What is peace education and peace research?

Peace education and research occurs in—and at the intersections of—traditional and emerging disciplines. Peacemaking is less a distinct field and more a conceptual framework with broad application.

The table below—adapted from "Social, Political, and Cultural Influences on Peace Studies" by George A. Lopez—shows an early conceptual map of some peace studies disciplines.

empty	Individual	Social Group and Intranational	International
Causes and Consequences of Violence	Psychology Socio-biology Philosophy Humanities	Social-Psychology Economics Sociology Political Science Journalism	Social Sciences writ large
Reducing or Resolving Violent Conflict	Psychology Communication Labor Relations Education	Labor Relations Social-Psychology Law Social Sciences writ large	International Studies Social Sciences writ large
Norms and Institutions of Peace	Philosophy Humanities Religious Studies	Sociology Political Science Law	International Law International Studies

 

The Peacemaking and Peacebuilding Research Areas graphic — adapted from "Peacebuilding 2.0: Mapping the Boundaries of an Expanding Field" by the Alliance for Peacebuilding — identifies additional established and emerging areas of peace research. Areas depicted include Academic, Conflict Prevention, Conflict Resolution & Transformation, Democracy & Governance, Development, Environment, Food Security, Genocide Prevention, Health, Human Rights, Human Security, Humanitarian Aid, Nuclear Proliferation, Refugees & Internally Displaced Persons, Religion, Rule of Law, Science & Technology, Security, Women, and Youth.

Center for Peacemaking priority research areas

The center has identified the following research areas as priorities for advancing peacemaking scholarship at Marquette:

1. The process of healing and reconciliation after the use of violence (random, terror, sexual, premeditated, military).
2. The reasons for the success or failure of peace agreements and accords in building nonviolent peaceful communities.
3. Reasons for the success or failure of nonviolent social movements.
4. Best practices for teaching about peace and conflict resolution.
5. The role of religion and ethnic sources as a motivator for the expansion or the incitement to violence.
6. The role of economic, governmental and international organizations (UN, EU, WHO, etc.) policy in promoting peace.
7. The use (positive or negative) of communication, technology and social media to influence perceptions of peacemaking, of the identities of the "other" or of violence.
8. The effect of language and advertising in cultural values and ethics toward gender or ethnic perceptions.
9. The efficacy of peacemaking and conflict resolution in schools, the workplace, the government or international conflicts.
10. Role of literature and entertainment influencing society's attitudes toward social welfare, justice and violence.
11. Research related to the reduction of violence against women, including evaluations of efforts by health care and social service providers to reduce familial and societal violence in at-risk populations.
12. The effects of environmental degradation on regional conflict and migration and methods of promoting sustainable use of resources.
13. The impact of handgun availability on interpersonal conflict and community health in Milwaukee.
14. The impact of violence prevention and community organizing on community efficacy and neighborhood development in Milwaukee.