Domestic Poliitcal Attitudes and International Behavior in Central America

政治哲学家康德主张，民主国家与非民主国家在国内有着根本的不同。因此，民主国家在国际舞台上的行为与其他类型的国家不同。他特别指出，民主政体在二元和系统层面上比其他政府形式更为和平。这一理论被称为“太平洋联盟”和“民主和平”。本项目探讨了康德理论的一个组成部分，即民主国家公民的文化规范有利于增进以前敌对的邻国之间的合作与和谐。自康德最初提出民主和平理论以来，学者们撰写了大量关于民主和平存在的原因的文章。关于为什么民主国家更有可能与其他民主国家合作以及为什么他们不会与其他民主国家开战，许多作者提出了四个具体的论点。这些论点集中在有利于妥协的民主制度，民主国家之间的高水平贸易，国际机构中不成比例的高水平民主成员导致复杂的相互依存，以及信任和宽容的国内文化规范成为国际化。在学术文献中，前三组论点已经经过仔细和反复的检验。然而，关于国内民主规范和国际行为之间的联系的断言并没有得到有力的证明。这个项目评估民主国家的国内政治文化价值与国际合作与和平之间的联系。国际关系学者依赖于对有利于民主的国内规范的代理措施，反过来，他们认为这些价值观也会影响国际行为。本项目通过科学调查研究，直接测量国内的政治文化价值观，以及这些价值观如何转化为对邻国的感情。这项研究包括对两个正在民主化的邻国公民的科学样本进行调查，以评估两组思想：第一，与民主有关的价值观的普遍程度和深度；第二，民主政治文化在多大程度上转化为对邻国民主公民同样价值观的延伸。该项目是在萨尔瓦多和洪都拉斯进行的，这两个正在民主化的国家之前有过彼此仇恨和不信任的历史。这两个案例也适合这个项目，因为我西班牙语流利，在萨尔瓦多进行调查研究有丰富的经验。如果康德关于民主政治文化的论点是正确的，那么这两个中美洲邻国的公民应该对有关他们的规范和价值观的调查问题以及跨越边界的信任与合作的感觉表达支持民主的回应。他们对更成熟的民主国家的信任与合作应该更强烈，但对非民主国家的信任与合作应该更弱。本研究填补了现有文献关于国内民主与国际和平与合作关系的空白。该项目通过调查研究直接询问公民的规范和价值观，对民主化在多大程度上有助于改变国际态度和行为提供了重要的检验。

Political philosopher Immanuel Kant asserted that democracies are fundamentally different domestically from non-democracies. Accordingly, democracies behave differently than do other types of states in the international arena. In particular, he argued that democracies are more pacific at the dyadic and systemic level than other governmental forms. This theory is known alternatively as the "Pacific Union" and the "Democratic Peace." This project explores one component of the Kantian theory, that is, the contention that the cultural norms of citizens in democracies are favorable to increased cooperation and harmony among formerly hostile neighboring states. Since the time of Kant's initial formulation of the theory, scholars have written extensively about reasons for the existence of a Democratic Peace. Numerous authors have made four specific arguments about why democracies are more likely to cooperate with other democracies and why they do not go to war with other democracies. These arguments center on democracratic institutions that favor compromise, high levels of trade among democracies, disproportionately high levels of democratic membership in international institutions which lead to a complex interdependence, and domestic cultural norms of trust and tolerance which become internationalized. The first three sets of arguments have been tested carefully and repeatedly in the scholarly literature. However, the assertions about the connection between domestic democratic norms and international behavior have not been demonstrated robustly. This project assesses the link between domestic political cultural values of democracies and international cooperation and peace. Scholars of international relations have relied on proxy measures for domestic norms favorable to democracy and, in turn, they have argued that these same values affect international behaviors. This project directly measures both domestic political cultural values and how those values translate into feelings towards neighboring countries through scientific survey research. The research consists of surveying scientific samples of citizens of two democratizing neighboring countries to assess two groups of ideas: first, the prevalence and depth of values associated typically with democracy and, second, the degree to which democratic political culture translates into an extension of the same values to citizens of a neighboring democracy. The project is conducted in El Salvador and Honduras, two democratizing countries that have a prior history of animosity and distrust of each other. The two cases also are appropriate venues for this project in that I am fluent in Spanish and have extensive experience conducting survey research in El Salvador. If the Kantian argument regarding democratic political culture holds true, then citizens of these two Central American neighbors should express both pro-democratic responses to survey questions regarding their norms and values as well as feelings of trust and cooperation across the border. Their feelings of trust and cooperation should be stronger still regarding more established democracies, but considerably weaker toward non-democratic states. This research fills a gap in the existing literature regarding the relationship between democracy domestically and peace and cooperation internationally. By directly asking citizens about their norms and values through survey research, this projects offers an important test of the extent to which democratization contributes to changes in international attitudes and behaviors.