International Relations Commons^™

Factors That Shape U.S. Public Opinion On Foreign Policy, Julianne O'Connor

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Measuring public opinion is an undertaking requiring precise methods and a clear vision, and even then results can be inconclusive. Yet, understanding how and why a democratic public thinks the way it does, and to what extent those thoughts influence policymakers, is essential to a democracy. This paper will use data from the American National Election Survey to discuss the relationship between level of support for the war on terror and level of perceived effectiveness. Values, political sophistication, knowledge, and self-efficacy can each be used to predict the level of support an individual has for the war on terror, and …

Iranian Nuclear Proliferation And Sanctions, Bailey Nicole Burlingame

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

This project will involve the current problem of nuclear development in the nation of Iran. The question involved in the election studies was, “Should we try to stop Iranian Nuclear Development by increasing sanctions, yes or no?” According to the US Department of State website, they are attempting to increase these sanctions against individuals or cooperations who can be proven to have provided aid, information, or mechanical aspects to assist the goal of Iranian nuclear proliferation. The website provides identifying information for the individuals involved. The answer to this question I believe will be determined the amount of news information …

China-Based Industrial Espionage, Joel Savary

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

On Oct 8, 2014 China has surpassed the United States as the world’s largest economy in terms of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP)” (IMF). My paper explores one of the instances of unlawful business practices that have contributed to China’s new world position. China based espionage undercuts American businesses and U.S. foreign policy directly, causing catastrophic economic implications for America, its businesses, and its allies. The U.S. government is grappling with the means and methods China uses to disseminate information stolen from U.S. businesses to support China based industries. Due to the lack of transparency in China, it has been difficult …

Abm (Anti-Ballistic Missile) Treaty, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Provides an historic overview of the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty which existed between the United States and the Soviet Union/Russian Federation between 1972-2001.

Atomic Weapons Program, Soviet, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Provides a history of the Soviet Union and Russian Federation's nuclear weapons program. It emphasizes the role of espionage in acquiring this capability, personalities such as Igor Kurchatov and Andrei Sakharov, this arsenal's multifaceted capabilities, arms control treaties with the U.S., the Nunn-Lugar Agreement, the environmental damage caused by this program, and the continuing role of nuclear weapons in Russian national security.

Army, Russian (1991-), Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Provides a history of the Russian Army from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 until the "annexation" of Crimea in 2014. Places emphasis on this force's strengths and weaknesses, military operations during this period, and emerging security challenges.

Enhancing Indonesian Citizenry Through The Liberal Arts In Higher Education, Judith Puncochar

Other Presentations

Indonesian democracy needs an informed, educated citizenry with skills of perspective taking, debate, and evidence-based reasoning. A rigorous study of the Liberal Arts holds promise for honing a strong Indonesian democracy and a well-educated citizenry. Students who study the Liberal Arts are more likely to develop skills of civic engagement, moral and ethical reasoning, critical thinking, problem solving, and lifelong learning. Educators who learn how to structure and encourage academic controversy as part of the expected university Liberal Arts classroom experience are more likely to deliver opportunities for students to practice perspective taking, deal with difficult ethical conflicts, and hone …

A Preventive Approach To Post-Election Conflicts In Contemporary Africa, Edoh Agbehonou

Dissertations, Theses and Capstone Projects

In this dissertation the author hypothesizes that (H1): In Africa, countries that use majoritarian electoral systems are more likely to experience post-election conflicts than are countries that use proportional electoral systems, (H2): In Africa, countries that use majoritarian electoral systems are more likely to experience post-election conflicts than are countries that use mixed electoral systems, and (H3): In Africa, countries that use mixed electoral systems are more likely to experience post-election conflicts than are countries that use proportional electoral systems.

These hypotheses are tested by using both primary qualitative and secondary quantitative data analyses in order to answer the research …

Discovering A Gold Mine Of U.S. Government Information: Exploring The Hathitrust Catalog And Its Rich Veins, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

The Hathitrust Catalog provides researchers at member institutions with exponentially expanded access to historical U.S. Government information resources. This presentation describes how researchers can use this resource to conduct substantive research using government information resources on public policy issues such as Internal Revenue Service program problems, infectious diseases such as Ebola, and U.S. foreign relations with the former Soviet Union/Russian Federation.

Curbing Corporate Inversions: A Study Of National And International Efforts To Establish Corporate Tax Equity, Scott Novak

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In recent years, the number of U.S. companies trying to merge with a foreign company and thereby reincorporate themselves in countries with a lower corporate tax rate – a practice known as corporate inversion – has skyrocketed. The public outcry in 2014 against corporate inversions led the U.S. Treasury to release a series of new anti-inversion regulations, and more policy changes are in the process of being debated. At the same time as this national discussion on the harmful effects corporate inversions have on the U.S. tax base is progressing, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is in …

Environmental Protection And U.S. Foreign Policy & Decision-Making In Multilateral Development Banks, Maui Cheska L. Orozco

Honors College Theses

In recent decades, the promotion of policies that are environmentally friendly has become an important goal in U.S. foreign policy. One way that the United States has influence over protecting the environment is through the policies attached to projects funded by the multilateral development banks (MDBs). This gives the U.S. the ability to indirectly fund projects in developing countries. Using data provided by the United States Treasury, I examined U.S. voting decisions on projects from 2004 to 2011. These votes come from multiple development banks including the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB), Asian Development Bank (ADB), African Development …

After Polarity: World Political Systems, Polar Structural Transitions, And Nonpolarity, Nerses Kopalyan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The research project poses the question: what are the polar structurations of a system after unipolar transitions, and should a system transition into a nonpolar structure, how can this phenomenon be explained? In the study of polarity, two deficiencies are diagnosed that can potentially not only fill a serious gap, but also strengthen the theoretical, conceptual, and systemic tools utilized within the field. The first gap is the absence of any developed treatments of nonpolarity. Categorical taxonomy primarily revolves around uni-, bi-, tri-, or multi- polar structures. The field lacks a coherent conceptualization of nonpolarity, thus limiting the development of …

Global Climate Change: The Political Impact Of Global Warming On Developing Countries. The Case Studies Of Egypt And Oman, Eugene Thomas O'Neal

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The discourse of climate change has become important in the field of political science, as well as in the policy-making community. Climate change has become a political phenomenon that has and will greatly impact political stability regionally and globally. Using the ecological security theory as a framework, I explored the relationship between climate change and political stability in developing countries.

This study utilizes both qualitative and quantitative analyses to investigate the relationship between climate change and its effects on political volatility in developing countries. Using regression models, the author examined all non-OECD countries (140 countries) and their relationship to political …

The Effects Of Disbursement Of Foreign Aid To African Countries: A Case Study Of Ghana And Ivory Coast (Cote D'Ivoire), Jemilat Kike Thompson-Odoom

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The African continent has received aid from developed countries for decades. This thesis seeks to examine the impact of foreign aid to developing countries using Ghana and Ivory Coast (Cote D'Ivoire) as case studies. The study will contribute to the existing body of knowledge by examining the effectiveness of foreign aid. The study is based on data gathered primarily from development partners and donor countries. Indicators such as mortality rate, tuberculosis and access to sanitation facilities were used to test the failure or success of foreign aid in Ghana and Ivory Coast. Corruption perceptions from both countries were also analyzed …

A Strategic Alliance: An Exploration Of Israeli-Russian Relations, Megan Bailey

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper offers an exploration of various facets of the Israeli-Russian political relationship. The positive relationship between the two states seems unlikely considering each state’s history and strategic alliances, though Israel and Russia have endeavored towards a strong working relationship since the disintegration of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s. This paper first explores the history of the relationship between the former Soviet Union/Russia and Israel from the formation of Israel in 1948 to the present day. The historical arc is used in an attempt to explain the development of the current relationship. Next, this paper explains the current …

Hijacking The Syrian Revolution, Iman Khairat Nanoua

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The civil war in Syria (started in March 2011) marks one of the greatest tragedies in the Middle East during the twenty-first century, and a fear that its destructive consequences may affect the entire region. The Syrian crisis coincides with the democratic wave that shaped the Arab Spring. The thesis will discuss the decision-making system and the primary actors in the Syrian crisis within the framework of three distinct phases. Each phase contributed to the hijacking of the peaceful demonstrations that sought freedom in a democratic state and of the dramatic developments on the Syrian stage. The first stage of …

U.S. State Department International Law Internship And Employment Presentation And Discussion, Michael E. Thurston Famu Diplomat-In Residence

Environmental and Animal Law

The Center for International Law & Justice presents a discussion and presentation by Michael E. Thurston, a Senior Foreign Service officer, who is currently serving as Diplomat-in-Residence based at Florida A & M University in Tallahassee. Mr. Thurston has served in Afghanistan, Burma, various locations in Africa, Australia, Sri Lanka, and Mexico.

Notes From The Editor, Rory J. Conces

International Dialogue

Notes from International Dialogue's Editor-in-Chief, Rory J. Conces for Volume 4.

Žižek’S Hegel: Less Than Nothing: Hegel And The Shadow Of Dialectical Materialism, Gavin Hyman

International Dialogue

Followers of Slavoj Žižek’s work had long been awaiting his “big book on Hegel.” In interviews and other appearances, he made no secret of the fact that this work was in progress and, furthermore, that he considered it to be a labour of love, his magnum opus, and, in a sense, a culmination. Big the book certainly is—1010 pages of text to be precise. If such a book were to be written by any other author, readers would doubtless have waited considerably longer to receive it. But so prolific is this author that the waiting has been minimal, and many …

Martin Heidegger And The First World War, David A. White

International Dialogue

The subtitle of this work is “Being and Time as Funeral Oration.” This addition helps a reader to appreciate that the book functions on various levels: scholarly, to the extent that it offers a reading of selected details in Heidegger’s first major work; historical, in that Altman asserts with great vigor that Being and Time should be seen as a “funeral oration” for those who died in World War One; biographical, in that we read much about Heidegger’s personal actions in political and academic contexts leading to and during both WWI and a decade after the conclusion of the “Great …