Promoting Global IR under the Dominance of Mainstream Theories and the Liberalization of Universities: Reflections from Indonesia

In response to the increasing calls for contributions to the Global International Relations (IR) project, this article presents a reflexive study of IR research and teaching trends in Indonesia. It examines the challenges and opportunities to promote Global IR from an Indonesian perspective. The research for this article was conducted via an online survey between August and December 2020, combined with the authors’ personal experiences in research and teaching, as well as secondary sources, especially books and journal articles published by Indonesian IR scholars. The survey finds that constructivism and realism are the most popular theories for Indonesian IR scholars, and positivism is the dominant research principle. In line with these trends, research is more focused on empirically-based and policy-oriented objectives than conceptual ones. Furthermore, universities have been adapting their IR courses to meet the demands of the job market rather than to address the debates in the discipline. Despite these obstacles, the authors have observed that there is a growing interest in non-Western IR discourses in Indonesian IR scholarship, creating the potential to advance Global IR.