Scholar Revisits Wendt’s Theory on State Identity and Anarchy

Bangka – A recent study by Indonesian academic Mirah Satria Alamsyah argues that Alexander Wendt’s influential constructivist theory in international relations still leaves major questions unanswered, particularly regarding how state identities are formed and translated into political action.

Published in the Review of International Relations journal in 2025, the article revisits Wendt’s well-known argument that “anarchy is what states make of it,” a concept that challenged realist assumptions about the inherently conflictual nature of international politics.

In the study, Alamsyah explains that Wendt views international anarchy not as a fixed condition leading automatically to conflict, but as a social construct shaped by state identities and interests. According to Wendt, states behave as rivals, enemies, or partners depending on how they interpret one another through social interaction.

However, the paper argues that Wendt’s framework is incomplete when explaining how identities emerge from society and become state policy. Alamsyah notes that Wendt pays insufficient attention to the role of cognition, deliberation, and domestic political processes in shaping collective state decisions.

The article draws on critiques from several scholars, including Bruce Cronin, Maja Zehfuss, Dale Copeland, Kenneth Boulding, and Oran Young. These scholars question whether state intentions can truly be inferred from observable actions, given that political leaders and governments may interpret signals differently.

Alamsyah also highlights Zehfuss’ distinction between “social identities” and “corporate identity.” While states may possess multiple social identities through international interaction, they retain a core identity rooted in domestic political structures and historical experiences. Indonesia’s bebas-aktif foreign policy is cited as an example of a long-standing corporate identity that persists despite changing global alignments.

The paper further argues that Wendt’s idea of state cognition raises conceptual difficulties because cognitive and deliberative capacities fundamentally belong to individuals rather than abstract state entities. To address this issue, the study incorporates Oran Young’s theory of “social choice,” which explains how collective decisions emerge from competing preferences within domestic politics.

Despite its criticisms, the article acknowledges Wendt’s lasting contribution to international relations theory. According to Alamsyah, Wendt successfully broadened debates on international politics by emphasizing that identities and interests are socially constructed rather than predetermined by the anarchic structure of the international system.

The study concludes that constructivism remains relevant in understanding contemporary global politics, but requires further refinement to better explain the relationship between identity formation, intention, and state behavior. 

Source: Satria Alamsyah, M. (2025). Reconsidering Identity in Wendt’s “Anarchy Is What States Make of It”: Limits and Extensions. Review of International Relations (Jurnal Kajian Ilmu Hubungan Internasional), 7(2), 235–250. https://doi.org/10.24252/rir.v7i2.61923