Books
Following the Leader: International Order, Alliance Strategies, and Emulation
Following the Leader argues that most countries ignore their individual security interests in military pacts, instead converging on a single, dominant alliance strategy. The book introduces a new social theory of strategic diffusion and emulation, using case studies and advanced statistical analysis of alliances from 1815-2003. In the wake of each major war that shatters the international system, a new hegemon has created a core military partnership to target its greatest enemy. Secondary and peripheral countries rush to emulate this alliance, illustrating their credibility and prestige by mimicking the dominant form.
Be it the NATO model that seems so commonsense today, or the realpolitik that reigned in the Europe of the late 19th century, a lone alliance strategy has defined broad swaths of diplomatic history. It is not states’ own security interests driving this phenomenon, Kuo shows, but their jockeying for status in a world periodically re-made by great powers.
Praise for Following the Leader
"Following the Leader is an exceptionally timely contribution to the scholarship on international order, and one with important policy observations for today. This is top notch scholarship: the research and analysis are deep and incisive, and conveyed with clear, crisp prose."
—Timothy Andrews Sayle, University of Toronto, author of Enduring Alliance: A History of NATO and the Postwar Global Order
"In Following the Leader, Raymond Kuo implodes the conventional wisdom that states design their alliances to meet their strategic needs. Drawing from cutting-edge network and status theories, Kuo builds a compelling argument about states' social position and alliance strategies, which he tests in cases that span geographical regions and centuries."
—Stacie E. Goddard, Wellesley College
"In this groundbreaking book, Raymond Kuo probes the deep logic and diverse patterns of alliance cooperation. Theoretically innovative, methodologically sophisticated, and rich in historical case studies, Following the Leader illuminates the complex and shifting ways in which states seek security and build alliances."
—G. John Ikenberry, Princeton University
Following the Leader: International Order, Alliance Strategies, and Emulation
- Published 2021, Stanford University Press. Contents | Excerpt
- Podcast interview on "Following the Leader" with Lamis Abdelaaty for the New Books Podcast.
- 6+1 Q&A with Duck of Minerva.
- Page 99 Test.
- H-Diplo Review by Evan Braden Montgomery.
Following the Leader argues that most countries ignore their individual security interests in military pacts, instead converging on a single, dominant alliance strategy. The book introduces a new social theory of strategic diffusion and emulation, using case studies and advanced statistical analysis of alliances from 1815-2003. In the wake of each major war that shatters the international system, a new hegemon has created a core military partnership to target its greatest enemy. Secondary and peripheral countries rush to emulate this alliance, illustrating their credibility and prestige by mimicking the dominant form.
Be it the NATO model that seems so commonsense today, or the realpolitik that reigned in the Europe of the late 19th century, a lone alliance strategy has defined broad swaths of diplomatic history. It is not states’ own security interests driving this phenomenon, Kuo shows, but their jockeying for status in a world periodically re-made by great powers.
Praise for Following the Leader
"Following the Leader is an exceptionally timely contribution to the scholarship on international order, and one with important policy observations for today. This is top notch scholarship: the research and analysis are deep and incisive, and conveyed with clear, crisp prose."
—Timothy Andrews Sayle, University of Toronto, author of Enduring Alliance: A History of NATO and the Postwar Global Order
"In Following the Leader, Raymond Kuo implodes the conventional wisdom that states design their alliances to meet their strategic needs. Drawing from cutting-edge network and status theories, Kuo builds a compelling argument about states' social position and alliance strategies, which he tests in cases that span geographical regions and centuries."
—Stacie E. Goddard, Wellesley College
"In this groundbreaking book, Raymond Kuo probes the deep logic and diverse patterns of alliance cooperation. Theoretically innovative, methodologically sophisticated, and rich in historical case studies, Following the Leader illuminates the complex and shifting ways in which states seek security and build alliances."
—G. John Ikenberry, Princeton University
Contests of Initiative: Confronting China’s Gray Zone Strategy
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- Published 2021, Westphalia Press and the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University.
- Funding by the External Research Associates Program from the U.S. Army War College Strategic Studies Institute.
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