| ID | 111587 |
| Title Proper | What determines military victory? testing the modern system |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Grauer, Ryan ; Horowitz, Michael C |
| Publication | 2012. |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | This paper assesses the relative importance of force employment as a cause of military victory. It focuses on the adoption of the modern system in interstate wars since 1917. Using cases, contingency tables, and regression analysis, we find that war participants who use the modern system are significantly more likely to succeed in decisive battlefield engagements. However, the modern system does not predict victory at a higher rate than more traditional unit-level explanations for combat effectiveness, suggesting that it might function as a causal mechanism linking factors like regime type and material endowments with martial capabilities. Exploring the possible links between unit-level explanations of military power and the organizational-level force employment indicators, we find that more materially powerful states and democracies tend to implement the modern system at a higher rate than other types of actors, but more extreme autocracies also frequently adopt. Combined, these findings suggest the relevance of continuing to explore how organizational-level variables impact military effectiveness. |
| `In' analytical Note | Security Studies Vol. 21, No.1; Jan-Mar 2012: p.83-112 |
| Journal Source | Security Studies Vol. 21, No.1; Jan-Mar 2012: p.83-112 |
| Key Words | Military Victory ; Modern System ; Military Effectiveness ; Military Power |