Abstract
This paper analyses the role of weak states in the theory of balance of power. Using advanced quantitative methods, this study builds on Stephan Walt's concept of balance of threat, which is derived from an original theory of Kenneth Waltz, and examines the relation between two types of states' behaviour (balancing and bandwagoning) and the factors influencing the tendency of a state to choose one or the other.
The influence of these factors is analysed in the period from the end of the Napoleonic Wars until the beginning of WWII in the European and South American regions. Based on a statistical analysis, our study concludes that when the power of a state decreases, its tendency towards balancing the main threat decreases as well.
The behaviour of states is also influenced by the geographic proximity of the main threat and the number of available allies as well as by the character of the political regime of the given state, although these factors often have different influences within the examined regions.
