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THE IMPACT OF YESTERDAY’S TERRITORIAL SHORTAGES ON TODAY’S ADAPTED MIND BY MATTHEW ADERHOLD POWERS DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2018 Urbana, Illinois Doctoral Committee: Professor John Vasquez, Chair Professor Paul Diehl, University of Texas, Dallas Professor Jeffery Mondak Professor James Kuklinski ABSTRACT My dissertation adopts an evolutionary psychological perspective to argue that, given the relative dearth of territory that punctuated much of human evolutionary history, homo sapiens are endowed with an evolved psychological mechanism (EPM) to view threats concerning territory as especially salient and worthy of aggressive retorts. I go on to contend that variation in individuals’ ontogenetic contexts—such as sex differences between males and females—and immediate situational inputs—such as numerical superiority concerns or personal assessments of physical strength—can in some instances moderate and in other instances exacerbate the influence of this territorial EPM on conspecific aggressive behavior. My empirical tests show that while individuals do indeed demonstrate greater levels of both interpersonal and foreign policy aggression following territorial threats than non-territorial threats, the aforementioned role of one’s ontogenetic contexts and immediate situational inputs are also significant. For example, in regards to ontogenetic context, while males demonstrate greater aggression than females during offensive territorial encounters, this sex-based difference disappears during defensive territorial threats. Further, one’s immediate situational input also matters in the sense that aggression levels vary depending on whether the territorial resource under dispute was evolutionary essential for survive (e.g., water) or only gained importance relatively late in human evolution (e.g., gold). Overall, my results demonstrate that many outgrowths of territorial political violence in today’s world can often be understood via an evolutionary psychological rationale. ii To my unborn, yet much-loved child. And also to Austin. He is my dog. He is Austin Powers. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Writing this dissertation has been hard. It has been grueling yet rewarding, monotonous yet exciting, tedious yet invigorating. There were times I doubted that I would complete it. There were times I was positive I didn’t want to complete it. If it had been up to me, I am sure I wouldn’t have completed it. But I did. And the reason I am able to write this Acknowledgments page is due to the wide array of support I have received from my friends, my colleagues, my academic mentors, and—most importantly of all—my family. One of the downsides of receiving so much emotional, informational, familial, and material support, however, is that it becomes hard to remember all of the people who have touched my life and made this accomplishment possible. If I have forgotten you I am truly sorry and please realize that this oversight is not due to a lack of gratitude, but to an incredibly imperfect memory. My voyage through the various stages of academia has been a long meandering one, one that had its humble beginnings in the hallowed halls of Wellsboro Area High School. Though my alma mater did not introduce me to the discipline that would later come to dominate my intellectual energy for over a decade, it did teach me how to think, how to write, and how to work. And for this I largely have my 11th and 12th grade English teacher to thank, Mrs. Higham, though I would be remiss if I did not also thank Mr. and Mrs. Pushcar, Mrs. Webster, and Mr. King as well. In general though, the education I received at Wellsboro Area High School— despite being tucked away in the rural hills of Pennsylvania—prepared me just as well as for college, if not better, as most of my private school-educated friends I would later come to meet at Franklin & Marshall College. iv It was at Franklin & Marshall (F&M) College that I got my first introduction to a liberal arts education and I loved it (although, I must say, that my GPA did not reflect this same level of passion). While at F&M I took classes on Russian, European, and Latin American History, I learned about psychology and anthropology, I developed a taste for American literature, I took astronomical readings from an observatory in Flagstaff, AZ, and possibly most importantly I took my first class in International Politics. In addition to fostering my academic curiosity and bestowing me with a degree in History, I also have Franklin & Marshall to thank for introducing me to Matt Jahromi—one of my closest friends and undoubtedly one of the best human beings I have encountered in my life. My undergraduate education did not end after I left F&M, but continued at Mansfield University where I decided to get a second bachelor’s degree in Political Science. It was here that I met my first academic mentor, Jeff Bosworth. Put simply, Jeff is bar-none the best undergraduate professor I have ever had. He took me under his wing and reinvigorated my interest in the social sciences. I can say without a moment’s hesitation that I would have never contemplated applying for graduate school if it had not been for him. As if this wasn’t enough, I also have Jeff to thank for chaperoning myself and two other undergraduate students through a study abroad semester in Volgograd, Russia. Unfortunately for those of you reading this, I can’t say much about my time there. As Jeff, Cindy, Gina, and I were apt to say, “What happens in Russia stays in Russia.” After graduating Mansfield University, the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) graciously accepted me into their PhD program in Political Science. It was here that I was introduced to two professors who had—and continue to have—a major impact upon my development as a scholar, Seung-Whan Choi and Brandon Valeriano. I am truly lucky to call v both of these individuals my mentors, my co-authors, and—not least of all—my friends. Both Whan and Brandon even continued to support me after I made my decision to transfer to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), something for which I will be forever grateful. Although my aforementioned education at F&M, Mansfield University, and UIC put me on the path to academia, it wasn’t until I entered the PhD program at UIUC that I really came into my own as a budding scholar. From the very outset, I couldn’t have asked for a better cohort than I got while at UIUC. Amanda Cronkhite, Katie Francis, Gina Martinez, Bryce Reeder, Molly Ritchie, Ashly Townsen, and Tarah Williams were always willing to read, critique, and listen to much of my work, both inside and outside of the classroom. James Kuklinski’s Research Design class remains one of the best educational experiences I have ever had, despite the biting yet always-accurate criticism of my work that he meted out. Further, John Vasquez and Paul Diehl’s classes on Military Disputes and International War, respectively, solidified my interest in the conflict subfield of international relations, while Jeff Mondak’s course on Genetics & Personality ultimately provided me with the inspiration for many of the ideas contained in my dissertation. In addition to the invaluable classroom experiences I had with these professors, they would later agree to make up my dissertation committee. I am especially thankful to Paul for his comments on my work and his advice on the job market; his ability to respond so promptly yet so thoroughly continues to amaze and humble me. Much of the same can be said of Jeff. Jeff has helped me in all facets of my academic journey; he has been especially helpful in the research design aspect of my dissertation and I would have not gained access to the Kentucky Survey if it were not for him. I also have much to owe to Jeff for my current academic position. In the end, however, I want to give a very special thank you to John Vasquez. John went above and beyond vi his duty as my advisor. In addition to the hours spent in his office talking about research, he provided me with some much needed words of encouragement at several times during my graduate education. His support will not soon be forgotten. Everything mentioned in the preceding paragraphs would not have been possible if not for my family. My parents—Fred and Susan Powers—have been by my side my entire life despite my many foibles and imperfections. They encouraged my intellectual curiosity from a young age and supported me in both my academic and extracurricular activities. I cannot thank them enough for their infinite patience with me and I want them to know that one of my greatest wishes is that I can make them proud. I hope the finishing of this dissertation is a small step in that direction. My little sister, Hilarie German, has been and remains one of my closest friends and confidants. Despite being four years younger than me, she is far wiser than I could ever hope to be and provides a great role model to live up to. Next is Alicia Nathaniel, who I hope to call Alicia Powers in the very near future. Although I had already begun my dissertation before meeting Alicia, she gave me the needed extra push—both figuratively and somewhat literally— to finish the damn thing. She has also been integral in centering me during my academic job hunting—providing both words of encouragement and words of candidness on an on-needed basis.