This illuminating work is a masterful study that delves into the causes of war using a wholly new approach. Utilizing the assumptions of rational behavior, de Mesquita focuses on the perspective of decision making as an attempt to understand the phenomenon of war....The book is highly stimulating...provocative, and certainly quite timely...a superb example of methodological exposition....Likely to appeal to the serious scholar of social science in general and of international relations in particular.-Ghulam M. Haniff, The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science A major work. It is certain to inspire theoretical elaboration and refinement, additional testing of its propositions, and fruitful application. Moreover, it is destined to be considered a classic contribution to the scientific understanding of interstate conflict and war.-Frank C. Zagare, American Political Science Review Rigorous and insightful analysis....An important contribution to our theories of choice, relevant to all students of politics. The study is an exemplar in its development of systematic mini-theory accompanied by empirical tests of its propositions, completely worthy of emulation by those of us who profess to be political scientists, young and old.-Harold Guetzkow, The Review of Politics A tour de force of theory, testing, and illustration.-Bruce M. Russett

Offers a general theory of war and international conflict, looks at specific modern military confrontations, and dispels some common misconceptions about war.

The purpose in this book is to present a general theory of war and foreign conflict initiation and escalation, including both the logic of the theory and a broadly based analytic test of the theory's most critical deductions.