Final answer:
The idea is consistent with the Democratic Peace Theory, which suggests that democratic nations are less likely to go to war because leaders are accountable to the electorate, who bear the costs of war.
Step-by-step explanation:
The idea that democracies are more peaceful in general because those who make the decision to go to war are also those who bear the costs of war aligns with the Democratic Peace Theory. This theory posits that democratic countries are less likely to engage in armed conflict with one another, due in part to the political and economic structures that incentivize leaders to avoid war, as the civilian populace—who have the power to elect or remove them—will directly suffer the consequences. This is contrasted with nondemocratic regimes, where the costs of war can be more easily insulated from the ruling elite. Both Richard Arneson and Amartya Sen provide instrumental defenses of democracy, highlighting its tendency to produce better consequences and to focus the leadership on meeting the needs of the population because the leaders' power is contingent on the electorate.