The Graduate Institute’s journal International Development Policy has recently published a paper arguing that globalisation actually plays a beneficial role in reducing conflict. Carolyn Chisadza, lecturer in economics at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, and co-author of the article with Manoel Bittencourt, answers our questions about her research trajectory and findings.
Can you tell us about your area of expertise and your research interests?
I am a lecturer in the Economics Department at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. I currently teach microeconomics and introduction to economic growth.
The frustrations and disappointments with both my home and host countries’ institutions have helped to shape my research focus. My research interests are primarily in African development, with a focus on institutions. I am particularly interested in what causes institutions to fail or grow. Is it the quality of our leaders or public officials? Is it greed or social grievances that start at a high level and filter down to ordinary citizens, resulting in protests or conflict? Is it the implementation of policies? The monitoring and evaluation? The provision of basic services? Is it the legitimacy of authority? The effectiveness of the authority? Maybe, if we can identify the causes, we can avoid future cases like what has happened in Zimbabwe and Venezuela.
Why is the research in your recent article for International Development Policy original, compared to others in the area, and what were your key findings?
Over the last half-century, sub-Saharan African countries have experienced transitions towards more open economies. They have increased trade, and are becoming more inclusive of social and political differences within and across borders. During this period of global transition, general thought was that episodes of conflict were widespread across the region. Our key findings, however, indicate that, while it is widely believed that conflict is rife in sub-Saharan Africa, the processes that come with globalisation –in particular social interactions through increased migration, commerce and access to information – actually play a beneficial role in reducing conflict.
Our hypothesis was inspired by Stephen Pinker’s book The Better Angels of Our Nature: A History of Violence and Humanity (2011). He advances that various forms of violence, such as homicide, rape, torture and conflict, have decreased over time because of historical shifts in society including the pacification process, the civilising process, humanitarian and rights revolutions, and extended periods of peace. Regarding these shifts as processes encompassed in globalisation, we wanted to investigate the effects of globalisation on conflict, one of the forms of violence he discusses. For this we used panel data from 46 sub-Saharan African countries between 1970 and 2013, and we indeed found that increased globalisation significantly reduces conflict. These results suggest that the historical shifts removed boundaries between territories and created incentives that discouraged hostility. Furthermore, we disaggregated conflict into intrastate and interstate, and found that the former is significantly reduced by globalisation processes as compared to the latter.
How should both academics and policymakers, respectively, use your findings?
One of the Sustainable Development Goals is to significantly “reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere”. Conflict is one of the forms of violence responsible for increased death rates, particularly in developing regions, and the amount of research associated with this field highlights the importance of finding means to reducing conflict. In pursuing this research, we hope that the results will bring awareness to the nuances in assessing conflict. As such, policy recommendations should be carefully considered, given the types of conflict and what drives conflict within the sub-Saharan African region.
In 2016 you participated in the Global South Workshop organised in Beijing by the Graduate Institute and Peking University’s School of International Studies. What can such workshops do for young researchers?
These workshops provide a platform for young researchers to share their research, engage in thought-provoking discussions, and keep abreast of current debates in their fields of interest. I find them less intimidating than big conferences, especially for young researchers who can present their work in a comfortable environment and get valuable feedback.
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Read “Globalisation and Conflict: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa” >
Complete reference of the article:
Chisadza, Carolyn, and Manoel Bittencourt. “Globalisation and Conflict: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa.” International Development Policy | Revue internationale de politique de développement 10.1 (2018). doi:10.4000/poldev.2706.
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Interview by Jienna Foster, Research Office.
Front picture: Residents Fleeing Mogadishu by Abdurrahman Warsameh and the International Relations and Security Network / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.