Call for Papers - Ten Years of Critical Security Studies in Germany: Taking Stock

Open Annual Conference of the Thematic Network “Critical Security Studies” of the German Political Science Association, November 6-7, 2025, in cooperation with the Chair of International Politics at TU Dresden

© Jochen Kleinschmidt

The research field of Critical Security Studies brings together diverse perspectives on the policies and practices of (in)security. What these diverse approaches have in common is their desire to go beyond traditional and military- or national security-focused approaches inspired by realism. From these perspectives, for example, the rise of rightwing parties and movements in Europe becomes not only a question of security policy, but also of social policy, and Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine cannot be explained solely through the means of realistic geopolitics.

Rather, approaches in Critical Security Studies employ a broader understanding of security as a social value, and are interested in the emergence and the consequences of new security logics and dynamics. Complementary to more problem solving-oriented perspectives, one of the central research interests here is how social and political power relations produce and change the form and function of security institutions and security discourses. The field is interdisciplinary; contributions come not only from International Relations and other subfields of political science, but also from criminology, sociology, law, geography, and history.

The Thematic Network aims to provide a forum within the German debate that will bring together the various (sub)disciplinary debates, facilitating exchange on the development of inter- and transdisciplinary research agendas in the field. It explicitly defines itself as an "open, non-paradigm-bound forum for scholars from various fields of political science and related disciplines to exchange ideas on common interests and issues surrounding 'politics of (in)security'" (source).

This year's conference aims to contribute to a stocktaking of the achievements of German language Critical Security Studies since the foundation of the DVPW Thematic Network ten years ago. Therefore, we are particularly interested in papers that reflect on the intellectual identity of our research field. However, contributions can also address other topics and perspectives and explore innovative approaches or interfaces with other areas and disciplines.

Conference presentations may be based on papers addressing specific research questions, but a traditional scientific conference paper is not necessarily required. We request that proposals for conference papers (max. 200 words) be submitted by June 7, 2025, to: kritischesicherheitsstudien@dvpw.de and jochen.kleinschmidt@tu-dresden.de.

Membership in the Thematic Network or the German Political Science Association is not a prerequisite for participation; the event is open to all interested parties. Papers can be submitted and presented in the German or English languages.

The conference will take place at TU Dresden on November 6 and 7, 2025. Unfortunately, travel and accommodation costs cannot be covered. The program is designed to allow most participants to arrive on November 6 and depart on November 7.

Organizing committee:

• Eva Herschinger (Center for Intelligence and Security Studies at the University of the German Armed Forces, Munich)
• Jochen Kleinschmidt (TU Dresden)
• Matthias Leese (ETH Zurich)
• Delf Rothe (IFSH Hamburg)
• Katharina Wezel (University of Tübingen/Rijksuniversiteit Groningen)