Approaches to Concept Analysis

Berenskoetter, Felix

Abstract

This article takes as its point of departure Stefano Guzzini’s recent call for ‘ontological theorizing’ as a reflexive engagement with central concepts. In an attempt to advance this agenda, the article presents an accessible overview of different approaches to concept analysis to stake out the field for a discussion of what ontological theorising might entail. The article advances the notion of concepts as ‘basic’ and lays out the parameters through which they obtain meaning, followed by a discussion of three approaches, which tackle the multifaceted nature of basic concepts within and across different contexts. These approaches are labelled ‘historical’, ‘scientific’ and ‘political(critical)’ and presented through the work of Reinhart Koselleck, Giovanni Sartori and Michel Foucault, respectively. The article notes that concept analysis, as discussed here, stands in tension with modern forms of theory building yet is a creative source for theorising that accepts the unstable, political and context-bound nature of ontology.

Citation

Berenskoetter, F. (2017). Approaches to Concept Analysis. Millennium: Journal of International Studies, 45(2), 151-173. https://doi.org/10.1177/0305829816651934

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 5, 2016
• Online Publication Date: Jun 24, 2016
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2017
• Deposit Date: May 21, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: May 21, 2016
• Journal: Millennium: Journal of International Studies
• Print ISSN: 0305-8298
• Electronic ISSN: 1477-9021
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 45
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 151-173
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0305829816651934
• Keywords: Concepts, theorising, history, comparison, genealogy
• Additional Information: Additional Information : This is the accepted version of an article first published online 24 June 2016 by Sage.