starting point for exciting engagements with peers and people from surprising places. The fact that there are now a number of people involved with Theory Talks from all across the globe, people I’ve not met for the most part, shows how knowledge creation doesn't need to be inhibited by boundaries.

All of the Theory Talks that you have undertaken must have been inspiring. But if you had to pick one as personal favorite, which Talk would this be?

Oof! That’s a difficult question and I’m feeling all of the people I’ve interviewed breathing down my neck when thinking up the answer to this one. I think the talk with Alexander Wendt (Theory Talk #3) was very special for me, particularly since he doesn't really do interviews. Interviewing Kenneth Waltz was toughest. John Mearsheimer was I think the biggest surprise - I had expected other answers! - and talking to Cynthia Enloe was most fascinating because she’s such a great story teller. While there is still a great many people that need to - and will - be part of the project, what I’m dreaming of doing at one point is a series of Talks with dead theorists - people ranging from Morgenthau to Susan Strange and from Polanyi to E.H. Carr - each interview conducted by a contemporary expert of that dead theorist’s work.

For additional information please see:
Theory Talks Website
You Talk! Get Involved in Theory Talks
Theory Talks Interviews on the ISN Website

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