There is a widespread belief, among both political scientists and
government policymakers, that "democracies don't fight each other." Here
Joanne Gowa challenges that belief. In a thorough, systematic critique,
she shows that, while democracies were less likely than other states to
engage each other in armed conflicts between 1945 and 1980, they were
just as likely to do so as were other states before 1914. Thus, no
reason exists to believe that a democratic peace will survive the end of
the Cold War. Since U.S. foreign policy is currently directed toward
promoting democracy abroad, Gowa's findings are especially timely and
worrisome.
Those who assert that a democratic peace exists typically examine the
1815-1980 period as a whole. In doing so, they conflate two very
different historical periods: the pre-World War I and post-World War II
years. Examining these periods separately, Gowa shows that a democratic
peace prevailed only during the later period. Given the collapse of the
Cold War world, her research calls into question both the conclusions of
previous researchers and the wisdom of present U.S. foreign policy
initiatives.
By re-examining the arguments and data that have been used to support
beliefs about a democratic peace, Joanne Gowa has produced a
thought-provoking book that is sure to be controversial.
