Journal of Cold War Studies 

About: Journal of Cold War Studies is an academic journal published by The MIT Press. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Politics & Communism. It has an ISSN identifier of 1520-3972. Over the lifetime, 903 publications have been published receiving 6300 citations. The journal is also known as: Cold war studies.

Staging growth : modernization, development, and the global Cold War

Abstract: A timely reassessment of modernization theory and its international impact; Beginning in the 1950s, the theory of modernization emerged as the dominant paradigm of economic, social, and political develoment within the American foreign policy establishment. Purporting to explain the stages through which all nations pass on the road to industrial modernity, it provided a rationale for a broad range of cultural and political projects aimed at fostering Third World growth while simultaneously combating communism. But modernization theory was more than simply an expression of Cold War ideology. As the essays in this volume show, the ideal of modernization proliferated throughout the postcolonial world and across ideological lines in places as diverse as East Asia, Southern Africa, and South Asia. Indeed, it was embraced by all who shared the American enthusiasm for the increased production and higher standards of living promised by industrialization - enemies and allies alike. Situating modernization theory historically, Staging Growth avoids conventional chronologies and categories of analysis, particularly the traditional focus on conflicts between major powers. The contributors employ a variety of approaches - from economic and intellectual history to cultural criticism and biography - to shed fresh light on the global forces that shaped the Cold War and its legacies. Most of the pieces are comparative, exploring how different countries and cultures have grappled with the implications of modern development. At the same time, all of the essays address similar fundamental questions. Is modernization the same thing as Westernization? Is the idea of modernization universally valid? Do countries follow similar trajectories as they undertake development? Does modernization bring about globalization? In addition to the editors and Akira Iriye, contributors include Michael Adas, Laura Belmonte, Gregg Andrew Brazinsky, Christina Klein, J. Victor Koschmann, and Michael R. Mahoney.

Forging Democracy: The History of the Left in Europe (review)

Abstract: tion of the Cold War, but they are almost certainly side avenues, not the grand boulevards of Cold War history. To make his argument, he introduces a certain amount of historical distortion. It is interesting that although Irwin Wall’s authoritative studies on postwar Franco-American relations were all cited in the bibliography, they were largely ignored in the argument. Brogi’s book is certainly matter for thought about the Cold War, but more careful thought.

Was the Cold War a Security Dilemma

Abstract: Under the security dilemma, tensions and conflicts can arise between states even when they do not intend them. Some analysts have argued that the Cold War was a classic example of a security dilemma. This article disputes that notion. Although the Cold War contained elements of a deep security dilemma, it was not purely a case in which tensions and arms increased as each side defensively reacted to the other. The root of the conflict was a clash of social systems and of ideological preferences for ordering the world. Mutual security in those circumstances was largely unachievable. A true end to the Cold War was impossible until fundamental changes occurred in Soviet foreign policy.

The Collapse of East European Communism and the Repercussions within the Soviet Union (Part 2)

Abstract: This is the second part of a three-part article that looks at the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe and the repercussions of those events in the Soviet Union. The first part focused on the “direct” spillover from Eastern Europe into the Soviet Union, whereas this segment examines the “indirect” spillover, which took four forms:(1) the discrediting of Marxist-Leninist ideology, (2) the heightened sense of the Soviet regime's own vulnerability, (3) the diminished potential for the use of force in the USSR to curb internal unrest, and (4) the “demonstration effect” and “contagiousness” of regime change and democratization in Eastern Europe. These factors together made it considerably more difficult for Gorbachev to prevent the Soviet Union from unraveling. The final part of the article will be published in the next issue of the journal.

Ideas and Explanation: Advancing the Theoretical Agenda

Abstract: This article responds to key methodological and theoretical challenges posed by the literature on the role of ideas in international relations, especially the literature on ideas and the end of the Cold War. The article develops a theoretical framework that guides the analysis of the empirical articles that follow. It identifies explanatory strategies for the role of ideas and seeks to clarify key methodological issues in the study of ideas. The article defines terms, identifies several different relationships between ideational and material factors, and lays out a series of “tests” for evaluating the causal effect of various kinds of ideas and ideational mechanisms. It then seeks to clarify two primary issues: whether it is possible to draw a clearer line between the material and the ideational; and what is meant by “constitutive effects” and “constitutive explanation.” The article defends the notion of constitutive explanation and shows how both causal analysis and constitutive analysis are valid explan...