This book asserts that state identities drive state motivations shaping state behavior. It describes several state motivations connected to self-esteem and identity: economic wealth, identity dominance through altruism, and controlling political outcomes for other states otherwise understood as decisionism. Part of this process is getting other states to acknowledge and recognize this self-image. As a result, self-esteem is at the core of state motivations, and seeks to connect the ideational with material reality. For instance, status quo powers, for instance the United States, will maintain...