Author:
Tkacova Katerina,Idler Annette,Johnson Neil,López Eduardo
Abstract
AbstractWe study the severity of conflict-related violence in Colombia at an unprecedented granular scale in space and across time. Splitting the data into different geographical regions and different historically-relevant periods, we uncover variations in the patterns of conflict severity which we then explain in terms of local conflict actors' different collective behaviors and/or conditions using a simple mathematical model of conflict actors' grouping dynamics (coalescence and fragmentation). Specifically, variations in the approximate scaling values of the distributions of event lethalities can be explained by the changing strength ratio of the local conflict actors for distinct conflict eras and organizational regions. In this way, our findings open the door to a new granular spectroscopy of human conflicts in terms of local conflict actor strength ratios for any armed conflict.
Funder
Minerva Research Initiative in partnership with the Air Force Office of Scientific Research
Arts & Humanities Research Council and the Economic & Social Research Council through the Partnership for Conflict, Crime & Security Research
Arts & Humanities Research Council
U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research awards
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC