Peace and Conflict: Ch2 Vocab

Question 1

intra-state conflict

Answer 1

armed conflict that occurs within the borders of a single state

Question 2

guerrillas

Answer 2

this refers to people fighting a Guerrilla or a ‘small war’, in smaller, more or less organized groups against a more powerful opponent, usually the state. Guerrillas usually wear uniforms to be considered a legitimate actor

Question 3

fundamental attribution error

Answer 3

a term from sociology, used to explain how if a party in a conflict feels wronged by another actor, they will often attribute this to the personality or nature of the actor, as opposed to examining the context from the actors actions. in addition, this party may not blame their own personality or nature of their own acts and instead focus on the context of their own actions

Question 4

partisanship

Answer 4

the support for a particular party

Question 5

Coup d’etat

Answer 5

a seizure and removal of a government and its powers by another party, such as a political faction, a rebel group, or military

Question 6

propaganda

Answer 6

a biased form of communication, pushing one particular perspective and misrepresenting others

Question 7

psychological warfare

Answer 7

method in a violent conflict where the intent is to mentally impact others

Question 8

manifesto

Answer 8

a released statement or founding document that indicates what a political actor strives for and why they use particular methods

Question 9

sanctions

Answer 9

a method to punish or isolate another party by limiting goods or financial resources

Question 10

loyalty shifts

Answer 10

changing support or obedience from one group to another

Question 11

pillars of support

Answer 11

the elements upon which a regime’s power is based. these can range from businesses to education to the military

Question 12

authoritarian

Answer 12

a system of governance where power is concentrated in the hands of an individual or small group, and the citizens are unexpected to uncritically obey the government

Question 13

apartheid

Answer 13

the system of racial segregation in South Africa during the 2nd half of the 20th century. it allowed the minority white population to control and oppress the majority black population. in the present day, it is sometimes also used to refer to other systems of oppression and is identified as a crime against humanity in the founding document of the International Criminal Court, the Rome Statute

Question 14

paramilitary

Answer 14

an organized armed group with a military structure, sometimes support by the government of the country, but is not officially apart of the countries military

Question 15

humanitarian intervention

Answer 15

military intervention by a state or IGO such as the UN or NATO in order to protect citizens who are targeted by their own state or are not safeguarded by it. actors sometimes claim their intervention is for humanitarian reasons, but this may not always be the case

Question 16

acculturation

Answer 16

the degree to which groups want to seek a relationship between their own group and other cultural group and maintain their own heritage culture and identity

Question 17

ethnocultural groups

Answer 17

groups based on ones culture and ethnicity

Question 18

forced assimilation

Answer 18

societal and/or governmental pressure on groups to adopt the dominant culture in a particular country or region and let go of their heritage culture

Question 19

intersectionality

Answer 19

the perspective that various aspects of identity, such as race or gender, and the societal system in place can intersect to shape an individuals experience. this in turn impacts their position of privilege or oppression in society