A Temporal Constitution of the International: Theoretical Approaches to Global Public Policies

Global public policy measures are not just taking place but they are actually creating their own space wherein it is legitimate, justified, useful or of interest to take action. Similarly, policy measures are not merely applied under different circumstances, they are actually creating further meaning. Therefore, global public policy is not simply another level above national policies, it is defining its own space. It is not just a reaction to something but also a trigger to constitute its circumstances. This performative movement of policies has complex effects on the task of analysing their procedures, implementations, outcomes, or outputs. Hence, these assumptions affect methodological and epistemological understandings. Moreover, they concern the production of ontological categories of social science. The differentiation of time and temporal orders offers instruments to cope with these challenges. The concept of time as a social dimension of international politics is not very widely captured. Whereas in other disciplines – like sociology and especially philosophy – a long lasting tradition is concerned with the differentiation of time in varying contexts, the discipline of International Relations shows minor intentions to stress temporal complexities. In this respect, this paper describes, first, how the concept of time has been theorised within IR so far. Second, it offers a dynamic understanding of temporality as ‘presence’ (Derrida) and ‘actuality’ (Luhmann). Third, these dynamisms can be exemplified by narrating the simultaneous presence of multiple histories finally leading to a media-based analysis of temporal representations constituting an international realm of global public policies. The interaction between ontological categories of International Politics and their procedural fixation within a narrative historical condition permits conceptual access without reifying social contents. Here, approaches to global financial regulation measures serve to exemplify the temporal diversity of the international realm.