This invaluable text assesses the current research and theory on the causes of both war and peace. In a completely new set of chapters, leading international relations scholars explore the role of territorial disputes, power, alliances, arms races, rivalry, and nuclear weapons in bringing about war; the outcomes and consequences of war; and the factors that promote peace, including democracy, norms, capitalist economies, and stable borders. The third edition includes a new section on emerging trends in research on cyber war, the environment and climate change, leaders, war financing, and trends in interstate conflict. Reviewing fifty years of scientific research, the contributors provide an accessible and up-to-date overview of current knowledge and an agenda for future research.
Sara McLaughlin Mitchell is the F. Wendell Miller Professor of Political Science at the University of Iowa. She is the author of five books and more than fifty journal articles and book chapters. Her areas of expertise include international conflict, political methodology, and gender issues in academia. Professor Mitchell is cofounder of the Journeys in World Politics workshop, a mentoring workshop for junior IR women. She received the ISA Quincy Wright Distinguished Scholar Award (2015), a distinguished alumni award from Iowa State University, and she served as president of the Peace Science Society.
John A. Vasquez is the Thomas B. Mackie Scholar in International Relations at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. His books include The War Puzzle, The Power of Power Politics, The Steps to War (with Paul Senese), Contagion and War: Lessons from the First World War, and What Do We Know About War? (first and second editions). He received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the APSA Conflict Processes Section, and he has served as president of the Peace Science Society and the International Studies Association.
Preface
Introduction
Sara McLaughlin Mitchell and John A. Vasquez
PART I: FACTORS THAT BRING ABOUT WAR
1 Territory and Contentious Issues
Paul R. Hensel and Hein Goemans
2 Dyadic Power Distributions and War
Daniel S. Morey and Kelly M. Kadera
3 Deterrence Theory and Alliance Politics
Michael R. Kenwick and Roseanne W. McManus
4 Arms Races
Susan G. Sample
5 Rivalries and Crisis Bargaining
Seden Akcinaroglu and Elizabeth Radziszewski
6 Nuclear Weapons
Matthew Fuhrmann
7 Outcomes and Consequences of War
Stephen L. Quackenbush
PART II: FACTORS THAT PROMOTE PEACE
8 The Liberal Peace
Michael Mousseau
9 The Territorial Peace: Current and Future Research
Douglas M. Gibler and Steven V. Miller
10 The Peace Puzzle: Understanding Transitions to Peace
Andrew P. Owsiak, Paul F. Diehl, and Gary Goertz
11 Conflict Management of Territorial and Maritime Disputes
Emilia Justyna Powell and Krista E. Wiegand
PART III: EMERGING TRENDS IN INTERSTATE WAR RESEARCH
12 Cyber War
Brandon Valeriano, Ryan C. Maness, and Benjamin Jensen
13 The Environment and Conflict: Water Wars
Sara McLaughlin Mitchell and Yufan Yang
14 Leaders and War
Scott Wolford
15 War Financing and Foreign Debt
Rosella Cappella Zielinski and Paul Poast
16 Trends in Interstate Conflict
Bear F. Braumoeller
PART IV: CONCLUSION
17 Some Brief Observations on the Contemporary Study of War
William R. Thompson
18 War and the Orient Express
Andrew P. Owsiak and Douglas B. Atkinson
19 What Do We Know about War?
Sara McLaughlin Mitchell and John A. Vasquez
References
Name Index
Subject Index
About the Contributors
Solving the puzzle of war has dominated the attention of scholars and policy makers alike for decades. The new edition of What Do We Know about War? gauges the knowledge ascertained about the causes of war and the conditions of peace by the scientific community since the publication of the first edition, more than twenty years ago. In addition, it provides insights into new areas of research and concludes with reflections on what we have learned. This book is an essential read for academics, policy makers, and students interested in questions of war and peace. — Faten Ghosn, University of Arizona
This new volume features an expanded cast of experts who have written entirely original chapters, often about new topics not covered in previous editions in the series. The volume even boasts a new co-editor, Sara McLaughlin Mitchell. She and John Vasquez have done something rather difficult: they have taken an excellent collection and made it even better! What Do We Know About War? is as important for advanced-undergraduate and graduate courses as it is for scholars conducting their own research on war. — Douglas Lemke, Pennsylvania State University
The third edition of What Do We Know About War? continues in the tradition of previous editions. It is an extremely valuable resource for both students and scholars of international conflict. Each chapter provides an excellent overview of our knowledge and a roadmap of where we should go in the future. It is required reading for both students seeking knowledge and scholars embarking on their own research in international conflict. — Richard J. Stoll, Rice University