Volume 118 - Number 3 - Fall 2003

Understanding the Bush Doctrine
Robert Jervis argues that the Bush doctrine presents a highly ambitious conception of U.S. foreign policy. Based on the premise that this is a period of great threat and great opportunity, the doctrine calls for the assertion and expansion of American power in service of hegemony. He concludes that this assertion and expansion is not likely to succeed.

Volume 2 - Number 2 - June 1887

The Study of Administration
Woodrow Wilson

Volume 118 - Number 4 - Winter 2003-04

Misperceptions, the Media, and the Iraq War
STEVEN KULL, CLAY RAMSAY, and EVAN LEWIS examine the prevalence of misperceptions related to the Iraq war among the American public: that weapons of mass destruction and evidence of close links between Iraq and al Qaeda had been found and that world public opinion approved of the United States going to war with Iraq. Such misperceptions were powerful predictors of support for the war, and their prevalence varied dramatically according to respondents’ primary source of news.

Volume 99 - Number 2 - Summer 1984

Will More Countries Become Democratic?
Samuel P. Huntington analyzes the preconditions for, and the processes of, democratization to evaluate the prospects for the emergence of additional democratic regimes in the world. He does not find those prospects very bright.

Volume 104 - Number 2 - Summer 1989

Causal Stories and the Formation of Policy Agendas
Deborah A. Stone builds a theory of problem definition to explain how social conditions are transformed into problems on a community's policy agenda. She shows how causal stories are central to this process and examines political strategies for manipulating the stories.

Volume 120 - Number 2 - Summer 2005

What Political Institutions Does Large-Scale Democracy Require?
Robert A. Dahl examines the political institutions necessary for a democratic country. He argues that a large-scale democracy requires the following political institutions: elected officials; free, fair, and frequent elections; freedom of expression; alternative sources of information; associational autonomy; and inclusive citizenship.

Volume 113 - Number 1 - Spring 1998

The Internet and Political Control in Singapore
Garry Rodan investigates the political implications of the Internet in Singapore, where authorities have embarked on an ambitious attempt to restrain the liberalizing impact of the new technology. His findings contradict popular expectations of the Internet necessarily aiding the erosion of authoritarian rule.

Volume 126 - Number 1 - Spring 2011

The Republican Resurgence in 2010
Gary C. Jacobson analyzes the 2010 midterm election as a referendum on the Obama administration, driven fundamentally by the economy, but intensified by the deep animosity of the President's opponents, the Republicans' success in nationalizing the election, and the political failure of Obama's legislative successes.

Volume 124 - Number 2 - Summer 2009

Freedom Fighters and Zealots: Al Qaeda in Historical Perspective
Christopher J. Fettweis argues that too many post-September 11 analyses of terrorism seem to regard the phenomenon as brand new. Terrorism has existed throughout history, and its groups come in two forms: nationalist and ideological. This simple binary typology illuminates a number of important characteristics of terrorism, from group strategy and tactics to overall life expectancy. Perhaps most important, counter-terrorism measures that prove effective against groups in one category will often fail against those in the other.

Volume 126 - Number 2 - Summer 2011

The Drug War’s Impact on Executive Power, Judicial Reform, and Federalism in Mexico
Juan D. Lindau examines the impact of the drug war on critical aspects of Mexican democratization, namely the expansion in the scope of certain features of executive power, judicial reform, and the construction of substantive federalism. He concludes that the drug war has increased the power of the least-transparent, least-accountable institutions tied to the executive branch. It has also preserved practices that impinge on civil and human rights, while complicating judicial reform and the deepening of federalism.

Volume 117 - Number 4 - Winter 2002-03

Limits of American Power
Joseph S. Nye, Jr. discusses the paradox of the United States having unparalleled military power, yet being unable to impose its will unilaterally on either its allies or its antagonists. He explains clearly why America must adopt a more cooperative engagement with the rest of the world.

Volume 116 - Number 2 - Summer 2001

What Went Wrong? The Collapse of the Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process
Jerome Slater examines the collapse of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process in 2000 and argues provocatively that contrary to the prevailing view, it is Israel rather than the Palestinians that bears the primary responsibility, not only for the latest breakdown but for the entire course of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict since 1948.

Volume 120 - Number 3 - Fall 2005

Why the Bush Doctrine Cannot Be Sustained
Robert Jervis argues that despite some successes, the Bush Doctrine cannot be sustained because it has many internal contradictions, requires more sustained domestic support than is possible, makes excessive demands on intelligence, places too much faith in democracy, and is overly ambitious. It will, however, be difficult to construct a replacement foreign policy.

Volume 116 - Number 4 - Winter 2001-02

Ending Welfare As We Know It: A Reform Still in Progress
Demetrios James Caraley summarizes the political and social dynamics that brought about the repeal of Aid to Families of Dependent Children (AFDC) and analyzes the effects of the new Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program over its first four years. He considers possibilities for further changes in cash assistance for poor families during the program’s necessary reauthorization in 2002.

Volume 90 - Number 1 - Spring 1975

Roosevelt, Truman, and the Atomic Bomb, 1941-1945: A Reinterpretation
Barton J. Bernstein

Volume 94 - Number 4 - Winter 1979-80

Backward Mapping: Implementation Research and Policy Decisions
Richard F. Elmore describes an approach to designing policy implementation that takes as its point of departure the ultimate outcome of the policy and then "maps backward" to establish what intervening steps are necessary to bring it about. He argues that "backward mapping" is a superior strategy to "forward mapping," which begins planing implementation from the top down.

Volume 127 - Number 1 - Spring 2012

Accomplished and Embattled: Understanding Obama's Presidency
Theda Skocpol and Lawrence R. Jacobs assess the policy accomplishments and shortfalls of President Barack Obama since 2009. They highlight the obstacles with which Obama and his political allies have had to contend and challenge commentators who claim that Obama has accomplished little. They explain why conservative and Republican opposition to Obamaʼs presidency has been fierce and unremitting.

Volume 111 - Number 2 - Summer 1996

Dismantling the Federal Safety Net: Fictions Versus Realities
Demetrios Caraley shows that arguments for dismantling the federal social safety net and devolving parts of it to the states have been based on six major claims about reality, but that five of those claims are fictional and the sixth only partially true. Nevertheless, he concludes that the forces for dismantling the safety net and for cutting the federal government's revenues to make it constantly broke have formidable staying power and may eventually succeed in weakening the federal government as an effective instrument of governance.

Volume 127 - Number 4 - Winter 2012-2013

The Paradox of Islam’s Future
RAYMOND W. BAKER argues that although violent extremism flows from radical Islamic movements, the Islamic mainstream has effectively adapted to the globalized world and will shape the future of Islam in ways open to principled accommodation with the West. He claims that mainstream assertiveness, unencumbered by Western interference, provides the most effective way to counter destructive radicalism. 

Volume 122 - Number 4 - Winter 2007-08

‘‘The Civilization of Clashes’’: Misapplying the Democratic Peace in the Middle East
Piki Ish-Shalom traces the process by which leading neoconservatives endorsed the structural theories of democratic peace, generating a grand strategy of forceful democracy promotion. He analyses the reasons for this endorsement and its impact on American foreign policy. He then goes on to explore some internal incoherencies in this neoconservative grand strategy.