Discussion paper

DP5622 On the Theory of Ethnic Conflict

We present a theory of ethnic conflict in which coalitions formed along ethnic lines compete for the economy's resources. The role of ethnicity is to enforce coalition membership: in ethnically homogeneous societies members of the losing coalition can defect to the winners at low cost, and this rules out conflict as an equilibrium outcome. We derive a number of implications of the model relating social, political, and economic indicators such as the incidence of conflict, the distance among ethnic groups, group sizes, income inequality, and expropriable resources.

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Citation

Coleman II, W and F Caselli (2006), ‘DP5622 On the Theory of Ethnic Conflict‘, CEPR Discussion Paper No. 5622. CEPR Press, Paris & London. https://cepr.org/publications/dp5622