Expertise

Abstract

The entry starts by providing a relational definition of expertise – experts are those acknowledged as such by relevant audiences – as commonly understood in the field of International Relations (IR). It briefly shows how this definition compares to understandings of expertise in other academic disciplines. The entry then provides an overview of how the study of expertise in IR has evolved since the 1940s, identifying four key phases. It shows that, whereas scholars in the first three phases (1940s to 1990s) were mostly interested in the knowledge subjects, namely, the expert groups themselves, more recent IR research has been additionally paying attention to the governance objects; that is, the knowledge practices and discourses by expert groups which constitute governable entities. The entry highlights some of the key current academic debates on expertise, which are mostly focused on the way expertise is employed in international organizations and on the relationship between knowledge and politics.