Segregation and Social Conflict: An Empirical Analysis

In this paper, we empirically investigate the relationship between ethnic segregation and social conflict. We argue that segregation can increase the collective articulation within groups and the difference between preferences, which can increase conflict intensity. Our focus is on ethnic segregation because we follow the idea that although conflicts can be economically motivated, they need other aspects to find their expression, such as religion, language or ethnicity. Using a panel data model, we find robust evidence on the relationship between segregation and social conflict even after controlling for polarization and fractionalization.