Funding Violence: Effect of Extractive FDI on State Propensity for Mass Killing

• In Event: Poster Session: International Political Economy I

Abstract

Existing research has identified several factors influencing a state’s decision to utilize mass killing. Among these is the robust relationship between primary resources and civil conflict as identified by civil war scholars. Relatedly, recent work in international political economy suggests that foreign direct investment also affects civil unrest. This article contributes to the growing study of globalization’s effect on political violence by exploring the joint effect of foreign direct investment in the primary sector resources on civil conflict. Using logistic regression and a new longitudinal, historical data set of political mass killings, we suggest a novel approach for understanding the factors that affect state actors' decision to use mass killing. We argue that high levels of foreign investment in extractive resources supplement a state’s income during episodes of mass killing, thus increasing the likelihood of such an event occurring. We find that foreign direct investment flows in primary sector resources like oil production are both statistically and substantively important in explaining state actors' decision to use mass killing.

Authors

• Aubrey Waddick, Pennsylvania State University

• Mikaela Karstens, Pennsylvania State University