Research and conceptual cages in the International Political Economy of South American Regionalism

This article analyses the multiple, contrasting roles and limitations of the dominant IPE regionalist theories in the research about the New South American Regionalism. The article focuses on the methodological dimensions of each research approach, at the North and the South, analyzing the role of theory in research by the deployment of the Weberian concept of ‘iron cages.’ The paper critically examines two levels of categories in global conversations, one international and the other regional, which gathers dominantideas used in research on the IPE regionalism. The first level groups the South American perspectives from inside the region and anchored in dialogue with different international theoretical orientations. These are: the market-led perspective, the multilateral developmentalist, and the post developmental views. The secondlevel of categories includes the Eurocentric regionalism, liberal integration theory, and actor-oriented North American regional perspective.