New Books in Political Science Madison Schramm, "Why Democracies Fight Dictators" (Oxford UP, 2025)
Oct 3, 2025
Madison Schramm, an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto, delves into the intriguing dynamics of why democracies often engage militarily with personalist dictators. She argues that cognitive biases and social narratives lead democratic leaders to perceive these dictators as significant threats, driving them towards aggressive actions. Schramm also explores the historical evolution of anti-dictator identity and how media personalization of leaders influences perceptions of threat. This insightful discussion sheds light on the complexities of international relations.
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Democracies Target Personalist Regimes
- Liberal democracies disproportionately initiate conflicts with personalist regimes because of cognitive biases and social identity.
- These biases and identity produce anger, increasing risk acceptance and aggressive behavior.
How Cognitive Biases Amplify Threats
- Attribution bias and vividness make individual dictators psychologically salient to democratic elites.
- That salience, coupled with liberal identity, amplifies threat perception and anger toward those leaders.
Anger Drives Escalatory Choices
- Anger arises from attributing blame to personalized opponents and norm violations against an out-group.
- Anger drives risk acceptance and preference for aggressive action, fueling escalation.
