Penn State Department of Political Science

Book Description

In this contribution to the literature on the causes of war, Douglas Lemke asks whether the same factors affect minor powers as affect major ones. He investigates whether power parity and dissatisfaction with the status quo have an impact within Africa, the Far East, the Middle East and South America. Lemke argues that there are similarities across these regions and levels of power, and that parity and dissatisfaction are correlates of war around the world. The extent to which they increase the risk of war varies across regions, however, and the book looks at the possible sources of this cross-regional variation, concluding that differential progress toward development is the likely cause. This book will interest students and scholars of international relations and peace studies, as well as comparative politics and area studies.

• Original contribution to the debate on the causes of war, looking at minor as well as major powers around the world • Offers a regional perspective, with analysis of Africa, Far East, Middle East and South America • Peace studies market, as well as IR

1. Introduction
2. Theoretical origins
3. Theoretical revision: the multiple hierarchy model
4. Identifying local hierarchies and measuring key variables
5. Empirical investigations
6. Further investigations I: Great power interference?
7. Further investigations II: an African (interstate) peace?
8. Conclusions, implications and directions for continued research.