Challenges Encountered in the Study of Neighborhood Violence in Bosnia and Beyond

• In Event: Challenges in Researching Mass Violence in the Former Yugoslavia

Abstract

This paper addresses theoretical issues affecting the study of neighborhood violence in Bosnia and elsewhere, including the current focus on intergroup relations and the problematic definition of a neighbor as an operative term. It emphasizes the importance of studying interpersonal relationships, avoiding generalizations, and understanding neighborliness as a dynamic social relationship. The paper also addresses methodological and epistemic issues, such as the lack of sources in court and governmental archives and an epistemic preference for general over specific, which the field needs to address.

Author

• Sandra Grudic, Harvard University - Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies