This study examines previous explanations of democratic peace in light of sociocultural factors and foreign policy actions that influence public perceptions of another country. Two experiments assessed the effects of relevant sociocultural and foreign policy action cues onperception of the regime type of a target nation and on public approval of the use of force. The findings suggest that sociocultural cues affect regime perception. Moreover, perceived similarity of a target nation and foreign policy actions are significant determinants of the public approval of the use of force in addition to perceptions of regime type. KEY WORDS: democratic peace, cultural similarity, use of force, regime perception, foreign policy, experiments.This paper attempts to explore the dynamic underpinning of the phenomenon known as democratic peace-that is, the reluctance of publics of democratic nations to use force against other democratic countries. Specifically, we examine the effects of sociocultural factors and foreign policy behaviors on public perceptions of similarity with other nations and assess their implications for approval of the use of force.The profound realignment of the world's political system over the past decade has resulted in democratic regimes in an overwhelming number of nation-states for the first time in history. According to Kegley and Hermann (1995), some 75% of the globe's governments are now classified as democratic. This "third wave" of democratization, to borrow Samuel Huntington's (1991/92) terminology, has enormous consequences for the future course of international relations. The global democratic transition makes the exact makeup of democratic peace a critical point

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