Biography
Matti Spåra is a PhD researcher in International Relations at the Department of War Studies, King’s College London. His doctoral research, titled Reinventing the International Relations Theorist, examines the history and sociology of Anglophone International Relations (IR) since 1989. Focusing on Poststructuralism, International Political Sociology, and Constructivism, his thesis explores how these scholarly networks have cultivated collective “IR Theory Personae” and navigated institutional, social, and ideological shifts in the modern academy to foster intellectual change. He employs analytic oral history as a core method. The thesis advances IR’s revisionist disciplinary history while contributing to broader debates within the emerging field of persona studies and the history and sociology of science. Matti was awarded a 1+3 scholarship through the London Interdisciplinary Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership (LISS DTP), and his research is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
In addition to his PhD research, Matti is investigating Vladimir Putin’s use of decolonial theory in Russian foreign policy communication and its political implications for international order and theory. As part of this project, he co-organised the workshop Reactionary Critiques and the Liberal International Order with Dr Nicholas Michelsen and Dr Pablo de Orellana, ahead of the CEEISA-ISA Joint International Conference 2024 in Rijeka, Croatia. Matti was Section Chair at the 17th European International Studies Association Pan-European Conference on International Relations (Université Catholique de Lille, 2024), leading discussions on “The Role of the IR Theorist in Public Debate Today.” He has volunteered at E-International Relations since 2021 and serves as a Senior Commissioning Editor.
Matti has previously worked in political affairs at the London Embassy of the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs. He has also contributed to various research projects, including studies on the European Union’s crisis management practices, analytic wargaming, and an active project examining the UK’s future relationship with Russia. He holds an MA and BA in International Relations from the Department of War Studies at King’s College London, where he received the Barrie Paskins Award for Best MA Dissertation for his work titled “Putin, the Critical Theorist? The Kremlin’s Decolonial Critique of International Order and Its Implications for Critical International Theory,” as well as the award for Best MA International Relations Student.
Research Interests:
- History and sociology of knowledge
- Disciplinary history of International Relations
- The public role of international relations theory and theorists
- Persona studies
- Oral history
- Russian foreign policy communications
- Finnish foreign, security, and defence policy
Teaching
Matti teaches International Relations Theory (BA1) and Foreign Policy Analysis (BA2) at King’s, where he was nominated for an Education Award in 2024 for teaching excellence. His teaching approach incorporates active learning through close reading workshops, simulations, debates, and group discussions. He is also developing specialist courses on “Realist Thought in International Relations” and “Approaches to the History and Sociology of Knowledge in International Relations and Beyond.”
Research Centres & Groups
Primary Supervisor
Research
Research Centre in International Relations (RCIR)
The Research Centre in International Relations conducts research on practices of security and conflict, their transformation, and their social and political implications.
Research
Research Centre in International Relations (RCIR)
The Research Centre in International Relations conducts research on practices of security and conflict, their transformation, and their social and political implications.