Democracies at war
- Typus Taschenbuch
- Verlag PRINCETON
- Schriftsteller Stam, Allan C. / Reiter, Dan
- ISBN13 9780691089492
- ISBN10 0691089493
- Buchseiten 283
- Jahr der Ausgabe 2002
- Sprache Englisch
Democracies at war
Complementing their wide-ranging case-study analysis, the authors apply innovative statistical tests and new hypotheses. In unusually clear prose, they pinpoint two reasons for democracies' success at war. First, as elected leaders understand that losing a war can spell domestic political backlash, democracies start only those wars they are likely to win. Secondly, the emphasis on individuality within democratic societies means that their soldiers fight with greater initiative and superior leadership.
Surprisingly, Reiter and Stam find that it is neither economic muscle nor bandwagoning between democratic powers that enables democracies to win wars. They also show that, given societal consent, democracies are willing to initiate wars of empire or genocide. On the whole, they find, democracies' dependence on public consent makes for more, rather than less, effective foreign policy. Taking a fresh approach to a question that has long merited such a study, this book yields crucial insights on security policy, the causes of war, and the interplay between domestic politics and international relations.
- Typus Taschenbuch
- Verlag PRINCETON
- Schriftsteller Stam, Allan C. / Reiter, Dan
- ISBN13 9780691089492
- ISBN10 0691089493
- Buchseiten 283
- Jahr der Ausgabe 2002
- Sprache Englisch