Diffusion of Military Innovation: Causes and Consequences

Session Submission Type: Full Paper Panel

Session Description

Technological progress makes the topic of military innovations salient for scholars of international security. This panel brings together a variety of theoretical and methodological perspectives to examine the spread and proliferation of new military technologies and the implications they have on the conduct of conflict. From the modern precision strike complex to cyber capabilities, these papers emphasize the relevance of security concerns, domestic politics, status seeking, and technical capability to better understand why and how military innovation has spread, and investigate the effects of these technological innovations on the conduct of military operations.

Sub Unit

• DIVISION 19: International Security

Chair

• Aaron F. Brantly Virginia Polytechnic and State University

Discussants

• Michael O'Hara Naval War College

• Michael Warner

Individual Presentations

• The Diffusion of Precision Strike - Michael Horowitz, University of Pennsylvania; Joshua Schwartz, University of Pennsylvania

• Sources of Variation in Military Cyber Doctrine - Sarah White, Harvard University

• The Effect of Domestic Politics on a Country’s Choice to Go “Cyber” - Nadiya Kostyuk, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

• The First Cyber Battle: Bletchley Park and the Dawn of Digital Warfare - Jon R. Lindsay, University of Toronto