Tracing Strategic Preferences in Cyberspace: The Role of Regional and Domestic Strategic Culture

Abstract

Our understanding of strategic preferences in cyberspace rests on the material and strategic factors that shape state behavior. This, however, is derived from the actions of established cyber powers. Given the material resources required to effectively operate in this environment and repeated interactions that form the boundaries of accepted behavior, the literature does not adequately explain the emergence of strategic preferences among novice actors. The article posits that these are not exclusively the function of either the material or strategic factors. Instead, strategic culture features prominently in the selection of strategic preferences that shape state behavior in cyberspace.