3 Items

States in Mind: Evolution, Coalitional Psychology, and International Politics

AP Photo/Dima Gavrysh

Journal Article - Quarterly Journal: International Security

States in Mind: Evolution, Coalitional Psychology, and International Politics

    Authors:
  • Anthony C. Lopez
  • Rose McDermott
  • Michael Bang Peterson
| Fall 2011

Viewing coalitions through the lens of evolutionary psychology leads to several hypotheses that can help generate important predictions about group behavior. For example, studies show that humans represent coalitions as a special category of relatively unreliable individual, which has implications for theories on conflict and cooperation among states.  The study of psychological mechanisms also indicates that factors such as a man’s strength, whether or not a woman has children, and the size of a coalition can help predict whether or not an individual will support an aggressive foreign policy.

Women supporters of a Pakistani Islamic alliance leave after a protest rally in front of Parliament House against the Women's Protection Bill presented by government in the National Assembly, Sept. 11, 2006 in Islamabad, Pakistan.

AP Photo

Journal Article - Quarterly Journal: International Security

The Heart of the Matter: The Security of Women and the Security of States

    Authors:
  • Valerie M. Hudson
  • Mary Caprioli
  • Bonnie Ballif-Spanvill
  • Rose McDermott
  • Chad F. Emmett
| Winter 2008/09

A multidisciplinary theoretical and empirical investigation of the “women and peace” thesis not only proves that the physical security and well being of women is directly linked to the security of the state, but it explains more of the variance in state peacefulness than do conventional measures such as level of democracy, level of wealth, and preponderance of Islamic civilization. Scholars and policymakers would therefore do best to analyze the security of women when considering the linkage between state security and peacefulness.