International Relations Workshop with Michaela Mattes

DateFebruary 2, 2015

Time12:30pm

Location
4357 Bunche Hall

Contact
Contact Information
Belinda SunnuPhone bsunnu@polisci.ucla.edu

Presenter:Michaela Mattes, UC BerkeleyTitle: “Chipping Away at the Issues: Does a Piecemeal Approach to Dispute Settlement Work?”Abstract:Disputants often have the option to resolve their disagreements in a series of partial settlements, addressing a subset of the issues at a time. How viable is such a piecemeal strategy? I argue that partial settlements can decrease tensions, build trust, generate demands for additional cooperation, and provide guidance for future negotiations. As a result, partial settlements should reduce conflict and facilitate the resolution of remaining disagreements. Yet, some scholars have raised doubts about the efficacy of partial settlements and a systematic empirical test is necessary to determine whether a piecemeal approach works. Using data from worldwide interstate territorial claims between 1919-2001, I find that partial settlements do not initially have a conflict-dampening effect, but that they promote the resolution of remaining contentious issues and thus help reduce conflict in the longer run. While not a panacea, partial settlements can be a valuable conflict management tool.Paper:Click here to download.

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