Introduction : alternative perspectives on national security / Norms, identity, and culture in national security / Status, norms, and the proliferation of conventional weapons : an institutional theory approach / Norms and deterrence : the nuclear and chemical weapons taboos / Constructing norms of humanitarian intervention / Culture and French military doctrine before World War II / Cultural realism and strategy in Maoist China / Identity, norms, and national security : the Soviet foreign policy revolution and end of the Cold War / Norms, identity, and national security in Germany and Japan / Collective identity in a democratic community : the case of NATO / Identity and alliances in the Middle East / Norms, identity, and their limits : a theoretical reprise / Conclusion : national security in a changing world