Diversity and Conflict

Cemal Eren Arbatli (), Quamrul Ashraf, Oded Galor and Marc Klemp

No 18-01, Discussion Papers from University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics

Abstract: This research advances the hypothesis and establishes empirically that interpersonal population diversity has contributed significantly to the emergence, prevalence, recurrence, and severity of intrasocietal confl icts. Exploiting an exogenous source of variations in population diversity across nations and ethnic groups, it demonstrates that population diversity, as determined predominantly during the exodus of humans from Africa tens of thousands of years ago, has contributed significantly to the risk and intensity of historical and contemporary internal confl icts, accounting for the confounding effects of geographical, institutional, and cultural characteristics, as well as for the level of economic development. These findings arguably reflect the adverse effect of population diversity on interpersonal trust, its contribution to divergence in preferences for public goods and redistributive policies, and its impact on the degree of fractionalization and polarization across ethnic, linguistic, and religious groups.

Keywords: Social conflict; population diversity; ethnic fractionalization; ethnic polarization; interpersonal trust; political preferences (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D74 N30 N40 O11 O43 Z13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 102 pages
Date: 2018-03-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-evo, nep-gro and nep-mig
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (11)

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https://www.economics.ku.dk/research/publications/wp/dp_2018/papers/1801.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Diversity and Conflict (2020)
Working Paper: Diversity and Conflict (2020)
Working Paper: Diversity and Conflict (2019)
Working Paper: Diversity and Conflict (2019)
Working Paper: Diversity and Conflict (2019)
Working Paper: Diversity and Conflict (2018)
Working Paper: Diversity and Conflict (2018)
Working Paper: Diversity and Conflict (2018)
Working Paper: Diversity and Conflict (2015)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:kud:kuiedp:1801

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