Dominic D P Johnson
Biographic Data
| ID | 511648 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Dominic D P Johnson |
| GIVEN NAMES | Dominic D P |
| FAMILY NAME | Johnson |
| SIGNATURE | JOHNSON D D P |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Oxford |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 24 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 141 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 24 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2002 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
How are science and religion getting along? An evolutionary perspective
Science and religion around the world: Compatibility between belief systems predicts increased well-being
Previous research, conducted mainly in Western societies, indicates that religious/spiritual (R/S) and pro-science belief systems each relate positively to believer well-being, but are perceived as being highly incompatible with each other. This perception would presumably undermine one's ability to benefit fully from both systems, leading to the research questions examined here: does the perceived incompatibility between religion and science var…
Rediscovering Homo Sapiens in International Politics: Evolution and Rationality’s Missing Link
Strategic Instincts: The Adaptive Advantages of Cognitive Biases in International Politics
A widespread assumption in political science and international relations is that cognitive biases — quirks of the brain we all share as human beings — are detrimental and responsible for policy failures, disasters, and wars. This book challenges this assumption, explaining that these nonrational behaviors can actually support favorable results in international politics and contribute to political and strategic success. By studying past examples, …
Strategic Instincts: The Adaptive Advantages of Cognitive Biases in International Politics
How cognitive biases can guide good decision making in politics and international relationsA widespread assumption in political science and international relations is that cognitive biases—quirks of the brain we all share as human beings—are detrimental and responsible for policy failures, disasters, and wars. In Strategic Instincts, Dominic Johnson challenges this assumption, explaining that these nonrational behaviors can actually support favor…
Bad World: The Negativity Bias in International Politics
A major puzzle in international relations is why states privilege negative over positive information. States tend to inflate threats, exhibit loss aversion, and learn more from failures than from successes. Rationalist accounts fail to explain this phenomenon, because systematically overweighting bad over good may in fact undermine state interests. New research in psychology, however, offers an explanation. The “negativity bias” has emerged as a …
The wrath of the academics: Criticisms, applications, and extensions of the supernatural punishment hypothesis
If you thought it was a tough life for religious believers living beneath the constant gaze of an omniscient and omnipresent God, spare a thought for the life of an academic. We spend years painstakingly putting together pieces of work that advance a niche field in tiny incremental steps, only to expose ourselves to the intense scrutiny of eagle-eyed peers whose job it is to pick through everything we say with a fine tooth-comb, ready to strike u…
The evolution of offensive realism: Survival under anarchy from the Pleistocene to the present
Offensive realism, a theory of international relations, holds that states are disposed to competition and conflict because they are self-interested, power maximizing, and fearful of other states. Moreover, it argues that states are obliged to behave this way because doing so favors survival in the international system. Debate continues as to whether modern states actually do, or should, behave in this way, but we are struck by a different questio…
Fight the power: Lanchester's laws of combat in human evolution
Big Gods , small wonder: Supernatural punishment strikes back
Ara Norenzayan's book Big Gods argues that the problem of maintaining cooperation in burgeoning human civilizations since the agricultural revolution was solved by the cultural evolution of omnisci
Survival of the Disciplines: Is International Relations Fit for the New Millennium
Iver Neumann argues that International Relations (IR) is going to have to engage with a broader set of empirical data and wider inter-disciplinary insights, especially from evolutionary biology. I endorse the debate and extend the challenge, making four key points: (1) our empirical data must extend to the deep origins of human societies, and look more at policy successes rather than failures; (2) our scientific toolkit must integrate rather than…
The Elephant in the Room: Do Evolutionary Accounts of Religion Entail the Falsity of Religious Belief?
Recent evolutionary accounts seek to explain religious belief and behavior in terms of native cognitive dispositions and culturally transmitted innovations that have persisted because they have adaptive value. Despite the often vitriolic evolution-religion debate, new evolutionary theories typically avoid challenging the truth of religious beliefs. In this paper we do three things. (1) We describe five new developments in evolutionary theory that…
Grounds for War: The Evolution of Territorial Conflict
In international relations, unlike the natural sciences, there are few fundamental principles or laws. The world map, however, reveals at least one iron law of global politics: human territoriality. Almost every inch of the globe is partitioned into exclusive and bounded spaces that “belong” to specific groups of humans. Any that is not—such as Kashmir, Jerusalem, and the South China Sea—remains hotly contested. Throughout history, territory has …
Dead Certain: Confidence and Conservatism Predict Aggression in Simulated International Crisis Decision-Making
The Rubicon Theory of War: How the Path to Conflict Reaches the Point of No Return
A major paradox in international relations is the widespread fear and anxiety that underlies the security dilemma in times of peace and the prevalence of overconfidence or “false optimism” on the eve of war. A new theory of the causes of war—the Rubicon theory of war—can account for this paradox and explain important historical puzzles. The “Rubicon model of action phases,” which was developed in experimental psychology, describes a significant s…
Failing to Win: Perceptions of Victory and Defeat in International Politics
The Origins and Evolution of Leadership
Monoamine oxidase A gene (Maoa) predicts behavioral aggression following provocation
Monoamine oxidase A gene (MAOA) has earned the nickname “warrior gene” because it has been linked to aggression in observational and survey-based studies. However, no controlled experimental studies have tested whether the warrior gene actually drives behavioral manifestations of these tendencies. We report an experiment, synthesizing work in psychology and behavioral economics, which demonstrates that aggression occurs with greater intensity and…
Failing to Win: Perceptions of Victory and Defeat in International Politics
The Biological and Evolutionary Logic of Human Cooperation
Human cooperation is held to be an evolutionary puzzle because people voluntarily engage in costly cooperation, and costly punishment of non-cooperators, even among anonymous strangers they will never meet again. The costs of such cooperation cannot be recovered through kin-selection, reciprocal altruism, indirect reciprocity, or costly signaling. A number of recent authors label this behavior ‘strong reciprocity’, and argue that it is: (a) a new…
Overconfidence and War: The Havoc and Glory of Positive Illusions
God's punishment and public goods: A test of the supernatural punishment hypothesis in 186 world cultures
Overconfidence and War: The Havoc and Glory of Positive Illusions
Johnson argues that states are no more rational than people, who are susceptible to exaggerated ideas of their virtue, of the scope of their control, and of the future. By looking at such “positive illusions” in evolutionary biology, psychology, and politics of international conflict, this book offers compelling insights into why states wage war.
Is military incompetence adaptive?
God's punishment and public goods: A test of the supernatural punishment hypothesis in 186 world cultures
Grounds for War: The Evolution of Territorial Conflict
In international relations, unlike the natural sciences, there are few fundamental principles or laws. The world map, however, reveals at least one iron law of global politics: human territoriality. Almost every inch of the globe is partitioned into exclusive and bounded spaces that “belong” to specific groups of humans. Any that is not—such as Kashmir, Jerusalem, and the South China Sea—remains hotly contested. Throughout history, territory has …
The Biological and Evolutionary Logic of Human Cooperation
Human cooperation is held to be an evolutionary puzzle because people voluntarily engage in costly cooperation, and costly punishment of non-cooperators, even among anonymous strangers they will never meet again. The costs of such cooperation cannot be recovered through kin-selection, reciprocal altruism, indirect reciprocity, or costly signaling. A number of recent authors label this behavior ‘strong reciprocity’, and argue that it is: (a) a new…
The Rubicon Theory of War: How the Path to Conflict Reaches the Point of No Return
A major paradox in international relations is the widespread fear and anxiety that underlies the security dilemma in times of peace and the prevalence of overconfidence or “false optimism” on the eve of war. A new theory of the causes of war—the Rubicon theory of war—can account for this paradox and explain important historical puzzles. The “Rubicon model of action phases,” which was developed in experimental psychology, describes a significant s…
Bad World: The Negativity Bias in International Politics
A major puzzle in international relations is why states privilege negative over positive information. States tend to inflate threats, exhibit loss aversion, and learn more from failures than from successes. Rationalist accounts fail to explain this phenomenon, because systematically overweighting bad over good may in fact undermine state interests. New research in psychology, however, offers an explanation. The “negativity bias” has emerged as a …
The evolution of offensive realism: Survival under anarchy from the Pleistocene to the present
Offensive realism, a theory of international relations, holds that states are disposed to competition and conflict because they are self-interested, power maximizing, and fearful of other states. Moreover, it argues that states are obliged to behave this way because doing so favors survival in the international system. Debate continues as to whether modern states actually do, or should, behave in this way, but we are struck by a different questio…
Survival of the Disciplines: Is International Relations Fit for the New Millennium
Iver Neumann argues that International Relations (IR) is going to have to engage with a broader set of empirical data and wider inter-disciplinary insights, especially from evolutionary biology. I endorse the debate and extend the challenge, making four key points: (1) our empirical data must extend to the deep origins of human societies, and look more at policy successes rather than failures; (2) our scientific toolkit must integrate rather than…
Overconfidence and War: The Havoc and Glory of Positive Illusions
Dead Certain: Confidence and Conservatism Predict Aggression in Simulated International Crisis Decision-Making
Is military incompetence adaptive?
Overconfidence and War: The Havoc and Glory of Positive Illusions
Johnson argues that states are no more rational than people, who are susceptible to exaggerated ideas of their virtue, of the scope of their control, and of the future. By looking at such “positive illusions” in evolutionary biology, psychology, and politics of international conflict, this book offers compelling insights into why states wage war.
The Biological and Evolutionary Logic of Human Cooperation
Human cooperation is held to be an evolutionary puzzle because people voluntarily engage in costly cooperation, and costly punishment of non-cooperators, even among anonymous strangers they will never meet again. The costs of such cooperation cannot be recovered through kin-selection, reciprocal altruism, indirect reciprocity, or costly signaling. A number of recent authors label this behavior ‘strong reciprocity’, and argue that it is: (a) a new…
Overconfidence and War: The Havoc and Glory of Positive Illusions
God's punishment and public goods: A test of the supernatural punishment hypothesis in 186 world cultures
Failing to Win: Perceptions of Victory and Defeat in International Politics
Failing to Win: Perceptions of Victory and Defeat in International Politics
The Origins and Evolution of Leadership
Monoamine oxidase A gene (Maoa) predicts behavioral aggression following provocation
Monoamine oxidase A gene (MAOA) has earned the nickname “warrior gene” because it has been linked to aggression in observational and survey-based studies. However, no controlled experimental studies have tested whether the warrior gene actually drives behavioral manifestations of these tendencies. We report an experiment, synthesizing work in psychology and behavioral economics, which demonstrates that aggression occurs with greater intensity and…
The Rubicon Theory of War: How the Path to Conflict Reaches the Point of No Return
A major paradox in international relations is the widespread fear and anxiety that underlies the security dilemma in times of peace and the prevalence of overconfidence or “false optimism” on the eve of war. A new theory of the causes of war—the Rubicon theory of war—can account for this paradox and explain important historical puzzles. The “Rubicon model of action phases,” which was developed in experimental psychology, describes a significant s…
Dead Certain: Confidence and Conservatism Predict Aggression in Simulated International Crisis Decision-Making
The Elephant in the Room: Do Evolutionary Accounts of Religion Entail the Falsity of Religious Belief?
Recent evolutionary accounts seek to explain religious belief and behavior in terms of native cognitive dispositions and culturally transmitted innovations that have persisted because they have adaptive value. Despite the often vitriolic evolution-religion debate, new evolutionary theories typically avoid challenging the truth of religious beliefs. In this paper we do three things. (1) We describe five new developments in evolutionary theory that…
Grounds for War: The Evolution of Territorial Conflict
In international relations, unlike the natural sciences, there are few fundamental principles or laws. The world map, however, reveals at least one iron law of global politics: human territoriality. Almost every inch of the globe is partitioned into exclusive and bounded spaces that “belong” to specific groups of humans. Any that is not—such as Kashmir, Jerusalem, and the South China Sea—remains hotly contested. Throughout history, territory has …
Fight the power: Lanchester's laws of combat in human evolution
Big Gods , small wonder: Supernatural punishment strikes back
Ara Norenzayan's book Big Gods argues that the problem of maintaining cooperation in burgeoning human civilizations since the agricultural revolution was solved by the cultural evolution of omnisci
Survival of the Disciplines: Is International Relations Fit for the New Millennium
Iver Neumann argues that International Relations (IR) is going to have to engage with a broader set of empirical data and wider inter-disciplinary insights, especially from evolutionary biology. I endorse the debate and extend the challenge, making four key points: (1) our empirical data must extend to the deep origins of human societies, and look more at policy successes rather than failures; (2) our scientific toolkit must integrate rather than…
The evolution of offensive realism: Survival under anarchy from the Pleistocene to the present
Offensive realism, a theory of international relations, holds that states are disposed to competition and conflict because they are self-interested, power maximizing, and fearful of other states. Moreover, it argues that states are obliged to behave this way because doing so favors survival in the international system. Debate continues as to whether modern states actually do, or should, behave in this way, but we are struck by a different questio…
The wrath of the academics: Criticisms, applications, and extensions of the supernatural punishment hypothesis
If you thought it was a tough life for religious believers living beneath the constant gaze of an omniscient and omnipresent God, spare a thought for the life of an academic. We spend years painstakingly putting together pieces of work that advance a niche field in tiny incremental steps, only to expose ourselves to the intense scrutiny of eagle-eyed peers whose job it is to pick through everything we say with a fine tooth-comb, ready to strike u…
Bad World: The Negativity Bias in International Politics
A major puzzle in international relations is why states privilege negative over positive information. States tend to inflate threats, exhibit loss aversion, and learn more from failures than from successes. Rationalist accounts fail to explain this phenomenon, because systematically overweighting bad over good may in fact undermine state interests. New research in psychology, however, offers an explanation. The “negativity bias” has emerged as a …
Strategic Instincts: The Adaptive Advantages of Cognitive Biases in International Politics
A widespread assumption in political science and international relations is that cognitive biases — quirks of the brain we all share as human beings — are detrimental and responsible for policy failures, disasters, and wars. This book challenges this assumption, explaining that these nonrational behaviors can actually support favorable results in international politics and contribute to political and strategic success. By studying past examples, …
Strategic Instincts: The Adaptive Advantages of Cognitive Biases in International Politics
How cognitive biases can guide good decision making in politics and international relationsA widespread assumption in political science and international relations is that cognitive biases—quirks of the brain we all share as human beings—are detrimental and responsible for policy failures, disasters, and wars. In Strategic Instincts, Dominic Johnson challenges this assumption, explaining that these nonrational behaviors can actually support favor…
Rediscovering Homo Sapiens in International Politics: Evolution and Rationality’s Missing Link
How are science and religion getting along? An evolutionary perspective
Science and religion around the world: Compatibility between belief systems predicts increased well-being
Previous research, conducted mainly in Western societies, indicates that religious/spiritual (R/S) and pro-science belief systems each relate positively to believer well-being, but are perceived as being highly incompatible with each other. This perception would presumably undermine one's ability to benefit fully from both systems, leading to the research questions examined here: does the perceived incompatibility between religion and science var…
Psychology (16 works) · Political science (14 works) · Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation (13 works) · Social Psychology (12 works) · Law (10 works) · Economics (8 works) · Epistemology (7 works) · Experimental Behavioral Economics Studies (7 works) · Sociology (7 works) · Law (6 works)