Breaking the Mold

Normative Hybridity as the Key to Contemporary "Non-Western" Political Theorizing

Bibliographic Data

ID3218557
AuthorsElena Ziliotti (0000-0002-8929-9728, Delft University of Technology, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume119
Issue1
Pages300-313
Publication date2025-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Political Science Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0003-0554 • E-ISSN: 1537-5943
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0003055424000194
OpenAlexW4394818499
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited45

What normative compass can appropriately ground a theory for contemporary "non-Western" societies? This question has become urgent amid the pressure to decolonize political science and academia. The hybridity of numerous contemporary non-Western societies means that political theorists cannot refuse to engage with either Western-originated or premodern Indigenous concepts and ways of thinking that bear on the local public culture. However, these normative strands alone are unsuitable for grounding a contemporary theory. This methodological dilemma can be overcome if theorists adopt normative hybridity as a methodological stance. Normative hybridity suggests that hybridity is not only a feature of the theorist's context of reference but should also be their modus operandi. Normative hybridity already underpins relevant works in contemporary Confucian political theory. Drawing from these works, I illustrate three methods to apply normative hybridity to theory building. This novel methodological approach uniquely addresses current political theory discussions and influences non-Western policymaking

Dilemma · Epistemology · Hybridity · Indigenous · Normative · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Anthropology · Chinese history and philosophy · Law · Philosophy · Political Philosophy and Ethics

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Open DOIOpen Access