Abstract
What factors contribute to the victimization of civilians during civil war? Drawing on research from various disciplines, we argue that increasing competition within a civil conflict system brought on by the entrance of new factions contributes to an increase in civilian targeting by existing rebel groups. Specifically, we argue that existing groups are more likely to target civilians immediately upon the entrance of new rivals due to the perceived threat to control over resources and because the arrival of new groups diminishes the gains existing groups expect from either victory or successful conflict bargaining. We further argue that violence against civilians increases during periods in which rival factions engage in direct, violent conflict with one another. Our analysis diverges from existing studies by arguing and demonstrating that fluctuations in competition rather than the simple presence of competing groups produce spikes in civilian targeting by nonstate actors. We evaluate and find support for our argument using monthly data for African conflicts between 1989 and 2010.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 167-179 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Political Research Quarterly |
| Volume | 68 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Mar 25 2015 |
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Keywords
- civil war
- civilian victimization
- competition
- rebel factions
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Sociology and Political Science
Cite this
Competing for the Crown : Inter-rebel Competition and Civilian Targeting in Civil War. / Wood, Reed; Kathman, Jacob D.
In: Political Research Quarterly, Vol. 68, No. 1, 25.03.2015, p. 167-179.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Competing for the Crown
T2 - Inter-rebel Competition and Civilian Targeting in Civil War
AU - Wood, Reed
AU - Kathman, Jacob D.
PY - 2015/3/25
Y1 - 2015/3/25
N2 - What factors contribute to the victimization of civilians during civil war? Drawing on research from various disciplines, we argue that increasing competition within a civil conflict system brought on by the entrance of new factions contributes to an increase in civilian targeting by existing rebel groups. Specifically, we argue that existing groups are more likely to target civilians immediately upon the entrance of new rivals due to the perceived threat to control over resources and because the arrival of new groups diminishes the gains existing groups expect from either victory or successful conflict bargaining. We further argue that violence against civilians increases during periods in which rival factions engage in direct, violent conflict with one another. Our analysis diverges from existing studies by arguing and demonstrating that fluctuations in competition rather than the simple presence of competing groups produce spikes in civilian targeting by nonstate actors. We evaluate and find support for our argument using monthly data for African conflicts between 1989 and 2010.
AB - What factors contribute to the victimization of civilians during civil war? Drawing on research from various disciplines, we argue that increasing competition within a civil conflict system brought on by the entrance of new factions contributes to an increase in civilian targeting by existing rebel groups. Specifically, we argue that existing groups are more likely to target civilians immediately upon the entrance of new rivals due to the perceived threat to control over resources and because the arrival of new groups diminishes the gains existing groups expect from either victory or successful conflict bargaining. We further argue that violence against civilians increases during periods in which rival factions engage in direct, violent conflict with one another. Our analysis diverges from existing studies by arguing and demonstrating that fluctuations in competition rather than the simple presence of competing groups produce spikes in civilian targeting by nonstate actors. We evaluate and find support for our argument using monthly data for African conflicts between 1989 and 2010.
KW - civil war
KW - civilian victimization
KW - competition
KW - rebel factions
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U2 - 10.1177/1065912914563546
DO - 10.1177/1065912914563546
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84923914424
VL - 68
SP - 167
EP - 179
JO - Political Research Quarterly
JF - Political Research Quarterly
SN - 1065-9129
IS - 1
ER -