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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Assessing The Threat Of Social Media To National Security: Information Operations In The 21st Century, Brendan M. Cullen Oct 2023

Assessing The Threat Of Social Media To National Security: Information Operations In The 21st Century, Brendan M. Cullen

Senior Theses

The ubiquity of social media has enabled an unprecedented amount of personal data to be accessible to various entities. Social media platforms leverage this data to optimize algorithmic recommendation systems, persuade users to engage, and promote monetization. The social media ecosystem’s business model demands continuous engagement and the relentless collection of user data to grow and scale. Not only is social media massively popular around the world, but it has integrated heavily into users’ daily lives. This integration is driven by social platforms’ deliberate architectures and affordances. The intentionality of social media can be exploited by state and non-state actors …


Comparing The Evolution, Form, And Function Of Russian And Chinese Information Operations, Briana Berger Slowinski, Marissa J. Skulsky May 2023

Comparing The Evolution, Form, And Function Of Russian And Chinese Information Operations, Briana Berger Slowinski, Marissa J. Skulsky

Honors Theses

Russia and China are critical actors who deploy far-reaching and impactful information operations in pursuit of their national interests. Their use of information operations is multifaceted and should be subject to study due to how influential these operations are and how significant the effects can be. In pursuit of this knowledge, the aim of this study was to conduct an in-depth analysis of these two countries' information operations and how their operations differ. The first area analyzed was the evolution of these countries' modern day information operations, primarily looking for the factors and historical context which influenced the development of …


Thawing Interests: The Arctic In U.S. Grand Strategy, Benjamin S. Murray Jan 2023

Thawing Interests: The Arctic In U.S. Grand Strategy, Benjamin S. Murray

MSU Graduate Theses

The thawing Arctic is subject to increasing activity, attention, and a renewal of interests in the region from around the globe. National interests have compelled strategic planning in the Arctic region and are connected to global geopolitics. A concept of grand strategy is distilled from theories of past authors, understood within the modern context. That concept includes a terminological framework consisting of interests and threats to inform an ends, ways, and means design of strategy, composed of all instruments of state power, blending policy with strategy, and across the peace-war continuum. Then fundamental precepts of existing U.S. grand strategy are …


5g Technology, U.S. - China Race, And The Competition For Dominance, Rhodes M. Walker May 2021

5g Technology, U.S. - China Race, And The Competition For Dominance, Rhodes M. Walker

Honors Theses

For much of the 21st century, the United States and China have been competing to determine which world superpower will have the upper-hand for decades to come.The creation of 5G networks has raised new questions which are imperative to understanding the outlook for the competition between the United States and China for global dominance. This thesis sought to answer the question: Why would implementing the first 5G networks be the key to global dominance for the next decade or longer? In addressing this question, this thesis discusses the current state of 5G networks in China, the U.S., and Europe …


The Strategic Impact Of China's Artificial Islands In The South China Sea And Their Influence On U.S. And China Relations, Steven Roy Ma Apr 2021

The Strategic Impact Of China's Artificial Islands In The South China Sea And Their Influence On U.S. And China Relations, Steven Roy Ma

All Student Scholarship

This is an integrative literature review of various perspectives of different authors of previous scholarly articles discussing the impact of China’s artificial Islands in the South China Sea and how it affects U.S. China relations in the region. This research covers a range of parameters surrounding how the artificial islands were made and how they affect the overall security of naval operations and will also discuss international waterway rights within the South China Sea, one of the World’s biggest trading routes. A review of current events in the region is discussed highlighting the potential powder keg that could explode and …


Trumping Norms: Whither The International Liberal Order?, Maureen Jones Sep 2017

Trumping Norms: Whither The International Liberal Order?, Maureen Jones

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This paper’s main objective is to develop potential theories on the future of American foreign policy within the Trump Administration. The paper will begin by evaluating the norm of statehood and will discuss the contributions of John Meyer to the statehood discourse. Through analysis of Meyer’s work, this paper will develop a standardized structure of statehood within the global order. Furthermore, the paper will analyze the Westphalian international order and discuss the viability of this system leading up to 2017. The Westphalian international system has been the primary system for which nation-states aim to gain acceptance and its norms provide …


International Law And The Use Of Lawfare: An Argument For The U.S. To Adopt A Lawfare Doctrine, Trevor Michael Alfred Logan May 2017

International Law And The Use Of Lawfare: An Argument For The U.S. To Adopt A Lawfare Doctrine, Trevor Michael Alfred Logan

MSU Graduate Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to develop a comprehensive operational definition of lawfare, analyze historical case studies of states currently implementing lawfare strategies, and to make an argument for why the U.S. should adopt a lawfare doctrine. Chapter 1 will focus on defining the concept of lawfare and drafting an operational definition of lawfare. Chapter 2 focuses on the evolution of the lawfare doctrine established by the People's Republic of China (PRC), identifies the current lawfare operations conducted by the PRC in the fields of maritime, airspace, cyberspace, and outer space, and analyzing the implications of PRC lawfare operations …


Japan's Missile Defense, Norifumi Namatame Jan 2008

Japan's Missile Defense, Norifumi Namatame

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For some years, Japan has pursued its own missile defense system in cooperation with the United States. The Japanese government claims that the missile defense (JMD) program is purely defensive and will not pose a threat to other countries. JMD may seem justified by North Korea's development of ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons. However, neighboring states regarded it as a sign of military ambition and revival of Japan's prewar militarism. The development and deployment of JMD could have grave implications for regional and global security. This dissertation focuses on these implications, domestic and international political considerations and the future direction …


Pivotal Deterrence And United States Security Policy In The Taiwan Strait, Charles D. Pasquale Apr 2007

Pivotal Deterrence And United States Security Policy In The Taiwan Strait, Charles D. Pasquale

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation presents a model of pivotal deterrence—a version the author loosely terms holistic pivotal deterrence—based on the model originally presented in Crawford's Pivotal Deterrence: Third-Party Statecraft and the Pursuit of Peace, and applies it to a regional case study of U.S. security policy in the Taiwan Strait; placing particular emphasis on the crisis junctures of 1954-55, 1958, 1962, and 1995-96. By contrasting this with other models of deterrence, it provides an alternative perspective with which to consider the empirical data on the United States-China-Taiwan relationship and developments in the Strait. By viewing the data through this lens, this …