FutureLearn

Causes of war (FutureLearn)

Offered by King's College London,
Causes of war (FutureLearn)

What causes armed conflict in the world today? Causes of War examines current thinking on this critical question in world affairs.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see FutureLearn's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

This free online course will introduce you to current thinking on the causes of armed conflict in the world today. It looks at a range of modern and historical conflicts and draws on a variety of theories and approaches. It will appeal to anyone with an interest in world affairs.

Over six weeks you will:

  • Define what war is and what it is not
  • Familiarise yourself with both Liberal and Realist theories of international relations
  • Explore arguments about the causes of inter-state and non-state wars (such as insurgencies and revolutions), both historical and current
  • Use evidence to evaluate different theories of war

The course will help you develop your capacity for independent learning and increase your understanding of conflict and international affairs.

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Accounting for Death in War: Separating Fact from Fiction (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Royal Holloway, University of London,Every Casualty Counts

Accounting for Death in War: Separating Fact from Fiction (FutureLearn)

History

Discover the main methods used to account for war deaths, how they've been used and practice using them yourself. Calculating the number of deaths during a war is a difficult, but necessary, task - having accurate information is crucial for political and societal debates and decisions. On this course you will explore the methods currently used to account for war deaths and then apply these methods to particular wars.

Self Paced
3 Weeks
Statistics History War
Details
Gender and Development (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Deakin University

Gender and Development (FutureLearn)

Management & Leadership Social Sciences

Does gender matter in international and community development? Find out in this free online course. Explore the relationship between gender and development. This online course explores why gender matters in contemporary international and community development, asking you to: explore the challenges for achieving gender justice throughout the world; examine the concepts of gender, development and what brings gender and development together.

Jul 3rd 2023
2 Weeks
Community Politics Gender
Details
The Holocaust: The Destruction of European Jewry (Coursera) Coursera
University of California, Santa Cruz

The Holocaust: The Destruction of European Jewry (Coursera)

Humanities History

The Holocaust: The Destruction of European Jewry is an adaptation of an on-campus course that has been co-taught by Murray Baumgarten, Distinguished Professor of English and Comparative Literature (Literature Department), and Peter Kenez, Professor Emeritus (History Department), for over 20 years at UC Santa Cruz. In this course, you will explore the Holocaust from the overlapping perspectives of literature and history—through memoirs, historical documents, poetry, documentary footage, filmic representations, and novels.

Nov 16th 2026
5-12 Weeks
History Holocaust War
Details
The Politics of Skepticism (Coursera) Coursera
Erasmus University Rotterdam

The Politics of Skepticism (Coursera)

Humanities

This is a course about the history of Skepticism from the ancient Greeks to today, with special attention to the political ramifications of questioning man's ability to know the world and himself with any certainty. We will discuss the debates raging between Plato and the Sophists, the rise of Christianity in the Roman world, and the so-called 'Skeptical Crisis' of the Renaissance as well as Pierre Bayle's Skepticism and David Hume's.

Nov 23rd 2026
5-12 Weeks
Law Politics Renaissance
Details
China’s First Empires and the Rise of Buddhism (edX) EdX
HarvardX,Harvard University

China’s First Empires and the Rise of Buddhism (edX)

Humanities History

Learn about the Qin and Han dynasties, and how Buddhism and ideas of self-realization influenced the medieval period. This course, the second in a collection on Chinese history and culture, addresses how the Qin dynasty conquered China and established a new system of government and how the Han dynasty built a stable, centralized empire that lasted for hundreds of years. We cover the early history of Buddhism in China and how the rising feudal aristocracy responded to the loss of empire by looking inward.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
History Art China
Details
Justice (edX) EdX
HarvardX,Harvard University

Justice (edX)

Humanities Law

Justice, one of the most famous courses taught at Harvard College, is an introduction to moral and political philosophy, offering an opportunity to discuss contemporary dilemmas and controversies. Taught by lauded Harvard professor Michael Sandel, Justice explores critical analysis of classical and contemporary theories of justice, including discussion of present-day applications.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Philosophy Law Justice
Details
Environmental Challenges: Scarcity and Conflict in the Natural Environment (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Leeds

Environmental Challenges: Scarcity and Conflict in the Natural Environment (FutureLearn)

Sci: Environment

War and conflict can severely disrupt the governance of the environment. What is the impact on both people and the environment? This course explores three aspects of conflict and resource scarcity, and applies these to explore decision making and negotiation skills. Human conflict has both short and long term effects on the natural world.

Self Paced
2 Weeks
Environment Conflict War
Details
World War 1: Changing Faces of Heroism (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Leeds

World War 1: Changing Faces of Heroism (FutureLearn)

Humanities

Learn how the war moved us away from traditional views of heroism and created new kinds of heroes and heroines. Did the First World War make heroism meaningless or was it the conflict that gave it the most meaning? We’ve designed this course in partnership with the BBC to help you explore, discuss and challenge the ways in which First World War heroism has been remembered. Our experts will take you through the changing British, French and German views of heroism and discuss important similarities and differences.

No sessions available
3 Weeks
History War First World War
Details
Luther and the West (Coursera) Coursera
Northwestern University

Luther and the West (Coursera)

Humanities

In this course we will discuss the history of some ideas that have been hugely influential in the modern west and that were taken out to the rest of the world. The discussion centers on an extraordinary and historically important figure, a sixteenth century German man named Martin Luther. Luther is recognized today as the originator of many of the most significant ideas that continue to affect and shape who we as modern people are and how we see the world and ourselves for better and for worse.

Nov 16th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Philosophy Community Politics
Details
The Politics of Economics and the Economics of Politicians (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
The University of Nottingham

The Politics of Economics and the Economics of Politicians (FutureLearn)

Social Sciences

Investigate links between economics and politicians with Sir Vince Cable and leading economists at the University of Nottingham. How does economics impact on politicians? And how do politicians impact on economics? In this three-week course, Sir Vince Cable and a team of leading economists at the University of Nottingham will explain the links between politics and economics. You will explore these links by looking at the work of major political figures and the key economic ideas they adopted.

Available now
3 Weeks
Economics Politics Deng Xiaoping
Details