peacesciencer: Tools and Data for Quantitative Peace Science

peacesciencer is an R package including various functions and data sets to allow easier analyses in the field of quantitative peace science. The goal is to provide an R package that reasonably approximates what made EUGene so attractive to scholars working in the field of quantitative peace science in the early 2000s. EUGene shined because it encouraged replications of conflict models while having the user also generate data from scratch. Likewise, this R package will offer tools to approximate what EUGene did within the R environment (i.e. not requiring Windows for installation).

Installation

You will ideally soon be able to install this on CRAN, as follows:

install.packages("peacesciencer")

Until then, you can install the development version of this package through the devtools package.

devtools::install_github("svmiller/peacesciencer")

Usage

The package is very much a work in progress. Right now, it has the following functions:

• add_archigos(): adds some summary variables from Archigos about political leaders for state-year or dyad-year data.
• add_atop_alliance(): adds ATOP alliance information to dyad-year data.
• add_capital_distance(): adds capital-to-capital distance (in kilometers, “as the crow flies”) to dyad-year or state-year data.
• add_contiguity(): adds Correlates of War direct contiguity data to dyad-year or state-year data.
• add_cow_alliance(): adds Correlates of War major alliance information to dyad-year data.
• add_cow_majors(): adds Correlates of War major power information to dyad-year or state-year data.
• add_cow_mids(): adds Correlates of War (CoW) Militarized Interstate Dispute (MID) data to dyad-year data frame
• add_cow_trade(): adds Correlates of War trade data to dyad-year or state-year data.
• add_democracy(): adds estimates of democracy/levels of democracy to dyad-year or state-year data.
• add_gwcode_to_cow(): adds Gleditsch-Ward state codes to dyad-year or state-year data with Correlates of War state codes.
• add_gml_mids(): adds dyad-year information about ongoing MIDs and MID onsets from the Gibler-Miller-Little data.
• add_igos(): adds Correlates of War International Governmental Organizations (IGOs) data to dyad-year or state-year data.
• add_mids(): adds dyad-year information about ongoing MIDs and MID onsets from the Gibler-Miller-Little data. (DEPRECATED)
• add_minimum_distance(): adds minimum distance (in kilometers) to dyad-year or state-year data.
• add_nmc(): adds estimates of national material capabilities (from Correlates of War) to dyad-year or state-year data.
• add_sdp_gdp(): adds estimates of (gross and surplus) domestic product and population size to dyad-year or state-year data
• add_ucdp_onsets(): adds UCDP onsets to state-year data
• create_dyadyears(): converts Correlates of War or Gleditsch-Ward state system membership data into dyad-year format
• create_statedays(): converts Correlates of War or Gleditsch-Ward state membership data into state-day format..
• create_stateyears(): converts Correlates of War or Gleditsch-Ward state membership data into state-year format.
• filter_prd(): filters dyad-year data frame to just “politically relevant” dyads.

It also has the following data sets:

• archigos: an abbreviated version of the Archigos data, used internally
• atop_alliance: directed dyad-year alliance data from ATOP
• capitals: a list of capitals and capital transitions for Correlates of War state system members
• ccode_democracy: Correlates of War state-year data with three different estimates of democracy (Varieties of Democracy, Polity, Xavier Marquez/Pemstein et al.’s “(Quick) Unified Democracy Scores”).
• cow_alliance: directed dyad-year alliance formation data from the Correlates of War
• cow_contdir: Correlates of War Direct Contiguity Data (v. 3.2)
• cow_ddy: a full directed dyad-year data frame of Correlates of War state system members
• cow_gw_years: a yearly data frame including information about Correlates of War and Gleditsch-Ward states.
• cow_igo_ndy: non-directed dyad-year data for Correlates of War intergovernmental organizations data.
• cow_igo_sy: state-year data for Correlates of War intergovernmental organizations data.
• cow_majors: Correlates of War major powers data (version: 2016)
• cow_mid_ddydisps: Directed Dyadic Dispute-Year Data with No Duplicate Dyad-Years (CoW-MID, v. 5.0)
• cow_mid_dirdisps: Correlates of War Militarized Interstate Dispute data (directed dyadic dispute-year, v. 5.0)
• cow_mid_disps: Correlates of War Militarized Interstate Dispute data (abbreviated dispute-level, v. 5.0)
• cow_mindist: the minimum distance between Correlates of War states, in kilometers, in non-directed dyad-year format (1946-2015)
• cow_nmc: Correlates of War National Material Capabilities data (version 5.0)
• cow_sdp_gdp: (Surplus and Gross) Domestic Product for Correlates of War States
• cow_states: Correlates of War state system membership data (version: 2016)
• cow_trade_sy: Correlates of War state-year trade data (version 4.0)
• gml_dirdisp: directed dispute-year data from version 2.1.1 of the Gibler-Miller-Little inter-state dispute data.
• gml_mid_ddydisps: Directed Dyadic Dispute-Year Data with No Duplicate Dyad-Years (Gibler-Miller-Little, v. 2.1.1)
• gw_ddy: a full directed dyad-year data frame of Gleditsch-Ward state system members
• gw_mindist: the minimum distance between Gleditsch-Ward states, in kilometers, in non-directed dyad-year format (1946-2015)
• gw_sdp_gdp: (Surplus and Gross) Domestic Product for Correlates of War States
• gw_states: Gleditsch-Ward independent state system data (version: 2017)
• maoz_powers: Zeev Maoz’ global/regional power data.
• ucdp_acd: a (not quite) dyad-year and (not quite) state-year data set on armed conflict episodes
• ucdp_onsets: a state-year data set of UCDP armed conflict onsets/episodes.

The workflow is going to look something like this. This is a “tidy”-friendly approach to a data-generating process in quantitative peace science.

First, start with one of two processes to create either dyad-year or state-year data. The dyad-year data are created with the create_dyadyears() function. It has a few optional parameters with hidden defaults. The user can specify what kind of state system (system) data they want to use—either Correlates of War ("cow") or Gleditsch-Ward ("gw"), whether they want to extend the data to the most recently concluded calendar year (mry) (i.e. Correlates of War state system membership data are current as of Dec. 31, 2016 and the script can extend that to the end of 2019), and whether the user wants directed or non-directed dyad-year data (directed).

The create_stateyears() works much the same way, though “directed” and “non-directed” make no sense in the state-year context. Both functions default to Correlates of War state system membership data to the most recently concluded calendar year.

Thereafter, the user can specify what additional variables they want added to these dyad-year or state-year data. Do note: the additional functions lean primarily on Correlates of War state code identifiers. Indeed, the bulk of the quantitative peace science data ecosystem is built around the Correlates of War project. The variables the user wants are added in a “pipe” in a process like this. Do note that the user may want to break up the data-generating process into a few manageable “chunks” (e.g. first generating dyad-year data and saving to an object, adding to it piece by piece).

All told, the process will look something like this.

library(tidyverse, quietly = TRUE)
library(peacesciencer)
library(tictoc)

tic()
create_dyadyears() %>%
  # Add Gleditsch-Ward codes
  add_gwcode_to_cow() %>%
  # Add GML MIDs 
  add_mids() %>%
  # Add trade data
  add_cow_trade() %>%
  # Add capital-to-capital distance
  add_capital_distance() %>%
  # Add contiguity information
  add_contiguity() %>%
  # Add major power data
  add_cow_majors() %>%
  # Add democracy variables
  add_democracy() %>%
  # Add IGOs data
  add_igos() %>%
  # Add National Material Capabilities
  add_nmc() %>%
  # add alliance data from Correlates of War
  add_cow_alliance() %>%
  # add alliance data from ATOP
  add_atop_alliance() %>%
  # add minimum distance. No default, must specify "cow" or "gw"
  add_minimum_distance(system = "cow") %>%
  # add Archigos data
  add_archigos() %>%
  # add gross and surplus GDP data
  add_sdp_gdp(system = "cow") %>%
  # you should probably filter to politically relevant dyads earlier than later...
  # Or not, it's your time and computer processor...
  filter_prd()

## Warning: 'add_mids' is deprecated.
## Use 'add_gml_mids' instead.
## See help("Deprecated")

## # A tibble: 246,314 x 97
##    ccode1 ccode2  year gwcode1 gwcode2 dispnum midongoing midonset sidea1 sidea2
##     <dbl>  <dbl> <dbl>   <dbl>   <dbl>   <dbl>      <dbl>    <dbl>  <dbl>  <dbl>
##  1      2     20  1920       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
##  2      2     20  1921       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
##  3      2     20  1922       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
##  4      2     20  1923       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
##  5      2     20  1924       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
##  6      2     20  1925       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
##  7      2     20  1926       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
##  8      2     20  1927       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
##  9      2     20  1928       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
## 10      2     20  1929       2      20      NA          0        0     NA     NA
## # … with 246,304 more rows, and 87 more variables: revstate1 <dbl>,
## #   revstate2 <dbl>, revtype11 <dbl>, revtype12 <dbl>, revtype21 <dbl>,
## #   revtype22 <dbl>, fatality1 <dbl>, fatality2 <dbl>, fatalpre1 <dbl>,
## #   fatalpre2 <dbl>, hiact1 <dbl>, hiact2 <dbl>, hostlev1 <dbl>,
## #   hostlev2 <dbl>, orig1 <dbl>, orig2 <dbl>, hiact <dbl>, hostlev <dbl>,
## #   mindur <dbl>, maxdur <dbl>, outcome <dbl>, settle <dbl>, fatality <dbl>,
## #   fatalpre <dbl>, stmon <dbl>, endmon <dbl>, recip <dbl>, numa <dbl>,
## #   numb <dbl>, ongo2010 <dbl>, version <chr>, flow2 <dbl>, flow1 <dbl>,
## #   smoothflow2 <dbl>, smoothflow1 <dbl>, capdist <dbl>, conttype <dbl>,
## #   cowmaj1 <dbl>, cowmaj2 <dbl>, v2x_polyarchy1 <dbl>, polity21 <dbl>,
## #   xm_qudsest1 <dbl>, v2x_polyarchy2 <dbl>, polity22 <dbl>, xm_qudsest2 <dbl>,
## #   dyadigos <dbl>, milex1 <dbl>, milper1 <dbl>, irst1 <dbl>, pec1 <dbl>,
## #   tpop1 <dbl>, upop1 <dbl>, cinc1 <dbl>, milex2 <dbl>, milper2 <dbl>,
## #   irst2 <dbl>, pec2 <dbl>, tpop2 <dbl>, upop2 <dbl>, cinc2 <dbl>,
## #   cow_defense <dbl>, cow_neutral <dbl>, cow_nonagg <dbl>, cow_entente <dbl>,
## #   atop_defense <dbl>, atop_offense <dbl>, atop_neutral <dbl>,
## #   atop_nonagg <dbl>, atop_consul <dbl>, mindist <dbl>,
## #   leadertransition1 <dbl>, irregular1 <dbl>, n_leaders1 <int>,
## #   jan1leadid1 <chr>, dec31leadid1 <chr>, leadertransition2 <dbl>,
## #   irregular2 <dbl>, n_leaders2 <int>, jan1leadid2 <chr>, dec31leadid2 <chr>,
## #   wbgdp2011est1 <dbl>, wbpopest1 <dbl>, sdpest1 <dbl>, wbgdp2011est2 <dbl>,
## #   wbpopest2 <dbl>, sdpest2 <dbl>, prd <dbl>

toc()

## 40.231 sec elapsed

# state-years now...

tic()
create_stateyears() %>%
  add_gwcode_to_cow() %>%
  add_ucdp_onsets() %>%
  add_capital_distance() %>%
  add_contiguity() %>%
  add_cow_majors() %>%
  add_cow_trade() %>%
  add_democracy() %>%
  add_igos() %>%
  add_minimum_distance(system = "cow") %>%
  add_archigos() %>%
  add_nmc() %>%
  add_sdp_gdp(system = "cow") 

## # A tibble: 16,731 x 39
##    ccode statenme  year gwcode sumnewconf sumonset1 sumonset2 sumonset3
##    <dbl> <chr>    <dbl>  <dbl>      <dbl>     <dbl>     <dbl>     <dbl>
##  1     2 United …  1816      2          0         0         0         0
##  2     2 United …  1817      2          0         0         0         0
##  3     2 United …  1818      2          0         0         0         0
##  4     2 United …  1819      2          0         0         0         0
##  5     2 United …  1820      2          0         0         0         0
##  6     2 United …  1821      2          0         0         0         0
##  7     2 United …  1822      2          0         0         0         0
##  8     2 United …  1823      2          0         0         0         0
##  9     2 United …  1824      2          0         0         0         0
## 10     2 United …  1825      2          0         0         0         0
## # … with 16,721 more rows, and 31 more variables: sumonset5 <dbl>,
## #   sumonset10 <dbl>, mincapdist <dbl>, land <dbl>, sea <dbl>, cowmaj <dbl>,
## #   imports <dbl>, exports <dbl>, v2x_polyarchy <dbl>, polity2 <dbl>,
## #   xm_qudsest <dbl>, sum_igo_full <dbl>, sum_igo_associate <dbl>,
## #   sum_igo_observer <dbl>, sum_igo_anytype <dbl>, minmindist <dbl>,
## #   leadertransition <dbl>, irregular <dbl>, n_leaders <int>, jan1leadid <chr>,
## #   dec31leadid <chr>, milex <dbl>, milper <dbl>, irst <dbl>, pec <dbl>,
## #   tpop <dbl>, upop <dbl>, cinc <dbl>, wbgdp2011est <dbl>, wbpopest <dbl>,
## #   sdpest <dbl>

toc()

## 8.59 sec elapsed