Emotional Turn in International Relations: Emotional Diplomacy

The article examines the “emotional turn” in the study of world politics and international relations. The main goal of the article is to systematize and summarize existing research related to the study of emotions in political usage. Using the example of content analysis of Pope Francis’s January 2025 speech, a conclusion is made about the use of the term “diplomacy of hope” in the international arena. The overall result is that emotions can influence nation states in forming political strategies. The spread of the concept of “soft” power and public diplomacy emphasizes the need to focus on attraction rather than coercion in modern international relations. However, negative feelings and emotions currently prevail in foreign policy rhetoric, since it is “easier” to unite communities with the help of feelings of fear, anger, hatred than with the help of hope and empathy, despite the fact that the latter actively function in diplomatic and political usage.