Recently, however, a growing number of scholars have restated and refined monadic variants of democratic peace theory, challenging the dyadic view that joint democracy is a prerequisite for experiencing democracy's benign effects. According to monadic theorists, democracy exerts a pacifying influence regardless of the regime type of the opponent: democratically elected leaders do not base their foreign policy decisions on the nature of other states' domestic institutions. Democratic culture and factors internal to the democratic decision-making process determine the foreign policies of democratic states irrespective of whether the opponent is a democracy or a nondemocracy. Supporters of this monadic claim argue, inter alia, that democracies: do not view war as a legitimate tool of foreign policy, and use force only as an option of last resort; do not pursue risky foreign policies that promise high overall costs; are reluctant to wage wars that they do not expect to win; are quicker to abandon, and are less likely to take on, strategic commitments; do not fight preventive wars; are less likely to initiate crises; and are more likely to employ reciprocating bargaining strategies.
a growing number of scholars have restated and refined monadic variants of democratic peace theory According to monadic theorists, democracy exerts a pacifying influence regardless of the regime type of the opponent: democratically elected leaders do not base their foreign policy decisions on the nature of other states' domestic institutions. Democratic culture and factors internal to the democratic decision-making process determine the foreign policies of democratic states irrespective of whether the opponent is a democracy or a nondemocracy. democracies: do not view war as a legitimate tool of foreign policy, and use force only as an option of last resort; do not pursue risky foreign policies that promise high overall costs; are reluctant to wage wars that they do not expect to win; are quicker to abandon, and are less likely to take on, strategic commitments; do not fight preventive wars; are less likely to initiate crises; and are more likely to employ reciprocating bargaining strategies