Crisis Theory

Poststructuralist Perspectives

What is a crisis? Though it may sound like a simple question, finding a conceptual answer is surprisingly tricky. This project explores crises not as singular breakdowns but as ongoing disruptions that reshape political and social orders. Drawining on "dislocation," a concept introduced by political theorist Ernesto Laclau, I develop a multidimensional framework that highlights how crises unsettle social strucutres in dynamic ways. This approach is first outlined in my monograph Global Crisis: Theory, Method and the Covid-19 Pandemic (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023) and further refined in my co-authored article with Dirk Nabers Dislocation: Toward a Framework for the Study of Crises (Global Studies Quarterly, 2024).

Building on this foundation, I engage with Ontological Security Studies (OSS) to examine how security-seeking is shaped not only by acute breakdowns but also by ongoing structural instabilities. By distinguishing between multiple dimensions of crisis, I emphasize ontological security as an adaptive process. In addition, I explore the role of negativity through the works of Friedrich Nietzsche and Gilles Deleuze, arguing that dislocation is not merely disruptive but also generative. It reveals the fragility of social structures while simultaneously creating new possibilities for transformation.

Events & WorkshopsResearch Publications

WORKSHOP

2–4 July 2025 · Krakow, Poland

Thinking Crisis Beyond Decision-Making

Nadine Klopf and Dirk Nabers

As part of the EISA European Workshops in International Studies (EWIS), this workshop challenges dominant crisis scholarship in International Relations (IR) by moving beyond the conventional focus on decision-making and crisis management. Instead, it rethinks crisis as an inherently hybrid and dynamic process rather than a temporary disruption followed by recovery. By critically engaging with the theoretical foundations of crisis research, participants explore how crisis scholarship often reinforces binary distinctions – between crisis and stability, rupture and continuity – while rethinking the ethical and conceptual complexities embedded in crises.

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PUBLICATIONS

Published February 2023 · Monograph · Palgrave Macmillan

Global Crisis: Theory, Method
and the Covid-19 Pandemic

Nadine Klopf

Based on the work of political theorist Ernesto Laclau, this book develops a novel theory of global crises. It conceptually advances the concept of "dislocation" to differentiate crises on multiple levels, enabling us to link different dimensions of contemporary crises. A methodical toolkit is tailored to the framework, which makes it possible to utilize the book theoretically and methodically for the analysis of global crises. An analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States serves as a hands-on illustration of how this framework can be utilized for practical analyses.

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Published April 2024 · Journal Article · Global Studies Quarterly

Dislocation: Toward a Framework
for the Study of Crises

Nadine Klopf and Dirk Nabers

This article develops a conceptual framework for the study of crises. Political theorist Ernesto Laclau's concept of "dislocation" is the cornerstone for this endeavor. Dislocation is conceptually advanced to account for the multidimensional character of crises. This allows us to understand crises in their broader sociopolitical context, which is illustrated using the example of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.

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CONFERENCE & WORKSHOP PAPERS

Klopf, Nadine (2024): “Multidimensional Crisis: Towards a Deleuzian Perspective.” Paper presented at the German Political Science Association (DVPW) Congress, Göttingen, Germany, September 24th – 27th, 2024.

Klopf, Nadine (2023): “Crisis and Ontological (In)Security: Towards a New Framework.” Paper presented at the European International Studies Association (EISA) Pan-European Conference on International Relations, Potsdam, Germany, September 5th – 9th, 2023.

Klopf, Nadine (2023): “The Crisis-Security Nexus: Theorizing the Relationship Between Crisis and Ontological (In)Security.” Paper presented at the International Studies Association (ISA) Annual Convention, Montreal, Canada, March 15th – 18th, 2023.

Klopf, Nadine (2022): “Towards a Multidimensional Approach to Global Crises: Discursive Dislocation, Social Vulnerability and Identity Construction in the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Paper presented at the European International Studies Association (EISA) Pan-European Conference on International Relations, Athens, Greece, September 1st – 4th, 2022.

Klopf, Nadine and Dirk Nabers (2022): “Multidimensional Crises: Towards a Framework for the Study of Global Politics.” Paper presented at the International Studies Association (ISA) Annual Convention, Nashville, TN, USA, March 28th – April 2nd, 2022.

Klopf, Nadine and Dirk Nabers (2025): “Crisis in Ontological Security Studies.” Paper prepared for the Workshop Creating Ontological Security in International Relations, organized by Cornelia Baciu and Brent J. Steele, Kiel, Germany, January 16th, 2025.

Klopf, Nadine and Dirk Nabers (2024): “Negativity and Dislocation: Rethinking the Negative in Nietzsche and Deleuze.” Paper prepared for the Workshop Working with the Negative, organized by Valerie Waldow and David Chandler, at the European Workshops in International Studies (EWIS), Istanbul, Turkey, July 3rd – 5th, 2024.

Klopf, Nadine (2023): “Crisis and Ontological Insecurity: Towards a New Framework.” Paper prepared for the International Relations Theory Colloquium, organized by Stacie Goddard, Jennifer Mitzen and Sebastian Rosato, Virtual Event, November 2nd, 2023.

Klopf, Nadine (2023): “The Crisis-Security Nexus: Theorizing the Relationship Between Crisis and Ontological (In)Security.” Paper prepared for the Workshop International Theory, organized by the Journal International Theory and the International Studies Association (ISA) Theory Section, Montreal, Canada, March 14th, 2023.

Klopf, Nadine (2023): “Dislocation and Social Instability [in German].” Presentation at the Network Meeting of the German Research Foundation (DFG) Network Sociology of the Un/Available, led by Katharina Block (DFG Project Nr. 441796652), Delmenhorst, Germany, March 23rd, 2023.