The Effects of Civil War Outcomes on Economic Disparities, Government Repression and State Building in Post-Conflict Countrie

The overall goal of this dissertation is to investigate the impact of civil war outcomes on (1) economic disparities between social groups, (2) government repression, and (3) state capacity in post-conflict countries. I primarily focus on these three factors because of their potential impact on post-conflict stability. Prior literature on conflict termination mainly focused on understanding how civil war outcomes influence civil war recurrence or post-conflict stability. Some scholars argued that military victories provide the most viable means to end and prevent civil wars from recurring in again (Wagner, 1993; Licklider, 1995; Walter, 1997; Luttwak, 1999). Others argued that the design, structure, and implementation of civil war settlements play a big role in creating conditions that have the potential to produce durable peace after civil wars (Arnault, 2006; Hartzell and Hoddie, 2007; Mattes and Savun, 2009; Doyle and Sambanis, 2000, 2007). This dissertation goes beyond the traditional focus on how civil war outcomes influence post-conflict stability. It seeks to understand the impact of civil war outcomes on factors such as inequality between social groups, government repression in post-conflict settings, and state capacity building after civil wars. Each topic is developed further in three independent articles that form the body of my dissertation. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.).