Hypotheses to explain cross-national variation in levels of rebellious
political conflict can be grounded principally either in relative dep
rivation assumptions of frustration-aggression theory or in expected u
tility assumptions or rational choice theory. Previous theory and rese
arch have tended to focus exclusively on one or the other approach or
else have combined the two eclectically. To evaluate the validity of t
hese competing theories in comparative macrosocietal research, it is n
ecessary to formulate alternative models that can be confronted empiri
cally. Equations for a relative deprivation model and a power contenti
on model (grounded in rational action assumptions) are specified here
and a test of the models is conducted with quantitative cross-national
data. The results support the predictions of the power contention mod
el.