Conflict Series-2: Conflict Analysis

This is a second of a series of three courses that delves into conflict analysis. It explains a set of tools and methods used to conduct the analysis on our own. It is conducted by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR). The course is designed to provide the basic knowledge to those who wish to pursue more advanced courses in conflictology, notably UNITAR’s Master degree in Conflict, Peace and Security. The material is presented in an interactive visual and text format with web-based reference resources. Multiple choice quizzes at the end of each lesson serve a dual function of assessing and evaluating the students’ understanding and retention and provide a further didactic function by reviewing the content.

The goal of this chapter is to give the learner a basic understanding of the importance of conflict analysis, and a set of tools and methods to start conducting their own.

Some of the learning objectives of the course are:

• Understanding the importance of conflict analysis
• Describing the levels, spheres, causes of conflict and categories of actors involved in conflict analysis
• Illustrating the levels and spheres of conflict analysis
• Implementing the three steps of conflict analysis