Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This paper looks at the nature of stability operations, the problems caused by different interpretations of the concept, the relationship between them and the idea of strategic endstates and finally it considers the specific issues related to stability operations in Afghanistan.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Studies have examined the effects of natural gas and oil on political corruption. I analyze the 57 most significant oil and natural gas producing states. I find that oil and natural gas production is associated with rent seeking behavior, and fu

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This paper examines the effect of the diffusion of economic capabilities to international stability. By analyzing the implications of recent economic development in East Asian states, the paper demonstrates that the improvement of the economic capabilities of states serves international stability inasmuch as it aids the reduction of instability-prone vulnerabilities across states. Taking into account economic diversification in trade, finance, production and consumption, as well as improvements in logistics infrastructure and energy generation, the analysis indicates that the improvement of economic capabilities in several states in the region increases the options available for state and non-state actors, making it easier for them to diversify customers and suppliers and accordingly making them less vulnerable to eventual disruptions of economic relations. This finding implicates that in the economic realm it is the capability to offer and take advantage of economic opportunities rather than the nature of economic interactions that matter for international stability, wherein economic interdependence and regional integration are stability-conducive only to the extent that they function to that end.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: My research explores how income inequality affects investor perceptions of the creditworthiness of a country. I specifically focus on the government bond markets of the developing world. I conduct an analysis of cross-national differences in income level as well as within-country changes in income distribution over time to answer two parallel questions. First, does a country with higher income inequality have greater political risk and instability, thus leading to lower country credit ratings? Second, does the speed with which inequality rises or falls affect political risk and stability, thus affecting credit ratings? I explore two potential explanations of why markets may react sharply to income inequality. One is that income inequality increases political instability and risk, thus discouraging investment. The other is that markets take income inequality as a lead indicator of political risk and instability, reacting to it even when these political dangers are negligible. I conduct a simultaneous equation model to analyze the relationship between income inequality and credit ratings.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Rural America and its electorate are the subject of highly contradictory characterizations and judgments in academic literature across the social sciences. Some accounts suggest that rural locales are sterling examples of civic vitality, to be held up as models for the rest of the country on how to produce a truly enlightened political community, characterized by low crime, less hostility, better health, and civic and economic equality. A rather different view is expressed by those who are convinced that rural America is racist, homophobic, hostile to civil liberties, anti-government and generally at war with liberal political values. Using panel data from a study of rural adolescents from the Fall of 2001 and Spring of 2002, we examine the sources of conservative political socialization in the rural population. We find that many of the same features of rural life that are subject to widespread admiration: agrarianism, rootedness, entrepreneurship and involvement in community, are some of the same characteristics that are the foundation for conservative opinions on civil liberties, morality and the response to terrorism after 9-11. It is certainly possible to find citizens with liberal political values among the rural population, but many of the core features of rural life, including its rootedness, appear to conspire in favor of the values of the past.