International Peace Studies

Peace Studies is a multidisciplinary field focused on understanding the root causes of armed conflicts and exploring ways to achieve sustainable peace in societies affected by war. The course covers theories of peace and war, as well as specific topics relevant to International Peace Studies. These include concepts like peace, violence, and conflict, as well as conflict resolution, transformation, and peacebuilding theories. The module serves as an introduction to these issues and theories, providing a foundation for more specialized courses within the International Peace Studies program. In addition, students are required to participate in one of the seminar groups associated with the course.

The Research Methods module introduces students to the key approaches to research in the Social Sciences, focusing on the knowledge and research skills necessary to write a dissertation in International Peace Studies. The module covers research paradigms, methodologies, qualitative and quantitative research methods, mixed methodologies, research design, management and ethics, new emerging research methods, decolonising methodologies, AI and the research process, and research integrity. After completing the module, students will have the skills needed to design their own research project, collect and analyse data, and write up their dissertation.

What insights can gender analysis provide about the roots and nature of war and peace? The module begins by exploring and criticising some basic gendered assumptions - such as that war is the business of men and peace that of women. Instead, we challenge these dichotomies by examining issues such as the complicated relationship between the social construction of masculinity and soldiering and the challenge posed to militaries by the inclusion of women in their ranks. We ask why peace processes have generally excluded women and what the consequences of that are for the sustainability of peace, while at the same time querying the assumption that 'women' as an essentialized group have skills to bring to the peace table. Through these debates we examine the ways in which war and peace are gendered experiences which also shape our understanding of what it is to be a gendered person.

Religious, ethnic, and far-right radicalisation, along with various forms of violent extremism, have had a serious impact on millions of people worldwide. The aftermath of 9/11, the emergence of Islamist groups such as ISIS in Syria and Iraq, and the growth of fundamentalist and far-right organizations in several global contexts have raised important questions about the nature, evolution, causes, and consequences of such phenomena. As a result, debates about these topics are now at the forefront of academic, policymaking, and media discussions. The module will equip students with the necessary tools to critically engage with such issues through the latest research and methodologies. We will also challenge common wisdom and open debates around the role of violence in relation to state power in the late 20^th and early 21^st centuries, while assessing the efficacy of the conventional security responses to the threats of fundamentalism, radicalisation, and violent extremism.

The module aims to explore why religion continues to be significant in today's globalized world. It seeks to examine how religion has been disregarded in International Relations theory (Realism, Liberalism, Marxism, Constructivism, etc.) and to lay the groundwork for reintegrating religious perspectives into IR discourses. The module challenges the common belief that the involvement of religion in politics always poses a threat to international security and impedes the resolution of global conflicts. It also delves into the concept of a 'post-secular' international system, a system where religion is a social, political, and cultural force, recognizing the necessity for scholarly interaction with faith-based groups and voices that have a substantial impact on world conflicts and peacebuilding initiatives.

This module provides a critical introduction to the fundamental ideas, principles and practices which underpin the protection and promotion of human rights at the international and national level. We will begin by looking at the origins, foundations and justifications of human rights considering a diverse range of philosophical, political and religious perspectives.  The module will also consider the institutional context of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and associated treaties, bodies and frameworks.  Other significant themes will include: the debate between universalistic defences of human rights and pragmatic or culturally based approaches; the role of state power and invocations of security on human rights norms; the torture debate; climate change and its significance for human rights, gendered perspectives on human rights; religions and human rights, especially debates about freedom of religion and belief. 

The European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) were founded in the aftermath of the Second World War and both sought to achieve peace and security. Yet they are very different from each other and each are criticised for their failures in conflict resolution. This module aims to examine the causes of  the EU’s and UN’s  foundation and to assess their success in achieving international cooperation and conflict resolution. International relations theory is applied to the EU and the UN’s foundation and to its decision-making processes and policies to conflicts, so as to compare and evaluate both organisations analytically.

International Peace Studies has built strong connections with NGOs that focus on peacebuilding, human rights, and conflict resolution. As a result, we have created an internship program that is at the forefront of these areas. The main theme of the program is to examine the relevance of NGOs in key international politics and to assess their role based on academic literature and work placement experience. Some of the NGOs currently providing internships to our students include Frontline Defenders in Dublin, the United Nations in Geneva, World Vision in Dublin, and the Churches Commission on Migration Issues in Brussels.

Please note the following: Internships are unpaid, and students are responsible for covering all associated costs, such as travel and accommodation. The number of available internships will determine the intake to this module. Cancelling your internship is only permitted in cases of medical or bereavement reasons. Internships will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.

Peacebuilding is an inter-disciplinary field of research and practice, with a particular concern for increasing understanding of the origins of violent conflicts and possibilities for their resolution and transformation, as well as conditions for sustainable peace. Since former UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali’s report, An Agenda for Peace (1992), the term peacebuilding has been widely used by the international community to embrace multiple activities in multiple sectors, from peace mediation to humanitarian and development aid cooperation, to prevent and/or to end violent conflicts. This module examines the complex relationship between peacebuilding and development in conflict-affected societies, and introduces relevant concepts and theories, as well as practices, including conflict sensitive development, basic conflict analysis, peace mediation and peacebuilding skills. Multiple case studies will be used to explore the on-the-ground reality from the perspective of diverse theories and concepts. 

The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement, which brought peace to Northern Ireland, is considered a model of conflict resolution. However, its primary goal was not only peace but also reconciliation, and its success in achieving reconciliation remains incomplete. This module takes a multidisciplinary approach to help understand the conflict, the peace process, and the challenges of achieving reconciliation. It explores the topic of reconciliation in Ireland and whether it is attainable. The module concludes on a positive note by highlighting the benefits of the Good Friday Agreement and discussing how to advance reconciliation in the coming decades, especially in anticipation of a possible referendum on a United Ireland.

Forced migration of people stands at record numbers in the contemporary world. This displacement is caused by a complicated range of factors, but war is often at the root. How people move, where they go, and the rights and reception accorded to them are crucial ethical and political concerns of our times. While human rights and ethical frameworks exist, global and local political climates mean that ‘securitization’ and ‘crimmigration’ approaches often dominate contemporary responses. This module explores these dynamics from an interdisciplinary perspective and draws on a number of case studies of forced migration to explore the issues. Critical engagement with the politics and ethics surrounding forced displacement will enable us to ask what responses from the perspective of peacebuilding might look like. This will be considered in ways that recognise the agency of the displaced, as well as host communities and the political context in which all this unfolds. 

This module emphasizes the concept of 'worldview' as a key factor in understanding identity conflict and developing strategies to address its deepest causes and motivations. Worldview is particularly valuable for examining modern situations where communities are divided based on seemingly irreconcilable values, conflicting visions of society and the state, or mutually exclusive perspectives on the past and aspirations for the future. Because worldview differences pose unique challenges for negotiation, conflict resolution, and peacemaking as they are the main source of ‘intractability’, third-party intervenors must develop specific analytical and methodological approaches to address such conflicting differences. Using interdisciplinary teaching, class activities, and reflective exercises, the module aims to increase participants' awareness of how their own and others' worldviews influence their interactions as negotiators and dialogue partners in situations involving identity and protected values. Importantly, the module is designed to equip participants with the skills to become more effective negotiators and dialogue partners, thereby improving their ability to navigate worldview disputes and build peace.