<p>In this thesis, I explore if Latvia has experienced, during the last ten years, a change in identity and threat perception that could allow for the building of a “cooperative security community” in Northern Europe. Recent constructivist researches contend that such change is in progress in neighboring Estonia. This research, performed through a discourse analysis of political elite’s speeches, reveals the presence – explained by the concept of interim inconsequentiality - of two opposite identity/security discourses. I link the first, inclusive, discourse to Latvia’s Western socialization, but not to a change in identity, as I contend that both threat images and identity have been instrumentalized for the sake of the accession strategy. As for the second, exclusionary, discourse that shows a persistent distrust of both Russia and the ethnic Russian minorities, and is the more prevalent in terms of political behavior, I link it to Latvia’s identity as a small ethnic nation vulnerable to external pressures - an identity strengthened during the period by Russia’s behavior. I verify this thesis by exposing the exclusionary discourse’s salience on the EU integration issue. I conclude that the period of reference, far from resolving the security dilemma, has, on the contrary, reinforced it.</p>

This research takes the viewpoints of international regime, neo-realism, neo-liberalism and constructionism in analyzing the impact of international norms on state behaviors. The case study focuses on the impact of the international human rights norms on China¡¦s human rights issue. The finding of this research is that, with China¡¦s international socialization going deeper, China is eager to join and intervene in different international regimes and international organizations; China also regards international organization as the symbolic expansion of state authority. The main purpose of the international human rights norms is to promote democracy and protect human rights all over the world. In western perspectives, China can show its determination to obey international social norms and influnce its opinions about human rights by joining the international human rights norms. In China¡¦s points of view, human rights is a historic and domestic issue. The fundamental thought of the international human rights norms is from the traditional western culture; therefore China does not accept the whole idea of such international human rights norms. From the interaction between China and the international human rights norms, we can find out China totally recognizes the mainstream discourse of the international human rights norms. With the rise of China, China tries to manipulate rather than just yield (with some limits) to the international human rights norms.

在研究政治社會化的歷程中，個人是研究的主體，亦即，個人如何形塑「政治行為定向」以及「政治行為模式」，即為政治社會化過程所研究的範疇。政治社會化的研究著重於個體行為者成為某一團體、組織或社會成員的過程，進而維繫政治體系的支持與穩定，透過媒介傳遞政治學習，使得政治文化形成代間傳遞，形塑行為者的政治定向與態度。亦即，政治社會化的內容、媒介的影響、學習的過程就成為重要的分析指標。而在國際關係的領域中，國家亦產生如同個人在進行政治社會化過程中的學習歷程，透過政治社會化成為某一國際組織的成員。本文希冀透過個人在政治社會化的歷程為研究途徑，將概念延伸至國家層次，透過理論與實際個案的分析，來建構國際社會化的理論基礎。 / Political socialization is the process of individual to sharp political behavior and pattern. International relations scholars try to use the metaphor of “state socialization” to explore the international socialization. The international relations of the “ new Europe ” are shaped by a process of international socialization in which the West community transmits its constitutive liberal norms to Central and Eastern Europe . By analyzing the context of regionalism, international regime, and global governance , this article induces the concept of international socialization . By analyzing the concept of international socialization , I try to explore the connection of these concepts.

In this thesis, I explore if Latvia has experienced, during the last ten years, a change in identity and threat perception that could allow for the building of a “cooperative security community” in Northern Europe. Recent constructivist researches contend that such change is in progress in neighboring Estonia. This research, performed through a discourse analysis of political elite’s speeches, reveals the presence – explained by the concept of interim inconsequentiality - of two opposite identity/security discourses. I link the first, inclusive, discourse to Latvia’s Western socialization, but not to a change in identity, as I contend that both threat images and identity have been instrumentalized for the sake of the accession strategy. As for the second, exclusionary, discourse that shows a persistent distrust of both Russia and the ethnic Russian minorities, and is the more prevalent in terms of political behavior, I link it to Latvia’s identity as a small ethnic nation vulnerable to external pressures - an identity strengthened during the period by Russia’s behavior. I verify this thesis by exposing the exclusionary discourse’s salience on the EU integration issue. I conclude that the period of reference, far from resolving the security dilemma, has, on the contrary, reinforced it.