1. Specify the period and the nature of the events you are examining, and whether the conflict has ended or is ongoing. Which country are you focusing on? Which period?
A conflict case analysis (2,500-3,000 words) and an annotated bibliography (1,000-1,500 words).
Key points to consider for the conflict case analysis:
1. Specify the period and the nature of the events you are examining, and whether the
conflict has ended or is ongoing. Which country are you focusing on? Which period?
2. Specify the nature of the conflict based on your research - is it an insurgency, a civil
war, a genocide?
3. Who are the key parties/actors in the conflict?
4. What are the causes, to what extent are they structural? To what extent are particular
domestic or international actors responsible for launching or perpetuating the conflict?
5. Examine the trajectory of the conflict, has it changed over time? What tactics are used
by the parties, what are the impacts?
6. Identify and evaluate key interventions in the conflict, including peace-making,
peacekeeping or peacebuilding initiatives.
7. Back up with evidence from a range of sources
8. Provide a clear argument in the introduction indicating your view on the causes and
responses; provide a clear conclusion that ties together your main findings and reflect
on their significance.
Make sure you have consulted a range of academic sources (minimum of 5 academic
journal articles/books)
• Also consult at least one conflict data program eg ACLED or Uppsala conflict data
program.
• You can also draw on ‘grey literature’/policy research from human rights organisations,
think tanks eg. Human Rights Watch, International Crisis Group and news reports.
• Reflect on your sources critically – what do we know? how substantial is the material,
what kind of research is it based on?
• Work out your perspective on the causes of the conflict/responses (for the
intro/argument and conclusion)
• You can use bullet points, tables, and images to present your findings.
• You must reference your sources in the conflict analysis (as in any essay) and you
must include a detailed reference list listing all your sources. You can either Harvard
or footnote references.
The annotated bibliography (1,000-1,500 words)
This task requires you to reflect critically on four texts. The annotated bibliography will help
to demonstrate your grasp of key arguments discussed in the course. This task is both part
of the research process (helping to prepare you for the conflict analysis) and part of your
final assignment. This bibliography may be written as you progress through the course and
discussed in seminars, but will be submitted at the same time as the final essay. It may
either be submitted in the same file, following on the reference list for your conflict analysis,
or in a separate document alongside it.
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