Replication data for: Democratization and International Border Agreements

Does the removal of salient external threats foster democratization? Recent research proposes an affirmative answer but either fails to examine democratization at the monadic level, to consider small-scale democratization, or to account for factors known to influence the democratization process. The current study addresses this deficit by (re)examining democratization during the period 1919–2006. The findings suggest a strong relationship between border settlement and democratization. A state that settles all of its interstate borders democratizes; any outstanding unsettled borders, however, prevent significant democratization. Furthermore, although border settlement contributes to democratization, it does not significantly affect democratic regime change. This empirical evidence cumulatively specifies a more precise relationship between external threat and democratization than previous work and thereby contributes directly to the recent debate between the territorial and democratic peace theories. It also suggests that democratization may proceed more readily if states address unsettled borders first.

消除显著外部威胁是否会推动民主化？近期相关研究虽给出了肯定结论，但要么未从单国家层面（monadic level）考察民主化进程、未考量小规模民主化现象，亦未纳入已知会影响民主化过程的相关因素。本研究通过重新审视1919年至2006年期间的民主化现象，弥补了这一研究缺口。研究结果显示，边界划定与民主化之间存在显著关联：完成所有国家间边界（interstate borders）划定的国家将实现民主化；但任何未决悬置边界，均会阻碍实质性民主化推进。此外，尽管边界划定有助于推动民主化，但其并未对民主政权更迭产生显著影响。相较于既往研究，本实证成果更精准地明确了外部威胁与民主化之间的关联，从而直接为近期围绕领土和平论（territorial peace theory）与民主和平论（democratic peace theory）展开的学术辩论贡献了新的见解。本研究同时表明，若各国优先解决悬置边界问题，民主化进程或可更为顺利地推进。