Book contents
- Sarah Wambaugh and the Plebiscite
- Global and International History
- Sarah Wambaugh and the Plebiscite
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures and Maps
- Preface
- Maps
- Introduction
- 1 A Career in Plebiscites Begins
- 2 The Plebiscites of the Post-War Settlement, 1920–1923
- 3 Locating Sarah Wambaugh’s Political Thought
- 4 Tacna-Arica and the Perfection of the Plebiscite, 1925–1933
- 5 ‘The Highest Point Yet Attained’
- 6 Low Point
- 7 An Era Ends
- Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Index
3 - Locating Sarah Wambaugh’s Political Thought
Science, Neutrality, and Public Opinion
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 23 December 2025
Book contents
- Sarah Wambaugh and the Plebiscite
- Global and International History
- Sarah Wambaugh and the Plebiscite
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures and Maps
- Preface
- Maps
- Introduction
- 1 A Career in Plebiscites Begins
- 2 The Plebiscites of the Post-War Settlement, 1920–1923
- 3 Locating Sarah Wambaugh’s Political Thought
- 4 Tacna-Arica and the Perfection of the Plebiscite, 1925–1933
- 5 ‘The Highest Point Yet Attained’
- 6 Low Point
- 7 An Era Ends
- Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
This chapter examines the foundations of Sarah Wambaugh’s political thought and attempts to reconstruct her world view. Wambaugh’s avid support for the League of Nations was premised on her understanding of it as a new scientific way of conducting international politics. Key to her faith in political science, and later forming a key part of her prescriptions for the plebiscite, was her belief in the importance of neutrality, a concept of international law then in flux. Alongside neutrality, the concept of public opinion was also in flux, with debates as to its relationship to democracy and expertise. The chapter points to the way in which public opinion and perceptions were also integral to her later normative prescriptions for the plebiscite, and ends with an examination of Wambaugh’s own public relations campaign for American entry to into the League of Nations.
Information
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Sarah Wambaugh and the PlebisciteThe Turbulent History of a Democratic Alternative to War, pp. 91 - 125Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
Accessibility standard: WCAG 2.2 AAA
Why this information is here
This section outlines the accessibility features of this content - including support for screen readers, full keyboard navigation and high-contrast display options. This may not be relevant for you.Accessibility Information
The HTML of this chapter
complies with version 2.2 of the
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
(WCAG), offering more comprehensive accessibility measures for a broad range
of users and attains the highest
(AAA)
level of WCAG compliance, optimising the user experience by meeting the most extensive
accessibility guidelines.
Content Navigation
Table of contents navigation
Allows you to navigate directly to chapters, sections, or non‐text items through a linked table of contents, reducing the need for extensive scrolling.
Allows you to navigate directly to chapters, sections, or non‐text items through a linked table of contents, reducing the need for extensive scrolling.
Index navigation
Provides an interactive index, letting you go straight to where a term or subject appears in the text without manual searching.
Provides an interactive index, letting you go straight to where a term or subject appears in the text without manual searching.
Reading Order & Textual Equivalents
Single logical reading order
You will encounter all content (including footnotes, captions, etc.) in a clear, sequential flow, making it easier to follow with assistive tools like screen readers.
You will encounter all content (including footnotes, captions, etc.) in a clear, sequential flow, making it easier to follow with assistive tools like screen readers.
Short alternative textual descriptions
You get concise descriptions (for images, charts, or media clips), ensuring you do not miss crucial information when visual or audio elements are not accessible.
You get concise descriptions (for images, charts, or media clips), ensuring you do not miss crucial information when visual or audio elements are not accessible.
Full alternative textual descriptions
You get more than just short alt text: you have comprehensive text equivalents, transcripts, captions, or audio descriptions for substantial non‐text content, which is especially helpful for complex visuals or multimedia.
You get more than just short alt text: you have comprehensive text equivalents, transcripts, captions, or audio descriptions for substantial non‐text content, which is especially helpful for complex visuals or multimedia.
Visualised data also available as non-graphical data
You can access graphs or charts in a text or tabular format, so you are not excluded if you cannot process visual displays.
You can access graphs or charts in a text or tabular format, so you are not excluded if you cannot process visual displays.
Visual Accessibility
Use of colour is not sole means of conveying information
You will still understand key ideas or prompts without relying solely on colour, which is especially helpful if you have colour vision deficiencies.
You will still understand key ideas or prompts without relying solely on colour, which is especially helpful if you have colour vision deficiencies.
Use of high contrast between text and background colour
You benefit from high‐contrast text, which improves legibility if you have low vision or if you are reading in less‐than‐ideal lighting conditions.
You benefit from high‐contrast text, which improves legibility if you have low vision or if you are reading in less‐than‐ideal lighting conditions.