This book offers a fresh perspective on timeless questions concerning anarchy and order, power and principle, and public and private morality, by taking a novel approach to the study of the onset of war. Rather than looking at the distribution of wealth, military might, or other material capabilities to explain the onset of war, this book focuses instead on how international norms affect the use of military force. Critical of the realist assumption that international legal norms are unable to curb hostilities without a powerful central authority to enforce their injunctions, it contends that the normative context within which national leaders act sets the tone for world politics by communicating commonly accepted understandings about the limits of permissible action. Using quantitative analyses of the relationships between war-initiation norms and various types of armed conflict, the author calls into question realist beliefs regarding international norms, demonstrating that restrictive normative orders reduce the likelihood of war.

This book offers a fresh perspective on timeless questions concerning anarchy and order, power and principle, and public and private morality, by taking a novel approach to the study of the onset of war. Rather than looking at the distribution of wealth, military might, or other material capabilities to explain the onset of war, this book focuses instead on how international norms affect the use of military force. Critical of the realist assumption that international legal norms are unable to curb hostilities without a powerful central authority to enforce their injunctions, it contends that the normative context within which national leaders act sets the tone for world politics by communicating commonly accepted understandings about the limits of permissible action. Using quantitative analyses of the relationships between war-initiation norms and various types of armed conflict, the author calls into question realist beliefs regarding international norms, demonstrating that restrictive normative orders reduce the likelihood of war.

THE GLOBAL FUTURE: A BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO WORLD POLITICS, International Edition is a concise overview of the study of world politics, based on the framework of Charles Kegley's best-selling WORLD POLITICS: TREND AND TRANSFORMATION. Written in a way that speaks to students with a wide range of backgrounds and abilities, THE GLOBAL FUTURE provides concepts and analytical tools to help readers understand contemporary events and emerging global trends. Every chapter contains thought-provoking case studies, box inserts with rival views on current controversies, and a marginal glossary, as well as vivid graphs, maps, and photographs. Centering on the latest international developments, THE GLOBAL FUTURE: A BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO WORLD POLITICS, International Edition encourages students to form their own opinions about the pressing security, economic, and environmental problems of the twenty-first century.