nils petter gleditsch centre for the study of civil war (cscw at

Environmental Conflict?An irreverent history

Nils Petter Gleditsch

Centre for the Study of Civil War (CSCW atInternational Peace Research Institute, Oslo

(PRIO)& Department of Sociology and Political Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology

An irreverent history of peace research

Henrik-Steffens-Vorlesung, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin,3 June 2008


Two anniversaries

• 2009: PRIO at 50• 2009: The ISA at 50

What happened to peace?What happened to peace research?


Armed conflicts 1946–2006

Data from Harbom & Wallensteen (2007) and www.prio.no/cscw/armedconflict.


Battle deaths, 1946–2005


Periodization

• Pre-history ( –1959)• The behavioral revolution (1959–68)• The socialist revolution (1968–78)• The wilderness years (1978–89)• The post-Cold War years (1989– )• The liberal peace – or? (2001– )


Themes

• Academic disciplines• Methodology• School in IR• Politics• Institutionalization• The concept of peace


Pre-history (until the late 1950s)

• Law, history, philosophy, political science• Traditional methodology, essayistic, legalistic• Realist thinking (deterrence, alliance politics)• Politically pro-West (traditionalism)• Beginning institutionalization (Royal Institute …,

NGOs)• Avoid war (at most), peace not a serious academic

concept


The behavioral revolution (1959–68+)

• Sociology, economics, etc., multi-disciplinary ideal• Quantitative methodology (statistics, mathematical

modeling)• Liberal thinking (modernization, integration,

nonviolent norms); Gandhian influence• Politically neutral (pacifism); analogy to medicine• Rapid institutionalization (JCR, CCR, PRIO, JPR,

IPRA, PRS/PSS, chairs)• Negative peace (avoid war) and positive

(integration)


The socialist revolution (1968–78)

• Trans-disciplinary ideal (but: ascendance of political science)• Liberation methodology (invariance-breaking)• Radical thinking (dependency, marxism, structural)• Politically pro-East (revisionism), pro-South (third-worldism); research (for the underdogs)• Conquer or destroy institutions (Denmark, chairs in peace research)• Peace as negation of direct and structural violence


The wilderness years (1979–89)

• A subfield of political science?• Weak methodology (anything goes)• Radicalism becomes traditionalism• Politically correct with declining faith• Trying to save or to patch up institutions• Peace as anything


The post-Cold War years (1989– )

• Multiple backgrounds (cross-d., not trans-d.)• Pluralist methodology (post-modern challenge)• Neoliberal thinking (the liberal peace)• Apolitically pro-West (only game in town)• De-institutionalization, privatization, individualism,

new emphasis on academic quality• Peace as reduction of direct violence; lasting peace


The liberal peace – or? (2001– )

Competing challenges• The temporary peace• Hegemonic peace• Clash of civilizations• Sustainable peace• The virtual peace• The male peace• Capitalist peace


Boulding's three forms of power

• Threat power (destruction)• Economic power (exchange)• Integrative power (legitimacy)


Integrative power


- or?

nils petter gleditsch centre for the study of civil war (cscw at

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