Most studies that examine the relationship between rebel movements and collective action often only tackle a certain dimension of the rebel movement. This being either the creation of a rebellion,...Show moreMost studies that examine the relationship between rebel movements and collective action often only tackle a certain dimension of the rebel movement. This being either the creation of a rebellion, the methods that are used to reach the set-out goal by a rebellion, or the way in which collective action can explain the resolution to the conflict. This thesis attempts to provide a clear explanation that is grounded in the study of collective action and is applicable to all the above-mentioned dimensions of a rebel movement. The goal of this thesis is to expose how collective action can explain the success or failure of a rebellion. In this thesis, a discourse analysis on the relationship between the rebel experience, which encompasses the creation, mobilisation, used tactics and behaviour during attempts at peace by the movement, and the solving of collective action problems which are associated with rebel movements was carried out. This relationship was further assessed by examining two examples of rebel movements who were active in Europe. These cases are the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA). The analysis provided insight into the importance of leaders within a rebel movement. From assessing the cases, it was established that leaders utilised certain collective action solutions, to overcome the associated collective action problems a rebellion deals with. Further assessment into the cases of both the IRA and ETA established that the willingness and capability of leaders to form peace, is instrumental in the ultimate success or failure of a rebel movement. ultimately, the relevance of leaders in solving collective action problems in a rebellion requires more research to explain where and why rebellions fail or succeed.Show less
The complexities around global food security and biofuel production are at the intersection of some crucial global challenges: hunger, energy security, resource governance and development. Although...Show moreThe complexities around global food security and biofuel production are at the intersection of some crucial global challenges: hunger, energy security, resource governance and development. Although biofuels have received attention as a means to sustainably solve international energy concerns and promote rural development, the impacts of biofuel expansion in developing countries have set in motion a considerable debate about their impact on food security. In response to a lack of integrated scientific analysis, this thesis applies the theory of economic externalities to biofuel production and explores whether there is a general, negative effect on food security in Sub-Saharan Africa. The results of a multiple linear regression analysis confirm a negative impact of biofuel production on food security, although the effect is small in comparison to other food security determinants. Interestingly, the study reveals an important moderating role of regime types in the biofuel-food security nexus, showing that the negative effect is particularly the case in non-democratic regimes. In view of rising demand for renewable energy sources and increasing food insecurity in Sub-Saharan Africa, this study calls for more in-depth analysis of the interactions between these dynamics.Show less
This study investigated the impact of fellow e-group members on the intention to privately pause and on the intention to publicly pause one’s e-group participation if one feels overloaded due to...Show moreThis study investigated the impact of fellow e-group members on the intention to privately pause and on the intention to publicly pause one’s e-group participation if one feels overloaded due to their e-group participation. We hypothesized that subjective social norms, as one of the components within the predictive framework of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB, Ajzen, 1991), would have less impact on the intention to privately pause than on the intention to publicly pause one’s e-group participation. Our results suggest that more people intend to cope with overload by privately pausing rather than by publicly pausing their e-group participation. At the same time, they assume that fellow e-group members think more negatively about one privately pausing their e-group participation and more positively about one publicly pausing their e-group participation. Unexpectedly, subjective social norms appear to have less impact on the intention to publicly pause than on the intention to privately pause one’s e-group participation. Instead, anticipated negative feelings at an interpersonal level (i.e., the attitudinal component of TPB), such as the feelings nervousness in the e-group and uncertainty about being liked by fellow e-group members, seem to have more impact on the intention to publicly pause one’s e-group participation. Thus, this study suggests that fellow egroup members do matter for both intentions, as more people who are coping with overload intend to keep it private when they care less about fellow e-group members’ negative thoughts about privately pausing one’s e-group participation. At the same time, less people intend to publicly cope with overload when they anticipate to lose others’ sympathy if they would publicly show their way of coping. The implications of these results for studying interpersonal behaviors that affect people’s well-being are discussed.Show less
Research master thesis | Developmental Psychopathology in Education and Child Studies (research) (MSc)
open access
The gender gap in STEM majors and careers is very prominent and alarming (Beilock & Maloney, 2015). Students are more likely to avoid STEM careers when they show higher levels of Mathematics...Show moreThe gender gap in STEM majors and careers is very prominent and alarming (Beilock & Maloney, 2015). Students are more likely to avoid STEM careers when they show higher levels of Mathematics Anxiety (MA; Ahmed, 2018). The current study investigates the difference in Mathematics Anxiety between male and female students in their first year of the preacademic educational track (HAVO, atheneum and gymnasium) in secondary school in the Netherlands. The Numerical Dot-Probe Task (NDPT) is a computerized task that is based on attentional bias and less susceptible to bias than self-report questionnaires. (Rubinsten, Eidlin, Wohl, & Akibli, 2015). Related concepts to MA that will be controlled for are; mathematical achievement, general anxiety and working memory. Participants were recruited using convenience sampling, the final sample consisted of seven students. Using the adapted t-test, z-scores of all participants were compared in order to answer the research question (Crawford, Garthwaite, & Wood, 2010). 100% of girls and 20% of boys showed higher levels of MA when looking at their scores on the self-report questionnaires compared to their score on the NDPT. Overall, the girls’ MA score was overestimated and the boys’ MA score was underestimated. However, this effect was not strong enough to result in an overrepresentation of girls and an underrepresentation of boys in the population of children with high levels of MA when looking at the self-report questionnaires. Results suggested that the prominent gender gap in STEM studies might not be due to gender differences in MA. Due to the smaller sample size, it is important that these findings are replicated in future studies using bigger samples. Stereotype threat is a variable that could explain the STEM gender gap and should thus be included in these future studies.Show less
To understand the effectiveness of United Nations peacekeeping operations in providing the global public goods peace and security, it is important to research the incentives countries have to...Show moreTo understand the effectiveness of United Nations peacekeeping operations in providing the global public goods peace and security, it is important to research the incentives countries have to participate in these operations. Previous scholars have theorised that politically unstable states contribute troops to peace missions as an effort to decrease domestic coup risk. This thesis investigates the link between coup risk and troop contributions through a qualitative content analysis of coup risk in Nigeria between 1990 and 2020. The theoretical expectation was that governments increase their personnel commitments in peace missions when domestic coup risk is high. It is found that Nigeria experienced high levels of coup risk for the entire analysed timeframe, whereas increased troop contributions were only recognised between 2000 and 2013. The thesis thus challenges the existing theory on troop contributions as a coup-proofing strategy.Show less
The Convention on the Rights of the Child went into force over thirty years ago. It is the most widely ratified treaty in the world, yet many children all over the world find themselves in...Show moreThe Convention on the Rights of the Child went into force over thirty years ago. It is the most widely ratified treaty in the world, yet many children all over the world find themselves in situations where their rights are violated. This thesis aims to research the Committee on the Rights of the Child’s influence on compliance of member states with the objectives of the Convention. Compliance with objectives on the minimum age of criminal responsibility in juvenile justice in Denmark shall be analysed through a single-case study. The theoretical expectation is that through interactions with the member state, the Committee has an agenda-setting influence on the domestic policy-making process, which in turn increases compliance. The research finds that when the member state finds itself in a condition of non-compliance with a particular objective, that the Committee’s monitoring and reporting mechanism provides an agenda-setting function and opportunity for Danish parliamentarians to initiate policy that increases compliance.Show less
The Artemis Accords are an international agreement first drafted by NASA and the US government that aim towards establishing a framework for civil space activities by civil space agencies regarding...Show moreThe Artemis Accords are an international agreement first drafted by NASA and the US government that aim towards establishing a framework for civil space activities by civil space agencies regarding the Moon, Mars, asteroids and comets. The Accords have been signed by multiple states, in particular those that are willing to play a role in the US-led Artemis Program for renewed human spaceflight to the Moon. The Accords have been controversial among experts in the field of space governance. Experts have claimed that the Artemis Accords do not respect space as a commons and that the Accords have important shortcomings that hamper its ability to facilitate sustainable space governance. Others have primarily criticized the Artemis Accords for the tensions it has increased between the US and states like Russia or the People's Republic of China, as some believe the US are actively trying to influence the governance of space in their favour. Some fear that this can lead to attempts to overtly weaponize space. This research aims to look at both of these criticisms, by first assessing to what extent the Artemis Accords comply with or violate the principles associated with sustainable governance of a commons and looking at the Accords and its contents in detail. Then, the effects this has on the weaponization of space will be considered and discussed in order to better understand how the Artemis Accords are influencing the weaponization of space.Show less
This thesis has used Qualitative Content Analysis to investigate the impact of right-wing populist rhetoric about immigration on Italian newspapers after 2017. The results have found that firstly,...Show moreThis thesis has used Qualitative Content Analysis to investigate the impact of right-wing populist rhetoric about immigration on Italian newspapers after 2017. The results have found that firstly, the Italian newspaper articles addressing the topic of immigration are partially coherent with the exclusionary narrative of immigration. Secondly, newspaper articles addressing the topic of immigration favour exclusionary populist narrative in their choices regarding space and attention focus.Show less
In this thesis we test the claim that intra-party democracy, measured as the inclusiveness of candidate selection, leads to less diverse candidate lists. Previously, this area of research has often...Show moreIn this thesis we test the claim that intra-party democracy, measured as the inclusiveness of candidate selection, leads to less diverse candidate lists. Previously, this area of research has often conceptualised diversity in the form of women’s representation. To test whether previous findings also apply to other forms of descriptive representation, this thesis considers the geographic representativeness of parties. To do this, the Netherlands has been chosen as an ideal case due to its electoral system, which works as a single nationwide district. Twelve parties and seven elections between 2002 and 2021 were analysed with a multilevel linear regression model. The results suggest that inclusive candidate selection methods do not have a relevant effect on the geographic representativeness of parties. One finding is that rural parties are generally more geographically representative than urban parties. However, it remains unclear whether differences between urban or rural parties can be explained by levels of intra-party democracy. For further research, it is suggested to include more data on rural parties.Show less
