Accounting for International War: The State of the Discipline

In studies of war it is important to observe that the processes leading to so frequent an event as conflict are not necessarily those that lead to so infrequent an event as war. Also, many models fail to recognize that a phenomenon irregularly distributed in time and space, such as war, cannot be explained on the basis of relatively invariant phenomena. Much research on periodicity in the occurrence of war has yielded little result, suggesting that the direction should now be to focus on such variables as diffusion and contagion. Structural variables, such as bipolarity, show contradictory results with some clear inter-century differences. Bipolarity, some results suggest, might have different effects on different social entities. A considerable number of studies analysing dyadic variables show a clear connection between equal capabilities among contending nations and escalation of conflict into war. Finally, research into national attributes often points to strength and geographical location as important variables. In general, the article concludes, there is room for modest optimism, as research into the question of war is no longer moving in non-cumulative circles. Systematic research is producing results and there is even a discernible tendency of convergence, in spite of a great diversity in theoretical orientations.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/69148/2/10.1177_002234338101800101.pd

Greek–Turkish relations and the Kantian democratic peace theory

Since the late 1990s, Greek–Turkish relations have undergone significant transformation. Both countries have reengineered their relations towards one another, and Turkey's candidature for EU membership has been an important factor in this transformation. The aim of this article is to examine the shift that has taken place in Greek–Turkish relations through the prism of the Kantian democratic peace theory. A conceptual discussion of the democratic peace theory is followed by a comparative analysis of the political, economic and institutional variables in the case of Greece and Turkey, and a presentation of the progress that has been achieved in many aspects of the bilateral relationship. Given the nature of the unresolved issues that continue to render Greek–Turkish relations vulnerable, the authors conclude that ‘issue management’ will most likely characterize bilateral relations in the short to medium term, hoping that the trends of economic and social exchange, cooperation and interdependence will continue on their current upward path

What Is the Point? : Teaching Graduate Students how to Construct Political Science Research Puzzles

One of the key challenges graduate students face is how to come up with a good rationale for their theses. Unfortunately, the methods literature in and beyond political science does not provide much advice on this important issue. While focusing on how to conduct research, this literature has largely neglected the question of why a study should be undertaken. The limited discussions that can be found suggest that new research is justified if it (1) fills a ‘gap’; (2) addresses an important real-world problem; and/or (3) is methodologically rigorous. This article discusses the limitations of these rationales. Then, it proposes that research puzzles are more useful for clarifying the nature and importance of a contribution to existing research, and hence a better way of justifying new research. The article also explores and clarifies what research puzzles are, and begins to devise a method for constructing them out of the vague ideas and questions that often trigger a research process.