Although corruption has always been a quietly recognized aspect of development aid programs, the taboo against openly discussing it is only now being widely overcome. Georg Cremer systematically addresses the subject, exploring the nature and impact of corruption, the conditions under which it is most likely to take hold, and the strategies that can enable aid organizations, both NGOs and those in    More >

Does corruption grease the wheels of Latin American politics, facilitating its operation? Or does it undermine democratic rule and worsen the perennial problems of poverty and inequality. Do citizens condemn, condone, or simply acquiesce to the corrupt behavior of their politicians? Corruption and Politics in Latin America addresses these thorny questions, offering a fresh and timely approach to    More >

By March 2022, a remarkable 144 countries had signed onto the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)—China's massive investment and infrastructure development program—with significant implications for US foreign policy. Edward Ashbee explores how the US has reacted to this global expansion of Chinese power, tracing the arc of policy responses to the BRI from its inception in 2013 through    More >

What is the core purpose of counterintelligence? What does it involve? To answer these questions, Kevin Riehle explains in detail how counterintelligence analysis supports the mission of thwarting adversaries—how a foreign entity's intelligence cycle can be exploited, disrupted, or manipulated—in order to gain decision advantage. Case studies of operations involving the Soviet    More >

What would have happened had the "road not taken" been the chosen action in past conflict interventions? What can we learn from a close look at alternatives that were not selected? Drawing on six detailed case studies (the Balkans, Haiti, Lebanon, Liberia, Somalia, and Zaire/Congo), I. William Zartman identifies a series of missed opportunities—options that arguably would have    More >

Cozy politics, Peter Kobrak contends, is shredding the already fragile fabric of political rapport between citizens and their government. Exploring the insidious system that encourages elected officials to cooperate with their supposed opponents—rather than with their own constituents—he reveals the enormous power that wealthy donors and interest-group supporters wield over    More >

In the absence of external security threats—and especially given that most of the EU member states are also members of NATO—what explains the European Union's commitment to a distinct, common security policy? What justifies channeling funds from cash-strapped European governments to finance that policy?  Ranging from the early post -Cold War years to the present, Stephanie    More >

Through case studies of two prison systems—the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Dutch prison system—Arjen Boin identifies the challenges and opportunities that confront public managers who want to reorient correctional policy and make prisons more effective. Crafting Public Institutions contrasts the two prison systems to show how focused leadership—or its    More >

Is Nigeria, with its vast wealth in both human and natural resources, on the path to realizing its enormous potential? Or is it in danger of becoming a failed state? Crafting the New Nigeria considers the challenges that the country's leadership now faces, offering rich—and sobering—analyses of Nigeria's current political and economic systems.    More >

The term "global civil society" has become a catchphrase of our times. But efforts to define and interpret what global civil society actually is have led to ambiguity and dispute. The authors of Creating a Better World present illustrative cases of groups within civil society—from the Seattle and Genoa protesters to transnational grassroots movements such as Slum/Shack Dwellers    More >