TY - JOUR

T1 - Declining willingness to fight for one’s country

T2 - The Individual-level Basis of the Long Peace

AU - Inglehart, Ronald

AU - Puranen, Bi

AU - Welzel, Christian Peter

PY - 2015/7/16

Y1 - 2015/7/16

N2 - The Democratic Peace thesis suggests that the absence of war between major powers since 1945 is caused by the spread of democracy. The Capitalist Peace thesis emphasizes trade and the rise of knowledge economies as the forces driving peace. Complementing these interpretations, we present empirical evidence of a cultural change that is making peace more desirable to the publics of most societies around the world. Analyzing public opinion data covering 90% of the world’s population over three decades, we demonstrate that improving existential conditions elevate the life opportunities of growing population segments and lead them to become increasingly tolerant of diversity and place growing emphasis on self-realization. In recognition of life’s rising opportunities, people’s valuation of life changes profoundly: readiness to sacrifice one’s life gives way to an increasing insistence on living it, and living it the way one chooses. Hence, pro-choice values rise at the same time as willingness to sacrifice lives in war dwindles. Historical learning based on the specific experiences of given societies has also changed their publics’ willingness to fight in wars. This transformation of worldviews places interstate peace on an increasingly solid mass basis.

AB - The Democratic Peace thesis suggests that the absence of war between major powers since 1945 is caused by the spread of democracy. The Capitalist Peace thesis emphasizes trade and the rise of knowledge economies as the forces driving peace. Complementing these interpretations, we present empirical evidence of a cultural change that is making peace more desirable to the publics of most societies around the world. Analyzing public opinion data covering 90% of the world’s population over three decades, we demonstrate that improving existential conditions elevate the life opportunities of growing population segments and lead them to become increasingly tolerant of diversity and place growing emphasis on self-realization. In recognition of life’s rising opportunities, people’s valuation of life changes profoundly: readiness to sacrifice one’s life gives way to an increasing insistence on living it, and living it the way one chooses. Hence, pro-choice values rise at the same time as willingness to sacrifice lives in war dwindles. Historical learning based on the specific experiences of given societies has also changed their publics’ willingness to fight in wars. This transformation of worldviews places interstate peace on an increasingly solid mass basis.

KW - Politics

KW - Gender und Diversity

KW - Politische Kulturforschung

KW - democratic peace

KW - Emancipative values

KW - freedom ladder

KW - historical learning

KW - long peace

KW - democratic peace

KW - emancipative values

KW - freedom ladder

KW - historical learning

KW - life opportunities

KW - long peace

KW - modernization

KW - war

KW - willingness to fight

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84938298595&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1177/0022343314565756

DO - 10.1177/0022343314565756

M3 - Journal articles

VL - 52

SP - 418

EP - 434

JO - Journal of Peace Research

JF - Journal of Peace Research

SN - 0022-3433

IS - 4

ER -