Group Decisions and Psychology
Argued that warfare is a cultural invention rather than an inherent human trait, challenging prevailing beliefs about the inevitability of conflict
Margaret Mead
Leaders may initiate foreign conflicts to boost domestic approval and shift attention away from internal problems
Diversionary war theory
Argued imperialism was a strategy to find new markets or resources for bloated economies
Lenin (answer to overproduction)
Theory that revises the assumptions on major actors, hierarchy of issues, and power in IR
Complex interdependence (Keohane and Nye)
Thought of as a bridge between realism and liberalism partially because it doesn't prevent conflict only manages it
Arms control
This approach argues that decision-making is hampered by information processing, personal experiences, and personality types
Psychological approach
A fundamental political transformation involves the overthrow of an existing power structure and replacement with a new system, often through organized mass movements seeking radical change
Revolution
Argued economic interdependence is dangerous due to sensitivity and vulnerability
Waltz
Norms/culture, similar institutions, and rational choice
Explanations for the democratic peace theory
Qualitative, quantitative, L-type, and R-type
Decisions made in this manner suffer from conflict between individual and group rationality
Group decision-making
Policy choices are outcomes of a negotiation between different agencies with distinct priorities rather than a coherent national interest
Bureaucratic politics model
Argued some segments of the population may benefit from war
Milward
Republic constitutions, commercial spirit of international trade, and federation of interdependent republics
The Kantian Tripod (Perpetual Peace)
Nuclear powers are deterred from attacking each other by the threat of overwhelming retaliatory strikes
Mutually assured destruction
When ranking three or more alternatives, no voting system can satisfy all fairness criteria while also reflecting the preferences of individual voters
Arrow's Dilemma
Argued one solution to nationalism in newly democratized states is to ensure old elites have a place in the new regime
Mansfield and Snyder
Neither economic weakness nor prosperity seems to prevent war
The role of the business cycle
Theory that argues it may be the presence/absence of territorial threats that explains regime type
Territorial peace theory
This strategy may or may not be the reason states don't attack you (hint: tough to prove why something didn't happen)
Deterrence
This psychological concept explains why policymakers often ignore contradictory information and maintain existing beliefs about adversaries, potentially escalating conflicts
Cognitive consistency principle
Other states might intervene in another state's civil war due to ethnic kin, strategic interests, or preventing spillover
Intervention wars (protecting interests)
Argues that IOs help socialize states, but also significantly deviate from their mandates
Constructivism
Agreement between some states to reduce barriers to trade, unclear if they can also reduce conflict initiation
Preferential/regional trade agreement
Clearly communicating your will and ability to attack
Required to make deterrence work