The steps to war [electronic resource] : an empirical study / Paul D. Senese and John A. Vasquez.

ISBN:

9781400837830

9781282964952

Title:

The steps to war [electronic resource] : an empirical study / Paul D. Senese and John A. Vasquez.

Author:

Senese, Paul Domenic.

Personal Author:

Senese, Paul Domenic.

Publication Information:

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xvii, 314 pages) : illustrations

Contents:

The steps to war -- The evolution of a research program : research design -- From territorial claims to territorial disputes : testing for selection effects -- Territory, contiguity, and their interaction : a contingent model of interstate conflict -- The probability of war between nation-states -- The probability of crisis escalation -- Exploring interactions in the steps to war -- Explaining war, thinking about peace.

Local Note:

eBooks on EBSCOhost

Subject Term:

War -- Causes -- Research.

Conflict management -- Research.

International relations -- Research.

War -- Causes.

Conflict management.

International relations.

Added Author:

Vasquez, John A., 1945-

Format:

Electronic Resources

Electronic Access:

Click here to view

Publication Date:

2008

Publication Information:

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Shelf Number	Material Type	Copy	Shelf Location	Status
355.027 22	1:E-BOOK	1	1:ONLINE	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

The question of what causes war has concerned statesmen since the time of Thucydides. The Steps to War utilizes new data on militarized interstate disputes from 1816 to 2001 to identify the factors that increase the probability that a crisis will escalate to war. In this book, Paul Senese and John Vasquez test one of the major behavioral explanations of war--the steps to war--by identifying the various factors that put two states at risk for war. Focusing on the era of classic international politics from 1816 to 1945, the Cold War, and the post-Cold War period, they look at the roles of territorial disputes, alliances, rivalry, and arms races and show how the likelihood of war increases significantly as these risk factors are combined. Senese and Vasquez argue that war is more likely in the presence of these factors because they increase threat perception and put both sides into a security dilemma.

The Steps to War calls into question certain prevailing realist beliefs, like peace through strength, demonstrating how threatening to use force and engaging in power politics is more likely to lead to war than to peace.

Author Notes

Paul D. Senese was associate professor of political science at the University at Buffalo, State University of New York. He died in 2006 as this book was coming to completion. John A. Vasquez is the Thomas B. Mackie Scholar in International Relations at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Reviews (1)

Choice Review

In this detailed, complex book, Vasquez (Univ. of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign) and the late Senese (Univ. of Buffalo) set out to add to the "steps to war" body of literature. The steps-to-war approach explains interstate wars as a result of disputes over political issues, whereas realist explanations find the root causes in the struggle for power. Individual states' foreign policies and how they manage relations with other states are viewed as proximate causes of war. Senese and Vasquez test the propositions of previous work in the steps-to-war literature. A major portion of this work deals with testing the proposition that territorial disputes increase the probability of war. In the end, the authors find that militarized conflict generally emanates from two sources: territorial disputes and contiguity. Additionally, territorial disputes are more likely to erupt into militarized conflict between states than are disputes based on other issues. This study, which employs a multitude of statistical analyses, represents an important addition to the steps-to-war research agenda. The book relies heavily on existing quantitative work as a point of entry. As such, there are no case studies or detailed examinations of any specific wars. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate, research, and professional collections. J. Fields University of Southern California

List of Figures and Tables	p. ix
Preface	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xv
Part I Foundations
Chapter 1 The Steps to War	p. 7
Chapter 2 The Evolution of a Research Program: Research Design	p. 37
Part II Territory and War
Chapter 3 From Territorial Claims to Territorial Disputes: Testing for Selection Effects	p. 75
Chapter 4 Territory, Contiguity, and Their Interaction: A Contingent Model of Interstate Conflict	p. 104
Part III Power Politics and War
Chapter 5 The Probability of War between Nation-States	p. 129
Chapter 6 The Probability of Crisis Escalation	p. 179
Chapter 7 Exploring Interactions in the Steps to War	p. 215
Part IV Conclusion
Chapter 8 Explaining War, Thinking about Peace	p. 251
References	p. 281
Name Index	p. 301
Subject Index	p. 307

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Author Notes

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Choice Review

Table of Contents