This paper develops a theoretical approach to state socialization grounded in role theory. Role theory, in particular the role location process, offers a way to connect grand International Relations theory and inquiry to the analysis of specific foreign policy actions through the socialization concept. The role location process is presented as a stylized socialization “game” that models the interaction of a state, its socializer(s), and the interested audience as it reacts to cues and demands. It explicitly connects the domestic politics of foreign policy role selection with the international politics of acceptance/rejection of roles and related consequences. This model is then applied to several episodes of early Israeli history (1948-1956) covering the emergence of the sovereign state through its achievement of small state status in the aftermath of the Suez Crisis.
