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Home > Activities > Committees >The Demography of Conflict and Violence > Call for Papers
Organized by the IUSSP Working Group on the Demography of Conflict and Violence
Oslo, Norway, 8-11 November, 2003
Call for Papers
War and conflict, whether internal or international, remains a pervasive phenomenon affecting mostly low-income countries. Demographic factors, such as differential population dynamics by ethnic or religious group, or the number of young persons in a population, often play a role in the causes of conflict. The demographic consequences of war and violence include forced migration-refugees and internally displaced populations (IDPs)?increased mortality, and changes in fertility and family structure. There is a need to evaluate and develop methods and data sources for use in the study of the demography of war and conflict.
The IUSSP Working Group on the Demography of Conflict and Violence invites the submission of abstracts for papers to be discussed during a three-day seminar that is to be held in Oslo, Norway, from 8 to 11 November 2003. We welcome submissions examining the population dynamics related to conflict from demographers or conflict researchers. Both theoretical and empirical papers are sought, including historical and contemporary case studies from a variety of settings, as well as review papers. We especially seek contributions from researchers in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. The seminar will focus on the following themes:
1) The intersection between demography and conflict research
What can demographers and conflict researchers learn from one another?
What is known about the population dynamics of conflict? Is there a theoretical framework to guide our understanding of the demography of conflict and violence?
How do researchers use estimates of war-related deaths to define a conflict's magnitude? How are those estimates derived and how might they be improved?
2) The role of demographic factors in conflict
How might the age structure of a population (e.g., youth bulges), population pressure, migration or rapid urbanization increase the risk of societal conflict?· How do demographic factors interact with poverty and political forces to generate internal or international conflict?
What is the role of ethnicity, religion and other group characteristics in the generation of conflict and when do they become a cause of conflict? How do political leaders make use of societal cleavages to spur conflict or war? Under what circumstances can population policy become an instrument exacerbating or leading to conflict?
3) The demographic consequences of conflict
What are the consequences of conflict for morbidity, mortality and disability?
How does conflict affect fertility, reproductive health, nuptiality or household composition?
How do the psychosocial effects of conflict affect the demographic behaviour of combatants and civilians?
What are the consequences of conflict in terms of forced migration and other types of internal or international mobility? What are the demographic repercussions of forced migration?
4) Data and methods to measure the population impact of conflict and violence
What are the challenges faced in trying to collect data allowing the assessment of the demographic consequences of conflict and war? What types of data should be collected to estimate demographic impact of conflict and war? To what extent can indirect methods of demographic estimation, that is, methods based on incomplete or deficient data, be used to measure the demographic impact of conflict and war? Are there any novel methodologies allowing the estimation of the demographic effects of conflict under difficult conditions as, for instance, while the conflict is ongoing or during the immediate aftermath of conflict?
How can human rights researchers make use of existing data to estimate the extent of acts punishable under legal proceedings and truth commissions? What is the role of forensic demography in these efforts?
5) Special cases of violence and conflict and their demographic determinants and effects
What are the demographic effects of terrorism? How is population composition (e.g., age and ethnicity) related to terrorism? Do terrorism and perceived instability affect populations directly (for instance, through mortality) or indirectly (as, for instance, through reduced or increase fertility, migration)?
What are the demographic causes and effects of personal violence (e.g., domestic abuse, homicide) and low-level chronic violence (e.g., gang violence, civil strife)?
How is genocide defined? How is mortality due to genocide measured? What are the long-term consequences for a population that has experienced genocide?
Complete papers or detailed abstracts and a brief curriculum vitae (1-2 pages) should be submitted to Helge Brunborg (Helge.Brunborg@ssb.no) no later than 15 May 2003. Final decisions regarding acceptance will be made by 15 June 2003. Please note that acceptance of a paper will not automatically entail IUSSP funding to cover the travel costs of attending the Seminar.