Parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics
Analogical reasoning has held a perpetual appeal to policymakers who have often drafted in historical metaphor as a mode of informing decision-making. However, this article contends that since the beginning of the ‘War on Terror’ we have arguably seen the rise of a more potent form of analogy, namel...
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Springer
2015
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/35053/ |
| _version_ | 1848794992438411264 |
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| author | Mumford, Andrew |
| author_facet | Mumford, Andrew |
| author_sort | Mumford, Andrew |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Analogical reasoning has held a perpetual appeal to policymakers who have often drafted in historical metaphor as a mode of informing decision-making. However, this article contends that since the beginning of the ‘War on Terror’ we have arguably seen the rise of a more potent form of analogy, namely ones that are selected because they fulfil an ideological function. Analogical reasoning as a tool of rational decision-making has increasingly become replaced by analogical reasoning as a tool of trenchant ideologically-informed policy justification. This article addresses three key areas which map out the importance of analogical reasoning to an understanding of developments in contemporary international politics: the relationship between history and politics, in intellectual and policy terms; a critical assessment of the appeal that analogical reasoning holds for policymakers; and the development of a rationale for a more effective use of history in international public policymaking. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:25:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-35053 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:25:00Z |
| publishDate | 2015 |
| publisher | Springer |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-350532020-05-04T16:58:07Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/35053/ Parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics Mumford, Andrew Analogical reasoning has held a perpetual appeal to policymakers who have often drafted in historical metaphor as a mode of informing decision-making. However, this article contends that since the beginning of the ‘War on Terror’ we have arguably seen the rise of a more potent form of analogy, namely ones that are selected because they fulfil an ideological function. Analogical reasoning as a tool of rational decision-making has increasingly become replaced by analogical reasoning as a tool of trenchant ideologically-informed policy justification. This article addresses three key areas which map out the importance of analogical reasoning to an understanding of developments in contemporary international politics: the relationship between history and politics, in intellectual and policy terms; a critical assessment of the appeal that analogical reasoning holds for policymakers; and the development of a rationale for a more effective use of history in international public policymaking. Springer 2015-01-01 Article PeerReviewed Mumford, Andrew (2015) Parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics. International Politics, 52 (1). pp. 1-19. ISSN 1740-3898 analogical reasoning war on terror policy making ideology history politics http://link.springer.com/article/10.1057/ip.2014.40 doi:10.1057/ip.2014.40 doi:10.1057/ip.2014.40 |
| spellingShingle | analogical reasoning war on terror policy making ideology history politics Mumford, Andrew Parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics |
| title | Parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics |
| title_full | Parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics |
| title_fullStr | Parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics |
| title_full_unstemmed | Parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics |
| title_short | Parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics |
| title_sort | parallels, prescience and the past: analogical reasoning and contemporary international politics |
| topic | analogical reasoning war on terror policy making ideology history politics |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/35053/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/35053/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/35053/ |