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Cited by 690Political Conflict and GovernancePeacebuilding and International SecurityNatural Resources and Economic Development

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 64 of the 65 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Does Conflict Beget Conflict? Explaining Recurring Civil War

Walter, Barbara F·2004·Journal of Peace Research
DOI 10.1177/0022343304043775
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Abstract

This article attempts to explain why some countries experience civil wars while others do not. It argues that renewed war is likely to have less to do with the attributes of a previous war, as many people have argued, than with current incentives individual citizens have to rejoin a rebel group. Civil wars will have little chance to get off the ground unless individual farmers, shopkeepers, and potential workers choose to enlist in the rebel armies that are necessary to pursue a war, and enlistment is only likely to be attractive when two conditions hold. The first is a situation of individual hardship or severe dissatisfaction with one’s current situation. The second is the absence of any nonviolent means for change. An analysis of all civil wars ending between 1945 and 1996 suggests that a higher quality of life and greater access to political participation have a significant negative effect on the likelihood of renewed war. Countries that provide higher levels of economic well-being to their citizenry and create an open political system are less likely to experience multiple civil wars regardless of what happened in a previous conflict.

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Research works printed but not linked: 5

  1. 2001, ‘Civil Wars and Poverty: The Role of External Interventions, Political Rights and Economic Growth’
  2. 1972, ‘War Power and the Willingness to Suffer’, 167
  3. 2003, ‘Resources and Rebellion in Aceh, Indonesia’
  4. 1993, ‘The Causes of Peace’, 235
  5. 2004, ‘War as a Reputation Problem’

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Metadata

Authors
Walter, B. F.
Affiliations
University of California San Diego (US)
Corresponding author
Walter, Barbara F
ORCID
Walter, Barbara F
Venue
Journal of Peace Research
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Published
2004-05-01
Volume
41
Issue
3
Pages
371-388
ISSN
  • 0022-3433 (ISSN-L)
  • 1460-3578
DOI
10.1177/0022343304043775
OpenAlex
W2115057879
Cited by
690
References
65
Citations by year
2026: 30 · 2025: 19 · 2024: 37 · 2023: 52 · 2022: 48 · 2021: 53 · 2020: 41 · 2019: 43 · 2018: 48 · 2017: 33 · 2016: 29 · 2015: 28 · 2014: 31 · 2013: 36 · 2012: 35
FWCI
31.68
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
academic.oup.com/pages/standard-publication-reuse-rights (vor)
Locations
  • Journal of Peace Research (publishedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Political Conflict and Governance
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Peacebuilding and International Security
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › General Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Natural Resources and Economic Development
Keywords
civil war recurrence, economic well-being, political participation, quality of life, civil war onset

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