NS4332 Ethnicity and Ethnic Conflict in the Developing World

The goal of this course is to examine issues of ethnicity and ethnic identity as they relate to conflict and democracy in the non-Western world. This course will be offered as an elective that will fit in with the regional studies curricula for students in the Africa, Latin America, Middle East, and Asian curricula in the NS department. The course will provide students with the theoretical tools and approaches to the study of ethnicity and ethnic conflict in multiple-country contexts. The course is divided into three main subject areas: (1) the nature of ethnicity, (2) the nature of and explanations for ethnic conflict, and (3) solutions to ethnic conflict. Weekly course readings present a mix of theoretical approaches and case studies, and will cover all the major areas of the world: Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, Asia, and Eastern Europe. Prerequisites: None.

Lecture Hours

4

Lab Hours

0

Course Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course students should have learned the following skills: 

• Understanding of the contested concept of “ethnicity,” and its different definitions and uses, particularly the difference between social and politicized ethnic identities 

• Appreciation for how and when ethnicity is used as a political tool; 

• Exposure to and understanding of various theories of how ethnic identities become mobilized into violence; 

• Experience applying different explanations for ethnic conflict to specific cases; 

• An appreciation for the dynamics of conflict escalation and how ethnic identities and their use change over the course of a conflict; 

• The ability apply theory to help to assess a conflict cycle and identify critical turning points in it; and  

• The ability to propose intervention strategies that are appropriate to the various stages of an ethnic conflict.