Hegemony and the Structure-Agency Problem in International Relations: A scientific realist

Abstract. This article argues for a concept of hegemony that goes beyond current usages in IR to examine its more structural aspect. First, it looks at this more structural aspect in relation to some of Gramsci’s own arguments. Then it adds hegemony to the structure-agency debate.

It develops the concept of hegemony in two ways – first as a mediating moment between structure and agency, second as a factor in securing the unity of structural combinations. These arguments are in turn dependent upon a scientific realist ontology that sees structure as more than just intersubjective relations. Finally, the article tries to show how this reworked concept of hegemony allows for a social theory of international relations, while respecting the specificity of the international.