Reputation Matters: Evidence From the Korean War

Abstract

Both sides in the Korean War calculated their adversarys military power and diplomatic resolve by studying their enemys past behavior in addition to their enemys current military posture and diplomatic actions. Past decisions to yield provided adversaries with private information about how leaders perceived their own states military power and resolve. Enemies judged a state that recently yielded as militarily weak or diplomatically indifferent. The preponderance of evidence suggests that leaders should protect their reputation.