Coding rules

A. General rules for all codings

1. The basic unit of measurement is the paragraph.

2. The coding of one paragraph should not impact the coding of subsequent paragraphs.

3. The coding must be based on the explicit language of the text.

4. Statements in past, present, and future tense are coded equivalently. However, in the case of tension between statements about the long term and statements about the current state of affairs, the former are given priority.

B. Coding for references to external actors

1. We are looking for references to external actors. An external actor is defined as any human community (or set of communities) that is not primarily based inside the territory we claim as our national boundaries. [Examples of such human communities would include states or peoples seeking a state (e.g., “France,” “the Palestinians”), collections of states (e.g., “The Free World,” “the Third World,” “baseball-playing nations”), wider geographical entities (e.g., “Asia,” “the Pacific Rim”)' wider cultural or civilizational entities (e.g., “The Arab World,” “Christendom”), and humanity as a whole (e.g., “the world,” “the international community”). In addition, we also count references to the scourge of “international terrorism.” Note that communities that are in part based in our territory are counted, e.g., if an American makes reference to “NATO.” More coding precisions are offered below.]