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Democratizing for Peace

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2014

Michael D. Ward  and
Kristian S. Gleditsch
Michael D. Ward
Affiliation:
University of Washington
Kristian S. Gleditsch
Affiliation:
University of Colorado
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Abstract

The argument that democratization can bring about war is a powerful critique suggesting limits to the linkage between democracy and peace. This research examines this claim. Our findings demonstrate that democratizing polities are substantially less war prone than previously argued. By focusing on the characteristics of the transition process, we show that as contemporary polities become more democratic they reduce their overall chances of being involved in war by approximately half. We also find that rocky or especially rapid transitions or reversals are associated with a countervailing effect; namely, they increase the risk of being involved in warfare. Both in the long term and while societies undergo democratic change, the risks of war are reduced by democratization and exacerbated by reversals in the democratization process. To reach these conclusions, we developed and applied a logit model linking authority characteristics and war involvement using Polity III and Correlates of War databases.

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Articles
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American Political Science Review , Volume 92 , Issue 1 , March 1998 , pp. 51 - 61
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 1998 

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