Summary/Abstract |
Current literature holds that authoritarian regimes tend to misread the international environment, both because of information processing problems and the relative lack of incentives to learn. We argue that many dictators do learn over time how to better read the international environment. While there are certain qualities that autocracies cannot correct, they do often recognize other problems and take steps to address them (if it is not too politically risky). We identify the main steps dictators take to improve the quality of their debate in the inner circle and their understanding of the West, and shed light on the degree to which these steps actually help.
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