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Guns versus Climate: How Militarization Amplifies the Effect of Economic Growth on Carbon Emissions

Andrew K. Jorgenson^1,2; Brett Clark³; Ryan P. Thombs⁴; Jeffrey Kentor⁵; Jennifer E. Givens⁶; Xiaorui Huang⁷; Hassan El Tinay⁴; Daniel Auerbach⁸; Matthew C. Mahutga⁹

¹ University of British Columbia · ² Vilnius University · ³ University of Utah · ⁴ Boston College · ⁵ Wayne State University · ⁶ Utah State University · ⁷ Drexel University · ⁸ University of Wyoming · ⁹ University of California, Riverside

Building on cornerstone traditions in historical sociology, as well as work in environmental sociology and political-economic sociology, we theorize and investigate with moderation analysis how and why national militaries shape the effect of economic growth on carbon pollution. Militaries exert a substantial influence on the production and consumption patterns of economies, and the environmental demands required to support their evolving infrastructure. As far-reaching and distinct characteristics of contemporary militarization, we suggest that both the size and capital intensiveness of the world’s militaries enlarge the effect of economic growth on nations’ carbon emissions. In particular, we posit that each increases the extent to which the other amplifies the effect of economic growth on carbon pollution. To test our arguments, we estimate longitudinal models of emissions for 106 nations from 1990 to 2016. Across various model specifications, robustness checks, a range of sensitivity analyses, and counterfactual analysis, the findings consistently support our propositions. Beyond advancing the environment and economic growth literature in sociology, this study makes significant contributions to sociological research on climate change and the climate crisis, and it underscores the importance of considering the military in scholarship across the discipline.

DOI

10.1177/00031224231169790

Volume

88 (3)

Pages

418-453

Language

en

Export

BibTeX

Sources

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