Tilly Violence as Politics, Barbara Walter, Ted Gurr, Tilly and Tarrow, Chenoweth & Stephen, Staub, Valentino

Collective Violence

A form of contentious politics in which groups make claims that involve direct damage to persons or property It is inherently political because governments are involved as targets, participants, or regulators

Contentious Politics

Public, collective claim-making that affects others' interests It includes protests, strikes, revolutions, and civil wars Not all contentious politics is violent, but all collective violence is contentious politics

Political Entrepreneurs

Actors who organize, activate, coordinate, and represent constituencies They mobilize identities and grievances, often shaping whether contention becomes violent

Violent Specialists

Individuals or groups who specialize in the use of coercion ( soldiers, militias, police, armed groups) Their alignment with or against the state affects the scale and coordination of violence

Category Formation

The political construction of collective identities through invention, borrowing from existing models, or encounters with rival groups

Opportunity Hoarding

The monopolization of valuable resources or positions by a bounded group, reinforcing inequality and group-based political division

Repertoire of Contention

The limited set of recognized and culturally familiar ways in which people make political claims (demonstrations, strikes, riots, insurgency)

High Capacity vs Low-Capacity Regimes

High-capacity regimes effectively control coercion and regulate contention; low-capacity regimes struggle to control armed actors, increasing the likelihood of fragmented or widespread violence

Salience of Violence

The degree to which physical damage becomes central—rather than incidental—to political interaction

Anocracy

A regime combining democratic and authoritarian elements, typically scoring between -5 and +5 on the Polity scale

Autocracy

A political system with concentrated power, limited political competition, and restricted civil liberties

Democracy (Full Democracy)

A political system with competitive elections, civil liberties, rule of law, and strong constraints on executive power

Polity Score

A 21-point scale (-10 to +10) used to classify regimes from autocracy to democracy and predict instability

Democratic Transition

The process of moving from authoritarian rule toward democracy; a period of heightened uncertainty and instability

Rapid Democratization

Fast political reform without strong institutional foundations, increasing the likelihood of conflict

Backsliding (Democratic Backsliding)

The erosion of democratic institutions and norms by elected leaders

Autocratization

The gradual shift of a democracy toward more authoritarian rule

Peak Risk Zone (Middle Zone)

The range around -1 to +1 on the Polity scale where civil war risk is highest due to weak institutions and low legitimacy

Weak State Capacity

A government's inability to enforce law, provide security, or control territory

Institutional Fragility

The weakness of political institutions during transition or decline

Institutional Legitimacy

Public belief that political institutions are rightful and authoritative

Elite Power Shift

Redistribution of political influence during transition, creating winners and losers

Political Losers Problem

The tendency of groups that lose power during regime change to resist or mobilize violently

Power Vacuum

A gap between collapsing authority and consolidated new institutions, creating opportunities for armed actors

Opportunity Structure for Rebellion

Conditions that make rebellion feasible, such as divided elites or weak security forces

Ethnic Polarization

Political mobilization along ethnic lines, often intensified during regime change

Sectarian Mobilization

Political organization around religious identity divisions

Factionalism

Political competition structured around identity-based or regional divisions

Civil War

Sustained armed conflict between a government and internal groups or among internal groups

Insurgency

Organized rebellion challenging state authority

Guardrails of Democracy

Institutional constraints such as courts, free press, and electoral integrity that protect democratic systems

Erosion of Checks and Balances

The weakening of institutional constraints on executive authority

Gradual Democratization

Slow reform that allows institutions to consolidate and reduces conflict risk

Democratic Consolidation

The process by which democratic institutions become stable, legitimate, and resilient

Communal Group

An ethnic, religious, or cultural identity group without recognized statehood that is politically salient due to discrimination or collective mobilization

Relative Deprivation

The perceived gap between what a group believes it deserves and what it actually receives

Grievances

Publicly articulated complaints about injustice, inequality, or exclusion

Mobilization

The organization and activation of group members for collective political action

Communal Political Action

Collective actions taken by a group to influence or challenge the state

Protest

Nonviolent or limited violent collective action expressing group demands

Rebellion

Sustained, organized violent conflict against the state

Historical Loss of Autonomy

Loss of previous self-rule or political independence, often a strong driver of rebellion

Discrimination

Systematic restriction of a group's access to economic or political opportunities

Group Identity

Strength of shared cultural, linguistic, or religious identity within a group

Group Cohesion

Internal unity and organizational capacity that facilitate mobilization

Diffusion

Spread of conflict across borders among transnational kin groups

Contagion

Imitation of tactics and strategies among similar groups within a region

Institutionalized Democracy

Stable political system with open participation and constraints on executive power

Democratization

Transition process toward democracy that may increase instability in multiethnic states

State Power

Capacity of the state to regulate, repress, or accommodate communal demands

Contentious Politics

Collective political interaction involving claims that challenge authorities, elites, or dominant institutions

Contentious Repertoire

The set of protest performances and tactics that are known, available, and considered legitimate or feasible within a given political context

Repertoire Change

The process through which new forms of contention emerge, diffuse, become routinized, or decline over time

Regime

The regular and recognizable relations among governments, established political actors, and challengers, as perceived by insiders and outsiders

Governmental Capacity

The extent to which a state can effectively control territory, enforce rules, collect resources, and implement policies

Hybrid Regime

A political system combining democratic and undemocratic features, producing unstable and unpredictable patterns of contention

Political Opportunity Structure

Key features of a regime that shape opportunities and threats for collective action, including openness, elite divisions, allies, and repression

Opportunities

Aspects of the political environment that facilitate mobilization, such as institutional access, elite splits, or weakened repression

Threats

Risks or dangers—such as repression, exclusion, or violence—that motivate or constrain collective action

Contained Contention

Claim making that operates within established institutional rules and routines, elections

Transgressive Contention

Claim making that violates institutional norms or uses innovative or forbidden tactics, riots

Legal Mobilization

The strategic use of courts and legal institutions to advance movement goals

Cycle of Contention

A period of heightened and interconnected collective action involving multiple actors, issues, and repertoires

Movement-Countermovement Interaction

The dynamic process in which opposing movements respond to, shape, and radicalize one another

Democratization

An increase in participation, equality, consultation, and protection, expanding political opportunities for contention

Dedemocratization

The erosion of democratic institutions and protections, narrowing opportunities and often suppressing contention

Civil Resistance

Collective, nonviolent action by civilians to challenge regimes, occupations, or policies

Nonviolent Campaign

A sustained, organized series of nonviolent actions, boycotts, strikes

Violent Campaign

A resistance campaign relying primarily on armed force, including insurgency or guerrilla warfare

Mass Participation

Large-scale civilian involvement; the central advantage of nonviolent campaigns

Participation Advantage

Nonviolent action lowers physical, moral, and informational barriers, enabling broader mobilization

Antiregime Campaign

A campaign aimed at removing or transforming a governing authority

Anti-Occupation Campaign

A campaign seeking to end foreign control or military presence

Secession Campaign

A campaign seeking independence or territorial separation

Repression

State coercion or violence used to suppress opposition

Backfire Effect

When repression against nonviolent activists increases public support and participation

Loyalty Shifts

Defections by elites, bureaucrats, or security forces away from the regime

External Support

Foreign material or political backing; more central to violent campaigns than nonviolent ones

Strategic Nonviolent Action

The deliberate use of nonviolence to disrupt governance and impose political costs

Resilience

A movement's ability to survive repression, adapt tactics, and sustain participation

Durable Democratic Transition

A stable move toward democracy with a lower risk of relapse into violence or authoritarianism

Genocide

Acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group

Mass Killing

The killing of many members of a group without the intention to eliminate the group

Instigation

Initial difficult conditions or conflicts that begin the process leading toward genocide or mass killing

Difficult Life Conditions

Severe economic problems, political disorganization, or rapid social change that frustrate basic needs

Basic Needs

Fundamental human needs for security, positive identity, effectiveness and control, connection to others, and meaningful comprehension of reality

Social Identity

The extent to which a person's identity is based on membership in a group

Individual (Personal) Identity

How individuals answer the question "Who am I?"

Group Self-Concept:

How members see and define their group

Scapegoating

Blaming an outgroup for the problems faced by one's own group

Ideology

A vision of social arrangements that promises a better life and often identifies enemies

Better World Ideology

An ideology that claims to improve life for all humanity

Nationalistic Ideology

An ideology that promises improvement primarily for one's own group

Legitimizing Ideology

An ideology that justifies the power and privilege of dominant groups

Ideology of Antagonism

A form of group identity centered on hostility toward another group

Authority Orientation

Strong respect for and obedience to authority within a culture

Cultural Devaluation

A history of devaluing a particular group embedded in a society's culture

Unhealed Wounds

Lasting effects of past victimization that make a group feel threatened and vulnerable

Continuum of Destruction

The gradual evolution from discrimination to increasing violence and ultimately genocide

Moral Exclusion

Placing victims outside the realm of moral concern

Bystanders

Internal or external observers whose passivity allows violence to evolve