Problem
1) Senese and Vasquez (2005) Reading Notes
a) Briefly describe the steps to war theory of international conflict. What are the 'steps of war'?
b) What is the role of territorial disputes in steps to war theory? Why are they important?
c) Senese ad Vasquez (2005) argue that repeated conflicts matter. Is the relationship between repeated conflict and escalation to war linear (i.e., does evert additional conflict between two countries led to constant increase in the probability of escalation to war)? If it isn't linear, describe the relationship they theorize.
d) Based on our short introductions to steps to war theory in this course, what do you think the proponents of the theory would say about the democratic peace hypothesis?
2) Gibler and Owsiak (2018) Reading Notes
a) Describe the general theoretical argument proposed by the authors.
b) Compare and contrast the argument Gibler and Owsiak (2018) make with the democratic peace hypothesis. Specifically, where does democracy fall in each proposed causal process.
c) Define the concept of 'settled borders' used by the authors.
d) Provide an example of a situation where there would be a settled border between two countries and an example where there would not be a settled border between two countries (assume they are land neighbors).
3) Owsiak (2019) Reading Notes
a) What is the research question motivating this article? Why did the author write the article?
b) Under what conditions does Owsiak (2019) argue that settled borders will led to peace between two countries? Does democracy matter when this condition is present (according to the author)?
c) Under what conditions does Owsiak (2019) argue that joint democracy will lead to peace between two countries? Do settled borders matter when this condition is present (according to the author)?
4) Gledtsch, Saleyhan, and Schultz (2008) Reading Notes
a) What are the general reasons why civil war may lead to international conflict?
b) Briefly describe each of the general reasons you identified above.
c) Consider the 'intervention' mechanism (or reason) linking civil war to international conflict. What are some proximate causes for this mechanism?
d) Consider the 'externalization' mechanism (or reason) linking civil war to international conflict. What are some proximate causes for this mechanism?
5) Saleyhan (2008) Reading Notes
a) What is the research question motivating this article?
b) Provide an overview of the author's theoretical argument. (In the process of answering this question define what a "transnational rebel" is.)
c) What are the author's hypotheses?
d) Does the empirical evidence support the author/s theoretical argument? Provide information to support your conclusion.