Title

American Humanitarian Intervention: Toward a Theory of Coevolution

Authors

Authors

A. J. Lyon;C. J. Dolan

Comments

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Abbreviated Journal Title

Foreign Policy Anal.

Keywords

FOREIGN-POLICY; PUBLIC-OPINION; DOMESTIC POLITICS; MILITARY FORCE; SOMALIA; WAR; DIPLOMACY; KOSOVO; LAW; International Relations

Abstract

The goal of this study is twofold. First, it seeks to move beyond the exploration of motivations for understanding why the United States launches some humanitarian interventions and avoids others. Second, it initiates a theory building process to map the complex international and domestic environment that frames American humanitarianism. To explain the selectivity of U.S. engagement, the article establishes a typology of actors, restraints, and concerns involved in the humanitarian policy-making process. It then presents a theory of coevolution that serves as a framework for understanding the interactive and diffusive dynamics between policy makers and their broader operating environment. With illustrative case studies on Operation Provide Comfort in Iraq (1991), Operation Allied Force in Kosovo (1999), and Operation Unified Assistance in response to the Asian Tsunami (2004), this study suggests that U.S.-led humanitarian interventions are part of larger episodes of engagement that hold consequences for subsequent involvements. It finds that altruistic interventions are often blurred with self-interested power pursuits, as American humanitarianism is the product of a confluence of domestic political factors, historical milieu, and international normative advancement.

Journal Title

Foreign Policy Analysis

Volume

3

Issue/Number

1

Publication Date

1-1-2007

Document Type

Article

Language

English

First Page

46

Last Page

78

WOS Identifier

WOS:000207981900003

ISSN

1743-8586

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