Abstract This article provides an overview of the theoretical and empirical contributions made by scholars ethnic politics in Africa. I first discuss definitions measures most commonly used. then review main explanations prevalence politics. The following sections consequences politicized ethnicity, variation politics, relationship between ethnicity other social identities, such as national ide...

Abstract Research shows that ethnic identification increases on the eve of competitive elections in Africa, but does it do so at expense national solidarities? Do exacerbate negative expressions strong attachments-coethnic favoritism, relative status concerns, and social distance to other groups? These questions are important because latter attitudes perceptions linked a host ills democracies. ...

Using qualitative interview data gathered from 28 Hmong adolescents, we examined the meaning ascribed to language and style and how language and style behaviors are used to distinguish identity. We found that the participants used language and style to define their own ethnic group membership and cultural identities. Moreover they inferred meaning from these identity behaviors to discern which ...

While reporting recently on his organization’s annual survey of political rights and civil liberties around the world, Freedom House president Adrian Karatnycky repeated the claim—heard often in academic and public discourse alike—that ethnic diversity hinders open politics. Reviewing the findings of the 2001 survey, he concluded that “democracy has been significantly more successful in monoeth...

Culture constrains individual choice, rendering certain actions impermissible or taboo. While cultural constraints may regulate behavior within a group, they can have a pernicious effect in multicultural societies, inhibiting the emergence of unified social conventions. We analyze interactions between members of two cultural groups who are matched to play a coordination game with an arbitrary n...