Michael Horowitz, associate professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania, has won the Furniss Book Award for The Diffusion of Military Power: Causes and Consequences for International Politics (Princeton University Press, 2010).

The Furniss Award commemorates the founding director of the Mershon Center, Edgar S. Furniss, and is given annually to an author whose first book makes an exceptional contribution to the study of national and international security. Previous winners include John Mearsheimer, Barry Posen, and Stephen Walt.

The Diffusion of Military Power examines how the financial and organizational challenges of adopting new methods of fighting wars can influence the international balance of power. Horowitz argues that a state or actor wishing to adopt a military innovation must possess both the financial resources to buy or build the technology and the internal organizational capacity to accommodate any necessary changes in recruiting, training, or operations. How countries react to new innovations -- and to other actors that do or don't adopt them -- has profound implications for the global order and the likelihood of war.

Horowitz’s primary research revolves around international conflict and security issues. He is also interested in the intersection of religion and international relations, the role of leaders in international politics, and international security issues in East Asia.

His other academic projects include studies of how attributes of international leaders influence their decision-making concerning international conflict, the empirical impact of weapons of mass destruction proliferation on international behavior, North Korean negotiating patterns, and U.S.-Australian relations.

He completed his Ph.D. in the Department of Government at Harvard University, where his dissertation examined the diffusion of military power and the consequences for international politics.

The winning author of the Furniss Award receives a cash grant and is invited to address the faculty of the Mershon Center. Horowitz will speak at the Mershon Center in September 2013.