RESEARCH SCOPE

The purpose of the Institution is to promote peace. Its records stand as a challenge to those who promote war. They should attract those who search for peace.

— Herbert Hoover

 

The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, Stanford University, is a world-renowned library and archives, and a unique center of scholarship and public policy research, committed to generating ideas that define a free society.

The Hoover Institution was founded in 1919 by Herbert Hoover, who later became the thirty-first president of the United States. The Hoover Institution began as a specialized collection of documents on the causes and consequences of World War I and grew rapidly to encompass one of the largest archives and most complete libraries in the world on political, economic, and social change in the twentieth century. Increasing its scope, the Institution also became one of the first "think tanks" in the United States, with a world-renowned group of scholars and ongoing programs of policy-oriented research.

The defining principles of individual freedom, private enterprise, representative government, peace and prosperity, and leadership and ingenuity were fundamental in the vision of the Institution's founder, Herbert Hoover. By advancing these principles through the collection of knowledge and generation of ideas, Hoover steadfastly described the Institution's mission as contributing to the pursuits of securing and safeguarding peace, improving the human condition, and limiting government intrusion into the lives of individuals.

Individual Freedom

Reaffirming the tradition set by Herbert Hoover—steadfast opposition to totalitarian tyranny and spirited defense of individual, political, and economic liberties in the United States and elsewhere—many Hoover scholars over the years have questioned the limits of government in a free society. Some have taken a micro approach, focusing inward to assess the evolution of personal freedom, both political and economic, in the United States, while others have taken a macro approach, considering issues related to freedom abroad. In the twenty-first century, the Hoover Institution will continue to formulate and advocate public policy reforms that increase personal freedom as well as confront challenges to it.

Private Enterprise

Since the collapse of communism, private enterprise has emerged as a dominant global philosophy as economies around the world have shifted from central direction to greater reliance on free markets. This profound trend in international political economy is being documented and studied at the Hoover Institution through extensive collecting efforts and ambitious research initiatives.

Having observed the tendency of governments to grow and take on expanded responsibilities in an effort to "solve" more and more problems, Hoover scholars often question both the legitimacy and the competency of government solutions. Evaluating and advancing sensible market-based solutions to public policy problems is an underpinning of the philosophy of Hoover scholars, who will continue to advance the principles of free enterprise and economic freedom for decades to come.

Representative Government

The history of the Hoover Institution is virtually synonymous with the study of authoritarian and totalitarian regimes, which for much of the twentieth century deprived citizens of political rights, civil liberties, and economic freedom. Now that communism, in both its economic and political manifestations, has demonstrably failed, formerly communist states and developing nations worldwide are turning to the democratic model for rebuilding their institutions and developing their societies. No research endeavor is more central to the strategic direction of the Hoover Institution than its continued exploration and promotion of the movement toward greater political freedom in both the United States and abroad.

Peace and Prosperity

Hoover scholars operate under the premise that our national objectives are, in broad terms, peace and prosperity. Clearly, the country's economic performance directly impacts the degree of prosperity attained and indirectly affects our prospects for peace.

Hoover scholars articulate policy reforms that seek greater prosperity for Americans. They engage in research that documents the strengths and weaknesses of the U.S. economy, and they consider what would enable the economy to perform better, thereby providing an ever-higher quality of life, increased economic opportunity, and greater economic freedom for citizens.

Hoover scholars are also keenly interested in understanding the new era of international affairs brought about by the end of the Cold War. Recognizing that there are unprecedented opportunities to bring the principles of representative government, individual liberty, and free enterprise to the fore, Hoover scholars are also acutely aware that the fundamental changes occurring in the world present significant uncertainties and threats to peace.

Leadership and Ingenuity

In the words of Herbert Hoover, "If we are to have leadership in government, in science, in education, in the professions and in the home, we must find and train some uncommon men and women." At the Hoover Institution, scholars and public policy practitioners of uncommon talent reflect on leadership issues in both the domestic and the international arenas, with special attention to the key role of the United States as a leader in the realm of international diplomacy.

Skillful leadership requires ingenuity and initiative, both of which are also driving forces toward economic prosperity. In thinking about the economic environment in which we live, it is important to recognize that initiative and ingenuity thrive in systems based on free enterprise.

Economic freedom, private enterprise, and limited government, all of which promote leadership, initiative, and ingenuity, have been defining principles at the Hoover Institution since its founding in 1919 and will continue as such in the twenty-first century.