Understanding the Concept of Deterrence Theory, Essay Example

Fear of possibilities, this is the ideal principle followed by the deterrence theory as it is applied as a containing military tactic. It could be understood that through time, the emergence of deterrence theory begins to be considered as one of the most effective ways of containing international conflicts and keeping nations from rising against each other. Nuclear weapons are among the most effective deterring elements used by certain nations. Imposing that they have reserves of nuclear weapons push other nations to stay put and stay out of their business. North Korea, one of the nations that is assumed to have the strongest military force, is considered one of the untouchables especially when it comes to conflicts that arise in nearby countries [such as South Korea]. Having one of the largest nuclear reserves in the world, North Korea could keep their defenses up without being disturbed by the international community. Take for instance the condition of some of their poor communities; unlike other countries, the social dealings of North Korea are not released out into the public for international scrutiny. Whatever news pieces come out from the country are controlled by the administration and the government that gives attention to the social issues of the nation. The control that the administration has over everything that happens in the country and its people have a great impact on how the people are expected to thrive alongside social chaos. Kept in the dim, the people of North Korea, their culture, their tradition and their issues are most often than not presented in speculation of the facts that surround them.

In the given example, it could be realized that deterrence theory intends to set up control, imposing fear upon others, thus making it easier to mandate how they are going to react to a specific manner of operation handled by a particular country. To avoid commotion and conflict, nations that do not have as much nuclear reserves as Russia, China or North Korea all take a step back when it comes to meddling with the social issues these countries need to give attention to. What makes such move effective is that although nations such as the United States are noted for creating alliances with other countries as thy establish their military force and the international camaraderie they have with neighboring regions, they often stay clear off the territories of these nations, often only seeking agreements and resolutions to social problems that basically affect the international community in general.

Considerably, the other party, knowing that there is a possibility of something wrong to happen when the buttons are pushed too hard, keeps on looking after how they react to matters, how they mandate their actions to make sure they do not make the wrong move and motivate the release of anger of the other party. Relatively, such approach has become rather common. Even the general concept of law relies on deterrence theory. The law has power, and such power could bring down a person to his capacity of getting involved in particular actions that he wishes to accomplish, but are noted to be against the limitations and sanctions of the legal matters that surround the being of a particular community.

Knowing what could happen, a person is controlled, managed as to how he should act and react on matters happening in his life.  This includes the process by which he makes his own decisions and create specific response to the challenges he is expected to face. A person becomes strongly engaged with his desires, and every individual is entitled to such strong emotions [of wanting to accomplish what he has in mind, whether or not it is a positive matter]. The guiding principles of the law often makes it easier for the individual to decide whether or not to push through with his actions especially if it would mean that he needs to be reprimanded by the law later on. This concept of fear instantiates discipline among the people and so far, such thinking makes it easier for the members of the community to subject themselves to the different clauses making up the law.

Notably, in the international scene, deterrence theory takes a much larger aspect of control through fear and assumption of negative response from powerful nations. America, being one of the strongest and most influential nations use other tactics to counteract the deterrence approach used by Russia, China and other communist countries against their strategies of improving international camaraderie among nations. Standing on their ground of being the ones in control of major international situations, these nations stay strongly attached to the application of the deterrence theory especially in times when their decisions are being questioned by international agencies. So far, the approach could be considered effective and implicative of the goals that the nations using the deterrence constraint as a way of controlling other nations trying to affect them or that of their operations as a country, as a free unit to carry out their military pursuits in the hope of creating a stronger reputation in the international community.

Overall, it could be understood that the deterrence theory, as used in the aspect of criminal justice and international relations development, is a considerable process that embraces the option of taking the leap towards creating better ways of controlling situations accordingly. Through mandating how others would act and react to their decisions, particular nations that hold military force and nuclear reserves as form of defense use all available resources to make sure that they are not disturbed by other meddling countries to assure the integrity and solidity of their form of governance towards their force and towards their people. This particular approach to control has specifically gotten my interest because of the fact that even though it may seem negative in nature, it does have its positive effects in controlling or at least avoiding the emergence of major international conflicts from happening.

References

Freedman, Lawrence. 2004. Deterrence. New York: Polity Press.

Jervis, Robert, Richard N. Lebow and Janice G. Stein. 1985. The Psychology of Deterrence. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. 270 pp.

Morgan, Patrick. 2003. Deterrence Now. New York: Cambridge University Press.

T.V. Paul, Patrick M. Morgan, James J. Wirtz, Complex Deterrence: Strategy In the Global Age (University of Chicago Press, 2009).