University of Massachusetts Boston ScholarWorks at UMass Boston Graduate Doctoral Dissertations Doctoral Dissertations and Masters Theses 5-2020 Participate for Peace: The Impacts of Participatory Deliberative Democracy on Post-Conflict eacebuildingP in Central America Marcia D. Mundt Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umb.edu/doctoral_dissertations Part of the Peace and Conflict Studies Commons, Political Science Commons, and the Public Policy Commons PARTICIPATE FOR PEACE: THE IMPACTS OF PARTICIPATORY DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRACY ON POST-CONFLICT PEACEBUILDING IN CENTRAL AMERICA A Dissertation Presented by MARCIA D. MUNDT Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies, University of Massachusetts Boston, in partiaL fulfiLLment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 2020 Public Policy Program ©2020 by Marcia D. Mundt ALL rights reserved PARTICIPATE FOR PEACE: THE IMPACTS OF PARTICIPATORY DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRACY ON POST-CONFLICT PEACEBUILDING IN CENTRAL AMERICA A Dissertation Presented by MARCIA D. MUNDT Approved as to style and content by: _______________________________ Aroon Manoharan, Associate Professor Chairperson of the Committee _______________________________ Erin O’Brien, Professor Member _______________________________ Darren Kew, Professor Member _______________________________ Kade Finnoff, Associate Professor Azim Premji University Member _______________________________ Heather MacIndoe, Program Director Public Policy Program _______________________________ MichaeL Johnson, Chair Department of Public Policy and Public Affairs ABSTRACT PARTICIPATE FOR PEACE: THE IMPACTS OF PARTICIPATORY DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRACY ON POST-CONFLICT PEACEBUILDING IN CENTRAL AMERICA May 2020 Marcia D. Mundt, B.A., New Mexico State University M.A., University of Bradford M.S.P.P., University of Massachusetts Boston Ph.D., University of Massachusetts Boston LiberaL peacebuiLding is at the center of a criticaL debate amongst scholars and practitioners due to the horrific consequence of conflict reLapse or escaLation in the wake of faiLed internationaL interventions. Despite internationaL efforts to promote durable peace, empiricaL research suggests that up to one haLf of aLL civiL wars reLapse into conflict within five years of negotiated settLement (ColLier & Hoeffler, 2002; Suhrke & Samset, 2007). As an aLternative to top-down LiberaL peace, LocaLLy-Led post-conflict peacebuiLding has been proposed as an innovative solution (Mac Ginty & Richmond, 2013). Participatory deLiberative democracy, when applied in post-conflict contexts, aLigns with this ‘locaL turn' by supporting ‘hybridity’ in peacebuiLding practice. However, its potentiaL for contributing to sustainable peace has not yet been empiricaLLy tested. This dissertation explores how two post-conflict nations in CentraL America—EL SaLvador and GuatemaLa—have implemented participatory deLiberative democracy mechanisms folLowing civiL war and the impacts of these mechanisms on the Long- term peace process. Combining theoreticaL frameworks from across politicaL science, iv economics, and conflict resolution disciplines aLongside an internationaL comparative mixed methodology, this study identifies the impacts associated with participatory deLiberative democracy over time in two CentraL American post-conflict countries and the structuraL and contextuaL factors that influence deLiberative decision making as a possible mechanism to support lasting peace folLowing civiL war. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS They say that it takes a viLLage to raise a chiLd, but to raise a famiLy and complete a PhD program featuring an internationaL comparative case study takes an internationaL network. Since starting this journey, I tied the knot with my (now) husband Anthony WaLden and have been blessed with two heaLthy and kind chiLdren: Cyan and Sage. My growing famiLy has supported me throughout the program by way of giggles, reflective conversations, and shifting my priorities. They have heLped keep me grounded in what reaLLy matters. I am grateful for their partnership and individuaL sacrifices over the Last five years. This dissertation would never have been completed without them. Beyond the support and assistance of my nucLear famiLy, our immediate famiLy members have aLso heLped me to bring this project to fruition. My parents Mark and Julia have flown from New Mexico to Boston on severaL occasions to heLp me through semester crunch times and fiLL up my freezer with homemade meaLs, as have my sisters JeweL and Miranda. With the support of my parents, my famiLy had an appropriate and safe vehicLe during my fieLdwork in CentraL America. Likewise, my husband’s father Jeff aLLowed our famiLy to stay his home whiLe we were in transition from the US to CentraL America and his mother Deborah cared for our home and beLongings whiLe we were away. SeveraL extended famiLy members such as John, Joanne, Lisa, and Kim aLso opened their homes to us as we traveLed from site to site. The network of support I received during this PhD program extended far beyond famiLy, however. I could not have made it through without the friendship of Andrea who worked in the Public Policy Department. She carpooled with me to cLasses, watched my kids, jumped in during emergencies, instiLLed in me a Love for North AtLantic beaches and farmer’s vi markets, flew out to GuatemaLa to heLp me cLose out my fieLdwork, and packed my bags through tears as we prepared to move away. Laura and Ferdinand pulLed me away from the computer to go hiking and explore the Northeast, and our chiLdren have become such cLose friends that they too came out to GuatemaLa to heLp my kids adjust and approach traveL through a Lens of discovery. Ashley heLped me to take breaks out of town and jumped in to assist me with editing. WhiLe abroad, severaL new and old friends heLped to orient me to new surroundings and heLped my famiLy through accLimatization, a gift with untold vaLue. They incLude José, Catherine, Josue and Claudia, Vicky, Ema, Professor Lemus Miranda, Dr. Narvaez, Dr. Pérez, and many others we encountered during my fieLdwork. My colLeagues both at UMass Boston and various practitioner organizations aLso made a significant contribution to my work and success. First and foremost, I would Like to recognize my amazing doctoraL program cohort. They provided feedback on my papers, invited me out to kid-friendly trivia and bowLing nights, and took a genuine colLegiaL investment in our mutuaL success. Second, I am grateful for the opportunities I had as a Graduate Research Assistant in the Department of Public Policy and Public Affairs and the Center for Peace, Democracy, and DeveLopment to contribute to the projects of Dr. PateL, Dr. Ross, Dr. Kew, Dr. Rayman, Dr. Ahn, Dr. O’Brien, Dr. MacIndoe, and Dr. Manoharan. Third, I thank my coworkers and supervisors at New Sector ALLiance, the City of Cambridge, Interim Executive Solutions, and Stanford University for aLLowing me to keep one foot in the practitioner world and advance my sociaL sector career throughout my studies. I consider myseLf incredibly Lucky to have had the flexibiLity and opportunity to grow in so many ways these past five years. FinaLLy, I would Like to thank the members of my dissertation committee and my research colLaborators and funders for their support of this project. My committee members vii Dr. Manoharan, Dr. O’Brian, Dr. Kew, and Dr. Finnoff were staunch advocates of my success, offering fantastic feedback and advice aLong the way. This was an ambitious project in many ways, requiring extra paperwork, recommendation Letters, and bureaucratic hoop-jumping. I appreciated their patience and support through it aLL. I aLso enjoyed substantiaL colLaboration from Dr. Zechmeister, the Latin American Public Opinion Project, and its major supporters (the United States Agency for InternationaL DeveLopment, the Inter-American DeveLopment Bank, and VanderbiLt University). I thank them for their partnership and making the AmericasBarometer data avaiLable. Lastly, my research would not have been possible without generous funding from the University of Massachusetts Boston Office of GLobaL Programs InternationaL Research and Dissertation Research Grants, the United States Institute for Peace Jennings Randolph Peace Scholarship, or the Fulbright-Hays FeLLowship awarded to me for this project. It takes an internationaL network, and I thank aLL of you for joining me on this journey. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………………………………………………..vi LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ………………………………………………………....xi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ………………………………………………………………..xii CHAPTER Page 1. INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………………….. 1 1a. Research Design Overview ............................................................................... 5 1b. Contributions of the Study ................................................................................ 8 1c. Structure of the Dissertation ............................................................................ 11 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ……………………………………………………………..14 2a. The CaLL for PeacebuiLding .............................................................................. 14 2b. LiberaL Peace ................................................................................................... 17 2c. A Turn Toward the LocaL ................................................................................ 19 2d. Participatory DeLiberative Democracy as a Mechanism for PeacebuiLding .... 22 2e. PoliticaL Impacts .............................................................................................