Scholars tend to agree that moderation of radical groups stems from inclusionary tactics in the democratic process. However, there is evidence that counterinsurgency measures and exclusion could...Show moreScholars tend to agree that moderation of radical groups stems from inclusionary tactics in the democratic process. However, there is evidence that counterinsurgency measures and exclusion could also facilitate moderation. Therefore, this paper asks: ‘How do foreign counterinsurgency measures facilitate moderation of radical groups?’ The case study of the Lebanese Islamist group Hizballah, the Party of God, will be used to test the theory on collective angst, fear, and survival concerns resulting from counterinsurgency measures. Through a qualitative approach of applying process tracing to primary and secondary sources, this paper finds support for the argument that collective angst as a result of foreign counterinsurgency results in radical groups moderating their ideology.Show less
This study contends for a social-psychological lens to understand why some feminist movements resort to violence. Literature from feminist peace studies has argued that women are most likely to be...Show moreThis study contends for a social-psychological lens to understand why some feminist movements resort to violence. Literature from feminist peace studies has argued that women are most likely to be peaceful, and scholarship in criminology suggests women are more likely to choose nonviolent coping behaviors. A large body of social movement literature has argued for rationalist approach to understanding the choice to utilize violence vis-a-vis nonviolence as a method of resistance. However, literature within the field of political science has not entirely explored underlying individual-level behaviors to explain why women within a feminist movement utilize violence as a method of resistance. Thus, introducing the research question: Why do some feminist movements resort to violence? Cases of feminist movements increasingly utilizing violence is puzzling because it contradicts arguments made by rationalist studies and feminist peace studies. I apply Robert Agnew’s General Strain Theory and argue that some feminist movements resort to violence because of a highly negative perception of the lack of governmental support to address a grievance in gender inequality, which generates negative emotions of anger and frustration that then leads to the likelihood of utilizing violent methods of resistance. I evaluate the argument using qualitative research in the single-case study of the Ni Una Menos (NUM) Movement in México. This study process traces data from semi-structured online interviews to analyze the causal mechanism of negative emotions through language utilized by activists of NUM to answer the research question.Show less
