John J. Mearsheimer - Research Interests and Selected Publications

Research Interests

I am completing an article on lying in international politics. The analysis is built around four questions. First, what are the different kinds of lies that statesman tell? Second, what are the strategic logics that explain each kind of lying? Third, when are statesmen more or less likely to tell each of those different kinds of lies? Fourth, what are the consequences of international lying for a state's domestic politics as well as its foreign policy?

Furthermore, I am doing research on nationalism and intend to write a book on the subject. In line with my interest in nationalism, I am doing research on Zionism and Palestinian nationalism. I am particularly interested in the origins of those two nationalisms and how they have shaped the conflict between Jews and Palestinians in the Holy Land between 1900 and the present.

Finally, I plan to write a number of articles on American foreign policy. I am especially interested in U.S. policy towards the Middle East, the future of U.S.-China relations, and the decision-making process that led to the debacle in Iraq.

Selected Publications

Books:

John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2007). Translated into Arabic, Catalan, Chinese, Croatian, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Korean, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, and Turkish.
John J. Mearsheimer, The Tragedy of Great Power Politics (New York: Norton, 2001). Translated into Chinese, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Romanian, and Serbian.
John J. Mearsheimer, Conventional Deterrence (New York: Cornell University Press, 1983).

Articles:

John J. Mearsheimer, "Structural Realism," in Tim Dunne, Milja Kurki, and Steve Smith, eds., International Relations Theories: Discipline and Diversity (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006), pp. 71-88.
John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, "The Israel Lobby," London Review of Books, Vol. 28, No. 6 (March 23, 2006), pp. 3-12. Reprinted in numerous places. [html] Also see John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, "Letters: The Israel Lobby," London Review of Books, Vol. 28, No. 9 (May 11, 2006), pp. 4-5. [html] For a comprehensive survey of the debate generated by this piece, see its Wikipedia entry. [html]
John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy," Faculty Research Working Paper No. RWP06-011, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, March 13, 2006. [pdf] For a revised, updated, and unabridged version, see John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy," Middle East Policy, Vol. 13, No. 3 (Fall 2006), pp. 1-59.
John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, "The War over Israel's Influence," Foreign Policy, No. 155 (July/August 2006), pp. 57-58, 64-66. [pdf]
John J. Mearsheimer, "Conversations in International Relations - Interview with John J. Mearsheimer (Part II)," International Relations, Vol. 20, No. 2 (2006), pp. 231-243. [pdf]
John J. Mearsheimer, "Conversations in International Relations - Interview with John J. Mearsheimer (Part I)," International Relations, Vol. 20, No. 1 (2006), pp. 105-124. [pdf]
John J. Mearsheimer, "Hans Morgenthau and the Iraq War: Realism versus Neo-Conservatism," opendemocracy.com, posted May 19, 2005. [pdf] Excerpted as "Realism is Right," in The National Interest, No. 81 (Fall 2005), p. 10. Also published as "Hans Morgenthau und der Irakkrieg: Realismus versus Neokonservatismus," in Merkur (September-October 2005), pp. 836-844. Also published as "A Case Study of Iraq - Analogies to Vietnam?" in Christian Hacke, Gottfried-Karl Kindermann, and Kai M. Schellhorn, eds., The Heritage, Challenge, and Future of Realism (Gottingen: V&R Unipress, 2005), pp. 139-148.
John J. Mearsheimer, "Clash of the Titans," A Debate with Zbigniew Brzezinski on the Rise of China, Foreign Policy, No. 146 (January-February 2005), pp. 46-49. [pdf] For a transcript of John J. Mearsheimer's opening statement at the debate, held on September 14, 2004, click on the following icon. [pdf]
John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt, "An Unnecessary War," Foreign Policy, No. 134 (January-February, 2003), pp. 50-59. Reprinted in Australian Financial Review, Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung (Germany), Prospect (UK), Gazeta Wyborcza (Poland), Magyar Narancs (Hungary), Foreign Policy-Arabic Edition, Foreign Policy-Turkish Edition, Gestion (Ecuador), Opposing Viewpoints: Middle East (Gale Group); and in Micah L. Sifry and Christopher Cerf, eds., The Iraq Reader: History, Documents, Opinions (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2003), pp. 414-424. [pdf]
John J. Mearsheimer, "Hearts and Minds," The National Interest, No. 69 (Fall 2002), pp. 13-16. [pdf]
John J. Mearsheimer, "The False Promise of International Institutions," International Security, Vol. 19, No. 3 (Winter 1994/1995), pp. 5-49. Reprinted in Michael E. Brown et al., eds., The Perils of Anarchy: Contemporary Realism and International Security (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1995), pp. 332-376; Michael E. Brown et al., eds., Theories of War and Peace: An International Security Reader (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1998), pp. 329-383; Karen Mingst and Jack Snyder, eds., Essential Readings in World Politics (New York: Norton, 2000); Hans J. Morgenthau, Politics among Nations: The Struggle for Power and Peace, 7th ed, revised by Kenneth W. Thompson and W. David Clinton (New York: McGraw Hill, pp. 569-585. Originally published as Working Paper No. 10 for the Project on the Changing Security Environment and American National Interests, John M. Olin Institute for Strategic Studies, Harvard University, November 1994. [pdf]
John J. Mearsheimer, "Back to the Future: Instability in Europe After the Cold War," International Security, Vol. 15, No. 4 (Summer 1990), pp. 5-56. Reprinted in Sean M. Lynn-Jones, ed., The Cold War and After: Prospects for Peace (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1991), pp. 141-192; Michael E. Brown et al., eds., The Perils of Anarchy: Contemporary Realism and International Security (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1995), pp. 78-129. and Michael E. Brown et al., eds., Theories of War and Peace: An International Security Reader (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1998), pp. 3-54. [pdf]
John J. Mearsheimer, "Why We Will Soon Miss the Cold War," The Atlantic, August 1990, pp. 35-50. Reprinted in numerous places. Also see "Letters to the Editor: The Cold War Reconsidered," The Atlantic, November 1990, pp. 8-16. [pdf]

Updated: February 19, 2008

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