Questions of political violence and rights have motivated scholars, thinkers, and policy-makers for generations. This working group represents several different perspectives of this important area of research. Our researchers come from several different methodological perspectives and conduct research on topics ranging from why states go to war, the dynamics of civil conflict, the scope of repression in states, the development and dynamics of Human Rights institutions, how conflict shapes state development, and the role of gender in conflict. Members of our working group have published in top scholarly outlets such as (but not limited to) the American Political Science Review, American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics, International Studies Quarterly, Political Research Quarterly, Journal of Conflict Resolution and Journal of Peace Research. Several of our working group members are also affiliated with one of ASU’s newest research centers, the Center for the Future of War.
Affiliated faculty include:
- Jennet Kirkpatrick
- Victor Peskin
- Daniel Rothenberg
- Sarah Shair-Rosenfield
- Cameron G. Thies
- Stephen Walker
- Reed M. Wood
- Thorin M. Wright
Recently, the working group has sponsored or co-sponsored two conferences hosted at ASU, supported by the Brian A. Kopf Fund. One will occur in Fall of 2015 and the other occurred in the early Spring of 2015.
In the Fall of 2015, members of the working group are organizing the conference entitled: "How does Gender Shape Violence and Coercion?" The conference addresses several important questions in the study of gender, violence, and coercion, including: To what extent do sex-based or gendered differences affect individual perceptions about the use of coercion and violence? Do sex-based or gendered differences at the elite level affect states' decisions to seek resolutions to international or civil conflict? How have different fields approached these questions, used distinct methodological approaches, and generated new sources of data to tackle these substantive questions?
In the Spring of 2015, members of the working group organized (along with the Center for the Future of War) the conference entitled “How Do We Know What We Know? Charting the Future for Human Rights Documentation and Analysis.” The conference brought together several prominent Human Rights scholars and practitioners to try and tackle the question of documenting Human Rights practices and abuses. Bringing together different methodological perspectives, participants presented on several cutting-edge research practices to try and better understand where and how many abuses of Human Rights occur and how better Human Rights practices develop.