Norms, Identity, and Culture pp 33-75

Introduction to National Security and Culture

The book explores the analytical perspective of norms, identity, and culture in national security, diverging from dominant material-focused paradigms.
Emphasis on the cultural and institutional elements influencing state behavior, contrasting with neorealist and neoliberal views that prioritize material factors.

Cultural environments fundamentally shape international relations, contrasting with prevalent materialist assumptions.
Three layers of international cultural environments:
- Formal Institutions: Treaties, security regimes (e.g., NATO, NPT, SALT).
- World Political Culture: Norms surrounding sovereignty, international law, and transnational political discourses.
- Patterns of Amity and Enmity: How ideational factors differentiate allies and threats, exemplified by Canada vs. Cuba.

The concept of state identity is influenced by cultural environments, affecting national security interests and policies.
Identity acts as a label for states' characteristics, critical for understanding their behavior and responses to external pressures.
Notable scholars contributing to these discussions:
- Kenneth Waltz on the formation of like units in anarchic systems.
- Stephen Krasner on regime impacts on state interests.

Cultural environments can affect:
- Prospects of Survival: Cultural validation of sovereign statehood supports weak states.
- Nature of Statehood: Changing norms can shift statehood ideals, as seen post-World War II in Germany and Japan.
- Characterization of Statehood: Different national contexts lead to varied national security behaviors.

The book asserts a need for a new framework, incorporating both culture and identity into national security studies.
This framework positions cultural factors as independent variables influencing ideological constructs in foreign policy.

The empirical essays in the volume emphasize how norms and cultural features impact security interests.
Theoretical disputes within the context of realism and liberalism are highlighted, offering a more comprehensive understanding of state interactions.

The interaction between states and their environments leads to different national responses and polices, moving beyond material considerations.

Norms shape expected behaviors and provide validation for certain identities, impacting decisions in international relations.

The volume positions cultural arguments as both competing with and complementing existing realist and liberal theories.
Stressing the dynamic nature of national security interests and how they are formed through collective identity and shared norms in the international sphere.

The necessity of reframing national security studies to better incorporate cultural and identity factors into explanations of state behavior.
Encouragement for further research into the intersections of norms, identity, and cultural influences on security policies.