I am an assistant professor of Political Science at Brigham Young University and an affiliate of the Political Economy and Development Lab. I finished my PhD at the University of Illinois in Summer 2007. My research primarily addresses international security questions with an emphasis on civil war management and resolution. I am currently finishing a book manuscript on the topic of "spoiler" groups whose actions often threaten to undermine civil war peace processes. I am also carrying out several field experiments that address the underlying determinants of conflict and poverty. I teach courses on ethnic conflict and civil war, terrorism, political violence, international relations, and field experiments.
Civil Wars & Ethnic Violence
Peacebuilding and Development
Terrorism
Agent-based Modeling
Experiments
Published Articles
5. "Rumor Dynamics in Ethnic Violence." Journal of Politics 71(3): 876--892. (With Ravi Bhavnani and Jim Kuklinski) [web link]
4. "Agents and Conflict: Adaptation and the Dynamics of War." 2008. Complexity.[web link]
3. "Fighting Fire with Fire? How (Not) to Neutralize an Insurgency." 2007. Civil Wars. (With Joseph Young) [web link]
2. "Accounting for the Unaccounted: Weak-Actor Social Structure in Asymmetric Wars" 2007. International Studies Quarterly. (With Scott Edwards) [web link]
1. "Rethinking Third Party Interventions into Civil Wars: An Actor-Centric Approach." 2006. Journal of Politics. (With Tze Kwang Teo) [web link]
Under Review
"Terrorism, Bargaining, and Credible Commitments." (With Joseph K. Young) Revise and Resubmit
"Combatant Fragmentation and the Dynamics of Civil War." (With Peter J. Rudloff) Revise and Resubmit
"Just Part of the Game?: Arms Races, Rivalry, and Competition." (With Toby J. Rider and Paul F. Diehl) Revise and Resubmit
Working Papers and Projects
"Spoiling the Peace or Seeking the Spoils? Civil War Resolution and the Role of Spoilers." Book Manuscript in Preparation.
"Terror, Conflict Processes, Organizations, & Ideologies: Completing the Picture." National Science Foundation Grant ($467,000; with Stephen Shellman, Ryan Bakker, Remco Chang, Michael Covington, and Joe Young).
"Lootable Resources and Third-Party Intervention into Civil Wars." (With Ashley Anne Mitchell)
"The Path Dependence of Civil War Resolution."
"The Geography of Foreign Aid and Violent Armed Conflict." (With Daniel Strandow)
"Problems, Promise and Pitfalls of Terrorism Research." (With Joseph K. Young)
"Spoiling the Peace: Strategies of Terrorism After Civil War."
"More Combatants, More Terror: An Empirical Test and Extension of the Outbidding Hypothesis." (With Joseph K. Young)
Dissertation
"Spoiling the Peace or Seeking the Spoils?: Civil War Peace Processes and the Role of Spoilers"
--Chair: Paul F. Diehl. Committee: John Vasquez, James H. Kuklinski, Carol Leff
Contact
Michael G. Findley
Department of Political Science
Brigham Young University
744 SWKT
Provo, UT 84602
801.422.5317 (p)
801.422.0580 (f) Email me
