The trap of sectarian politics: sectarianism and voting in Northern Ireland
To what extent do voters to remain loyal to their sect or ethnic group at the expense of democratic accountability? Ethnic polarization ostensibly affects political behavior in countries across the globe — from Bosnia to Iraq, from India to Northern Ireland.
In a working paper led by PBI co-director Bonnie Weir, investigators look at the consequences of such polarization for the toleration for undemocratic and unaccountable behavior by political leaders in the latter case. They deploy a choice-based survey experiment to gauge how citizens in a democracy trade off between sectarian loyalty and electoral accountability in their voting behavior. This methodology avoids problems common to conventional surveys, such as social desirability bias, to better gauge actual public support for democracy.
The authors find that even in an advanced democracy, sharp ethnic or sectarian polarization leads citizens to sacrifice democratic values in favor of voting along ethnic lines — but not for the reasons one might expect. Specifically, even when individual voters do not hold ethnic preferences that override values of electoral accountability, they expect that others do — and therefore vote according to ethnic divisions. In such a context, pessimistic expectations about other voters leads to a trap in which democratic accountability is seriously eroded.
Mapping the drivers of everyday peace
Peace means different things to different people—a key challenge lies in constructively understanding the drivers of peace with a view to inform science diplomacy. Specifically, non-state actors such as scholars and practitioners engage in problem-solving approaches at the heart of science diplomacy—through bolstering mutual understanding between peoples, advancing the satisfaction of common interests and contributing to global peace.
Our current research projects demonstrate a methodology called ‘fuzzy cognitive mapping’ (FCM). This is a type of systems-mapping well-suited to break down complex concepts and facilitate problem-solving.
In 2024, our team has been conducting FCM sessions with groups of students, program staff, and community members in locations such as: Belfast (United Kingdom), Nouakchott (Mauritania), and New Haven (US). We have also conducted FCM sessions with practitioners at UNDP (New York headquarters), Early Childhood Peace Consortium meetings (Turkey), and UPEACE (Costa Rica).
The aim is to compare mental maps of ordinary peace—across stakeholder groups—and test assumptions about the drivers of systems change—across sites. We have found that participants are consistently engaged in the learning of cognitive mapping of the drivers of peace. An example of the methodology is described in this Jackson School news article; original findings are captured in this short video.
The effects of trauma and violence on the human genome
Violence and trauma leave inheritable markers on a person’s genome that persist over multiple generations, according to a first-of-its-kind study led by Jackson professor Catherine Panter-Brick.
The study focused on epigenetic changes — chemical modifications to DNA that can affect gene function and individual characteristics — across three generations of Syrian refugees. It shows that women who have been directly affected by war-related violence and trauma indicate altered epigenetic markings — but so do their grandchildren, even if they had no direct exposure to warfare.
The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports in February 2024, was conducted by an international team led by women scientists working across disciplines. It is the latest in an ongoing suite of research the team has conducted to better understand the cognitive, physiological, and genetic signatures of stress and trauma in Syrian refugee children. Read the full story
Everyday Peace
As part of a study led by the Peacebuilding Initiative, students, parents, diplomats and scholars in Mauritania were asked to reflect on the meaning of "everyday peace" and what factors causally influence a peace ecosystem.
Watch InterviewsPolicy briefs
Everyday Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (2025)
How Global Peacebuilders Think: A Tool for Policy Dialogue and System Change (2025)
In Pursuit of Sustainable Peace (2025)
Intergenerational Pathways to Peace: Putting Children First (2024)