Northern Ireland and Theories of Ethnic Politics

Lee E. Dutter
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Lee E. Dutter: Department of Political Science University of Illinois at Chicago Circle

Journal of Conflict Resolution, 1980, vol. 24, issue 4, 613-640

Abstract: This article is an application to Northern Ireland of theoretical ideas about ethnic politics. Four sets of ideas are relevant: (1) the theory developed by Rabushka and Shepsle (1972); (2) "pluralist" theory, developed by a number of scholars; (3) "consociational democracy," developed by Lijphart (1977a, 1975a, 1969); and (4) "mobilization" theory, developed by Wolfinger (1965) and modified by Peleg and Peleg (1977). It is found that, on the whole, the Rabushka-Shepsle theory is the best of the four. Based on this analysis, it is concluded that the prospects for a political solution to the Northern Irish conflict in the foreseeable future are, at best, slim. While this conclusion could be drawn from unsystematic observation, we engage in theoretically informed discussion which places it on a much firmer logical foundation.

Date: 1980
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:jocore:v:24:y:1980:i:4:p:613-640

DOI: 10.1177/002200278002400404

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