Until around the turn of the millennium, Linklater could be characterized as a scholar of the critical theory paradigm within international relations.
Linklater argues that International Relations theorizing take a more expansive approach to the relevant actors which includes forces that generate human norms and structure human relations between societies beyond the class framework of Marxism.
[5] However, since the 2000s, he moved decisively to championing the relevance of the work of Norbert Elias on the study of International Relations.
His later books, including The Problem of Harm in World Politics: Theoretical Investigations (2011) and The Idea of Civilization and the Making of the Global Order (2021) show his close connections with the 'figurational sociology' school associated with Elias.
Linklater wrote and edited several books on International Relations, but one of his most important works is The Transformation of Political Community.