The Drivers of Chemical and Biological Weapons Spread and Reversal: Unravelling Complexity with a Configurational Approach

Biejan Poor Toulabi

Research output: Chapter in Book / Report / Conference proceedingChapterAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Surprisingly, no empirical studies exist that systematically address the drivers of CBW spread and restraint among the universe of cases. The previous chapter began to address this gap through a series of quantitative tests that showed that there is no evidence to support the popular ‘poor man’s atomic bomb’ thesis of CBW spread. This chapter continues this investigation by applying Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), a configurational comparative method of data analysis that is well-suited to deal with causal complexity, to the new CBW data introduced in Chapter 3 in order to investigate the conditions under which states embark on and terminate CBW programs.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationThe Myth of the Poor Man's Atomic Bomb and the Politics of Proliferation
Subtitle of host publicationKnowledge, Method, and Ideology in the Study of Chemical, Biological, and Nuclear Weapons
Chapter5
Pages89-113
Publication statusPublished - 7 Apr 2021

Keywords

  • chemical weapons
  • biological weapons
  • nuclear weapons
  • proliferation
  • poor man's atomic bomb
  • weapons of mass destruction
  • QCA
  • qualitative comparative analysis

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