University of Denver Digital Commons @ DU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 1-1-2015 Everyday Indivisibility: How Exclusive Religious Practices Explain Variation in Subnational Violence Outcomes Joel Kieth Day University of Denver Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd Part of the International Relations Commons, Peace and Conflict Studies Commons, and the Religion Commons Recommended Citation Day, Joel Kieth, "Everyday Indivisibility: How Exclusive Religious Practices Explain Variation in Subnational Violence Outcomes" (2015). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1021. https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/1021 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at Digital Commons @ DU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ DU. For more information, please contact [email protected],[email protected]. Everyday Indivisibility: How Exclusive Religious Practices Explain Variation in Subnational Violence Outcomes _______ A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Josef Korbel School of International Studies University of Denver _______ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy ______ By Joel Keith Day August 2015 Advisor: Erica Chenoweth ©Copyright by Joel Keith Day 2015 All Rights Reserved Author: Joel Keith Day Title: Everyday Indivisibility: How Exclusive Religious Practices Explain Variation in Subnational Violence Outcomes Advisor: Erica Chenoweth Degree Date: August 2015 Abstract This project explores the puzzle of religious violence variation. Religious actors initiate conflict at a higher rate than their secular counterparts, last longer, are more deadly, and are less prone to negotiated termination. Yet the legacy of religious peacemakers on the reduction of violence is undeniable. Under what conditions does religion contribute to escalated violence and under what conditions does it contribute to peace? I argue that more intense everyday practices of group members, or high levels of orthopraxy, create dispositional indivisibilities that make violence a natural alternative to bargaining. Subnational armed groups with members whose practices are exclusive and isolating bind together through ritual practice, limit the acceptable decisions of leaders, and have prolonged timeframes, all of which result in higher levels of intensity, intransigence and resolve during violent conflict. The theory challenges both instrumentalist and constructivist understandings of social identity and violence. To support this argument, I construct an original cross-national data-set that employs ethnographic data on micro-level religious practices for 724 subnational armed groups in both civil wars and terror campaigns. Using this data, I build an explanatory “religious practice index” for each observation and examine its relationship with conflict outcomes. Findings suggest that exclusive practice groups fight significantly longer with ii more intensity and negotiate less. I also apply the practice model to qualitative cases. Fieldwork in the West Bank and Sierra Leone reveals that groups with more exclusive religious practicing membership are principle contributors to violence, whereas those with inclusive practices can contribute to peace. The project concludes with a discussion about several avenues for future research and identifies the practical policy applications to better identify and combat religious extremism. iii Acknowledgments Many people played key roles through my graduate education and the process of completing this dissertation in particular. I was fortunate to have a supportive committee: Jack Donnelly introduced me to practice-based social theory, while Nader Hashemi, and Monica Duffy Toft provided excellent advice and counsel. My advisor, Erica Chenoweth, is an unparalleled scholar and an even better mentor. Erica's model of excellence will remain with me forever. A Faculty Research Grant at the University of Denver provided funding for fieldwork in Israel. I am grateful for Allyson Hodges, Daren Fisher, and Laura Dugan for their companionship and assistance in Israel. My life-long friend, Grace Newman, suggested Sierra Leone as a case-study and proved instrumental during my fieldwork. The Josef Korbel School's Ph.D. program generously supported fieldwork in Salone. I am grateful to Mandi Donahoe, Pauline Moore, Kyleanne Hunter, Jonathan and Kandyce Pinckney, Jonathan Moyer, and Kevin Archer for being constant sounding- boards and true friends. I am also thankful for the Sollenbergers, Zoey DeWolf, Cris Huerta, Michael Hemmingway, the Decker-Smiths, and friends at First Plymouth UCC. This could not have been completed without my family. My parents supported my dreams and passions. My in-laws, Bob and Debi, tirelessly provided material and spiritual support. Lauren Ries, my partner, uniquely enabled this project, listened to my complaints with grace, and pushed me to be a better scholar and person. This project is dedicated to my “thesis-baby,” Robert Adlai Day, that he may live in a world where “nation shall not lift up sword against nation, and neither shall they learn war no more.” iv Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction to the Puzzle, Argument, Outline, and Contributions..................1 Competing Explanations......................................................................................................5 Disaggregated Measures of Religion.................................................................................13 Practice Theory and Observable Implications...................................................................14 Layout of the Dissertation..................................................................................................19 Scope of the Study.............................................................................................................25 Contributions......................................................................................................................27 Chapter 2: A Practice Approach to Religion and Violence...............................................34 What are Practices?............................................................................................................36 Propositional vs. Dispositional Approaches......................................................................41 Religion as Practice............................................................................................................42 The Site of the Religious Everyday ..................................................................................48 Conceiving of Practices as Inclusive/Exclusive................................................................52 Elements of Religious Practice..........................................................................................55 Indivisibility as TeleoAffective Structure..........................................................................65 Indivisibility and Conflict Dynamics.................................................................................73 Practice Disaggregation as Preferable to Propositional Alternatives................................80 Conclusion.........................................................................................................................96 Chapter 3: Quantitative Research Design and Analysis....................................................98 A Methodological Turn To Practice..................................................................................99 Indivisibility and Practice................................................................................................101 Research Design...............................................................................................................105 Unit of Analysis...............................................................................................................116 Methods............................................................................................................................123 Summary, Advantages and Limitations of Quantitative Analysis ..................................135 Chapter 4: Qualitative Research Design.........................................................................141 Tracing Practices .............................................................................................................143 Case Selection and Design...............................................................................................146 Research Tactics..............................................................................................................159 Conclusion.......................................................................................................................165 Chapter 5: Spoiling for a Fight: Jewish Vigilantism in the West Bank...........................167 Case A: The Hilltop Youth..............................................................................................174 Case B: Religious Zionists...............................................................................................207 v Case C: Ultra Orthodox...................................................................................................231 Alternative Explanations..................................................................................................249 Conclusion.......................................................................................................................259