What Do We Know about War?

This invaluable text assesses the current research and theory on the causes of both war and peace. In a completely new set of chapters, leading international relations scholars explore the role of territorial disputes, power, alliances, arms races, rivalry, and nuclear weapons in bringing about war; the outcomes and consequences of war; and the factors that promote peace, including democracy, norms, capitalist economies, and stable borders. The third edition includes a new section on emerging trends in research on cyber war, the environment and climate change, leaders, war financing, and trends in interstate conflict. Reviewing fifty years of scientific research, the contributors provide an accessible and up-to-date overview of current knowledge and an agenda for future research.

Sara McLaughlin Mitchell is the F. Wendell Miller Professor of Political Science at the University of Iowa. She is the author of five books and more than fifty journal articles and book chapters. Her areas of expertise include international conflict, political methodology, and gender issues in academia. Professor Mitchell is cofounder of the Journeys in World Politics workshop, a mentoring workshop for junior IR women. She received the ISA Quincy Wright Distinguished Scholar Award (2015), a distinguished alumni award from Iowa State University, and she served as president of the Peace Science Society.

John A. Vasquez is the Thomas B. Mackie Scholar in International Relations at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. His books include The War Puzzle, The Power of Power Politics, The Steps to War (with Paul Senese), Contagion and War: Lessons from the First World War, and What Do We Know About War? (first and second editions). He received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the APSA Conflict Processes Section, and he has served as president of the Peace Science Society and the International Studies Association.