Erica De Bruin, assistant professor of government, presented "Coups, Coup Prevention, and Civil War" at a workshop on the "Dynamics of Violence and the Role of the Security Sector," held on Sept. 25-26 at the University of Mannheim, Germany.
The paper analyzes the conditions under which military coups escalate into wider political violence and civil war. De Bruin argues that some of the coup prevention strategies rulers use, such as counterbalancing the military with paramilitaries and militia forces, increase the risk of escalation.
