Databases constitute key research tools in sanctions scholarship. Over the past few years, we have witnessed a proliferation of sanctions databases: while only a single dataset was available until 2009, this number had increased to five by 2020; thus, the choice has more than doubled in less than a decade. This essay assesses the evolution observed. It reviews the five major datasets, comparing some of their basic choices, and evaluates them along two dimensions: the extent to which they capture targeted sanctions and the degree to which they brought innovations to the subfield. We find that targeted sanctions are not adequately reflected in databases, which remain state-centric in their approach. We conclude that the crafting of new databases does not entail an incremental refinement in which each iteration renders its predecessors obsolete. Rather, the evolution observed has resulted in a diverse set of options with different emphases. We nevertheless observe that a trend toward innovation has yielded to one toward consolidation, more focused on enlarging the empirical testing ground than in innovating. We conclude by discussing implications for the development of sanctions scholarship.

中文翻译：

---

定向制裁时代数据库的演变

数据库是制裁奖学金的主要研究工具。在过去的几年里，我们目睹了制裁数据库的激增：虽然直到 2009 年只有一个数据集可用，但到 2020 年这个数字已经增加到五个；因此，在不到十年的时间里，选择增加了一倍多。这篇文章评估了观察到的进化。它回顾了五个主要数据集，比较了他们的一些基本选择，并从两个维度对其进行了评估：他们在多大程度上获得了有针对性的制裁，以及他们在多大程度上为子领域带来了创新。我们发现有针对性的制裁没有充分反映在数据库中，这些数据库的方法仍然以国家为中心。我们得出结论，新数据库的制作并不需要增量改进，每次迭代都会使其前身过时。相反，所观察到的演变导致了具有不同重点的多种选择。然而，我们观察到创新趋势已经让位于整合趋势，更侧重于扩大实证试验场而不是创新。最后，我们讨论了对制裁学术发展的影响。