RESEARCH POTENTIAL OF WARGAMES IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS STUDIES

In this article, the author raises the question of using wargames as a method of research in international relations. The paper analyzes the extensive historiographic base devoted to the issue of adapting classic military-historical simulation games to other fields of science, including international studies. The author thoroughly analyzes the experience of the Western academic community in applying wargames to obtain empirical data in researches on various topics and issues. The paper describes the main characteristics of wargames as a research methodology, mentions primary advantages and potential disadvantages while providing extensive examples of both. The author concludes that wargame is a valuable research tool, which allows the study of a wide range of topics, including those where the use of other research methods is impossible or limited. One of the bottom-lines of the article is that wargames can be considered both a qualitative and a quantative method of research, which makes imitational modeling a potential answer in the ongoing argument on the methodology more suitable for social sciences and international relations in particular. The author also pays special attention to the applicability of wargames to the subject sphere of international relations and touches upon the issue of the future of this mechanism in scientific research, taking into account the existing global trends. In particular, the author speaks of the objective need to develop unified mechanisms for the implementation of wargames in the digital environment, which would solve many potential issues and risks affecting the validity of the obtained results, and, in general, would simplify the use of wargames for scientific purposes. One of the important conclusions that are drawn in the paper is the objective need to digitalize existing wargames, which would allow to avoid existing complications of organizational nature, make wargaming more accessible and applicable to various types of research in the international relations studies. © 2021, Russian Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.