REU Site: Civil Conflict Management and Peace Science

REU 网站：民事冲突管理与和平科学

• 批准号: 1062343
• 负责人: John Ishiyama
• 金额: $ 34.71万
• 依托单位: University of North Texas
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-03-15 至 2015-02-28
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1062343&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: REU; Site; Civil; Conflict; Management

Given the growing frequency of civil conflicts in the world, and the security concerns these conflicts engender for the United States in the 21st century, the development of human capital that is equipped to deal with these challenges is critical for the national security of the country. The Department of Political Science at the University of North Texas (UNT) seeks to initiate a unique program to provide 10 undergraduate students (recruited from across the country) the opportunity to engage in graduate-level research in conflict management and peace studies, in a senior faculty-mentored, in-residence, eight-week, Summer Research Experience (SRE) that integrates training in civil conflict management with training in propositional calculus and computer simulation skills. Participants will use propositional calculus and simulations to develop theoretical propositions that will be tested empirically. Participants will collect and analyze empirical data and report their findings in a national professional political science conference. Activities will include workshops on computer simulations, research methodology, and the graduate school application process. There will also be activities designed to build a sense of research community among students, faculty and graduate student mentors. Our previous experience with a one-year pilot program that was authorized by the NSF (serving eight participants in the summer of 2010) has demonstrated the effectiveness of our planned program.The political science department at UNT is ideally positioned to offer such a program. With 31 full time faculty members, home to the Vivian Castleberry Peace Institute, and the only degree granting program in peace science in the Southwestern United States, and with some of the most noteworthy scholars in the field of international and civil conflict (as well as having faculty with substantial experience in managing undergraduate research programs) the UNT Department of Political Science is very well equipped to offer an REU on conflict management and peace science.Intellectual Merit: The intellectual focus of the program is on civil conflict management and the enhancement of peace. Indeed since 1945 civil war ? revolution, secessionist war, and ethnic and sectarian violence ? has replaced interstate war as the most frequent and deadly form of armed conflict in the world. Our proposed program seeks to focus on understanding the causes of civil conflict occurrence (or reoccurrence) and investigating possible institutional configurations and other types of actions that may assist in ameliorating civil conflict (such as peacekeeping missions). In particular, we seek to train students in formal and logical reasoning, which will promote innovative thinking and problem solving skills. Developing empirical skills to test the theoretical propositions derived from the use of computer simulations will also hone the scientific skills of the student participants.Broader Impacts: Training in conflict management that includes populations historically underrepresented in higher education (but which are growing as a proportion of the undergraduate student population in the United States) is a national imperative. This program seeks to address the need to develop further expertise in conflict management and peace science by providing opportunities to engage in advanced empirical research to students from such populations, students who would not otherwise have such opportunities. UNT is well positioned, both institutionally and geographically, to provide such access. To that end, they have secured formal commitments from Hispanic and Native American Serving Institutions and from Historically Black Colleges/ Universities (HBCU) in Texas and Oklahoma, and the Ronald E. McNair Program at UNT to assist in broadening the pool of applicants to the program. However, the PIs solicit applications from across the country as well.

鉴于世界上日益频繁的国内冲突，以及这些冲突在21世纪世纪给美国带来的安全问题，开发有能力应对这些挑战的人力资本对国家安全至关重要。北德克萨斯大学（UNT）政治学系寻求启动一项独特的计划，为10名本科生提供（从全国各地征聘）有机会在一个高级教员指导的驻地研究所进行冲突管理与和平研究方面的研究生级研究，为期八周，暑期研究经验（SRE），将民事冲突管理培训与命题演算和计算机模拟技能培训相结合。参与者将使用命题演算和模拟来开发理论命题，并进行经验测试。参与者将收集和分析经验数据，并在全国专业政治学会议上报告他们的发现。活动将包括计算机模拟，研究方法和研究生院申请过程的研讨会。还将举办旨在在学生、教师和研究生导师中建立研究社区意识的活动。我们以前的经验与一个为期一年的试点计划，是由美国国家科学基金会授权（在2010年夏天服务八名参与者）已经证明了我们计划的计划的有效性。在UNT的政治学系是理想的定位，提供这样一个程序。拥有31名全职教师，是Vivian Castleberry和平研究所的所在地，也是美国西南部唯一的和平科学学位授予项目，并与国际和国内冲突领域的一些最著名的学者（以及在管理本科研究项目方面具有丰富经验的教师）政治学系是非常好的装备，以提供一个冲突管理与和平科学的REU。2智力优点：该计划的智力重点是国内冲突管理和加强和平。从1945年内战开始？革命、分离主义战争、种族和宗派暴力？已经取代国家间战争成为世界上最频繁和最致命的武装冲突形式。我们提出的计划旨在重点了解国内冲突发生（或再次发生）的原因，并调查可能的机构配置和其他类型的行动，可能有助于改善国内冲突（如维和特派团）。特别是，我们力求培养学生的形式和逻辑推理，这将促进创新思维和解决问题的能力。发展经验技能，以测试从使用计算机模拟得出的理论命题也将磨练学生参与者的科学技能。更广泛的影响：培训冲突管理，包括人口历史上在高等教育中代表不足（但在美国的本科生人口的比例正在增长）是一个国家的当务之急。该计划旨在解决需要进一步发展冲突管理与和平科学的专业知识，通过提供机会，从事先进的实证研究，从这些人群的学生，学生谁不会有这样的机会。联合国技术小组在机构和地理上都有很好的条件提供这种机会。为此，他们已经获得了西班牙裔和美洲原住民服务机构以及德克萨斯州和俄克拉荷马州的历史黑人学院/大学（HBCU）的正式承诺，以及罗纳德E。麦克奈尔计划在北卡罗来纳州，以协助扩大申请人的程序池。然而，PI也从全国各地征集申请。