- UCD School of Sociology
Belfield
Dublin 4
Ireland
Sinisa Malesevic
University College Dublin, Sociology, Faculty Member
-
Historical Sociology, Ethnicity and Nationalism, War Studies, Social Theory, Sociology, History, and 26 morePolitical Violence, Social Sciences, War, War and violence, Violence, Political Violence and Terrorism, Balkans, Iran, Rwanda, Contemporary Sociological Theory, Political Sociology, International Relations, Political Science, Medieval Warfare, Research Methodology, Culture, Critical Theory, Politics, Sociology of War, Weber, Balkan Studies, Classical Social Theory, Nationalism, Balkan History, Serbian history, and Genocide Studies edit
-
I am a Full Professor/Chair of Sociology at University College, Dublin and Senior Fellow at CNAM, Paris. Previously I... moreI am a Full Professor/Chair of Sociology at University College, Dublin and Senior Fellow at CNAM, Paris. Previously I held research and teaching appointments at the Institute for International Relations (Zagreb), the Centre for the Study of Nationalism, CEU (Prague) - where I worked with late Ernest Gellner -, and at the University of Galway. I also held visiting professorships and fellowships at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (Visiting Professor/Eric Remacle Chair in Conflict and Peace Studies), the London School of Economics, the Institute for Human Sciences, Vienna, Uppsala University and NIAS/NIOD, Amsterdam. I am an elected member of the Royal Irish Academy, Academia Europae and I am also an Associated Member of the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina. My main research interests include the study of war and organised violence, nation-states, empires and nationalisms, ideology, sociological theory and the comparative historical sociology. My work has been translated into 14 languages.
Some of my recent books include: Why Humans Fight: The Social Dynamics of Close-Range Violence (Cambridge UP, 2022, ASA 2023 outstanding book award, shortlisted for 2023 CRS book award, Arabic and Croatian translations forthcoming in 2024), Contemporary Sociological Theory (Sage, 2021), and Classical Sociological Theory (Sage, 2021) with S.Loyal, Grounded Nationalisms (Cambridge UP, 2019; runner up/honorable mention for 2020 Stein Rokkan Prize for Comparative Social Science Research; Croatian translation 2021), The Rise of Organised Brutality (Cambridge UP, 2017, Spanish translation 2020, Turkish translation 2023, Arabic translation 2023; Chinese translation forthcoming in 2024, ASA outstanding book award winner 2018), Nation-States and Nationalisms: Organization, Ideology and Solidarity (Polity, 2013, Croatian translation 2017, Iranian translation forthcoming in 2024), The Sociology of War and Violence (Cambridge University Press, 2010; Croatian translation 2011, Turkish translation 2018, Chinese translation 2021, Persian translation 2021, Arabic translation 2022), Identity as Ideology: Understanding Ethnicity and Nationalism, (Palgrave, 2006, Persian translation 2017), The Sociology of Ethnicity (Sage, 2004, Serbian translation 2009; Persian translation 2011, Turkish translation 2018), Ideology, Legitimacy and the New State (Routledge 2002; reprinted in 2008, Serbian translation 2005) and co-edited volumes Nationalism and War (Cambridge University Press, 2013) and Ernest Gellner and Contemporary Social Thought (Cambridge University Press, 2007). I have also authored over 130 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters and have given more than 200 invited talks all over the world. In 2023 I received Robin M. Williams, Jr. Award for Distinguished Contributions to Scholarship, Teaching, and Service in the sociology of peace, war and social conflict from the American Sociological Association.
More information available at: http://sinisa2malesevic.wordpress.com/ edit
This article asks what the main factors are that influence the expression of Vaccine Nationalism among the population of England. The analysis is based on data collected in 2021 as part of the project entitled World Problem, National... more
This article asks what the main factors are that influence the expression of Vaccine Nationalism among the population of England. The analysis is based on data collected in 2021 as part of the project entitled World Problem, National Solutions. A set of logistic regressions test to what extent (1) personal experiences of the pandemic and respondents' vulnerability, (2) perceived threat from other nations, (3) political identities and attachment to nationalist ideology, and (4) pride in national achievement at the time of the COVID-19 pandemic affect a sample of adult respondents in England to express a form of Vaccine Nationalism. The results show that Vaccine Nationalism is not affected by personal experiences or nationalist ideology. The main impact on Vaccine Nationalism among the population comes from their political orientation and pride in national achievement during the pandemic.
Research Interests:
My review of Carlo Bordoni's 'Ethical Violence' (2023) Polity Press.
Research Interests:
La guerra ha dado forma a gran parte de la historia humana y, como tal, ha tenido un profundo impacto en el surgimiento y la transformación de las relaciones sociales. En este breve ensayo Malešević define la guerra y describe los casos... more
La guerra ha dado forma a gran parte de la historia humana y, como tal, ha tenido un profundo impacto en el surgimiento y la transformación de las relaciones sociales. En este breve ensayo Malešević define la guerra y describe los casos clave en la relación histórica entre la guerra y la sociedad.
Research Interests:
A long review of Michael Mann's book 'On Wars'.
Research Interests:
This paper analyses the relationships between nationalism and conspiracy theories during the COVID-19 pandemic. We focus on the two main issues: 1) the intensity and character of belief in the COVID-19 conspiracy theories across five... more
This paper analyses the relationships between nationalism and conspiracy theories during the COVID-19 pandemic. We focus on the two main issues: 1) the intensity and character of belief in the COVID-19 conspiracy theories across five European societies: Germany, England, Ireland, Serbia, and Sweden; and 2) how is the commitment to specific nationalist ideologies linked with the belief in conspiracy theories. The data indicates that those who described themselves as highly religious and politically right-wing are more prone to believe in the strong versions of conspiracy theories. Furthermore, primordialism and the nation-centric view of the world are positively correlated with the propensity towards stronger versions of conspiracy theories. The paper zooms in on the significant differences across the five countries: the Serbian respondents stand out in terms of their strong beliefs in conspiracy theories while the Irish and Serbian respondents who are prone to strong version of conspiratorial thinking also subscribe more to the primordialist understanding of nationhood.
Research Interests:
To what extent were individuals willing to help others during the pandemic? This article examines pro-social attitudes among 7000 residents in England, Ireland, Germany, Serbia, and Sweden by showing a fictitious scenario of an older... more
To what extent were individuals willing to help others during the pandemic? This article examines pro-social attitudes among 7000 residents in England, Ireland, Germany, Serbia, and Sweden by showing a fictitious scenario of an older neighbour who needs his groceries to be picked up from a nearby supermarket. The online survey experiment follows a 3 × 2 × 2 factorial design varying the ethno-religious origin of neighbours signalled by the name (Alexander vs Mohammed), the length of their residence (<1 year, 10 years, entire life), and if groceries, or groceries and beer need to be collected. We find that those of minority origin and those who have spent less than a year in a country are disadvantaged. Overall, religiosity is associated with a lower willingness to help a neighbour.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Hans-Herbert Kogler offers an insightful analysis and a potent moral call to support the defence of Ukraine. This is a sensible moral position that I also share. However, I question Kogler’s approach which overemphasises the ethical... more
Hans-Herbert Kogler offers an insightful analysis and a potent moral call to support the defence of Ukraine. This is a sensible moral position that I also share. However, I question Kogler’s approach which overemphasises the ethical arguments alone. I argue that wars do not allow for moral absolutism of any kind and that the best one can do in the conditions of warfare is to endorse a version of contextual morality. Furthermore,
I make a case for using the accumulated knowledge of historical sociology to understand the dynamics of war in Ukraine. Building on this knowledge one can advance a multipart argument that favours the continuous support for the defence of Ukraine.
I make a case for using the accumulated knowledge of historical sociology to understand the dynamics of war in Ukraine. Building on this knowledge one can advance a multipart argument that favours the continuous support for the defence of Ukraine.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
This article reviews three recent books on nationalism each focusing on the different aspect of this multifaceted phenomenon. Mylonas and Radnitz's volume explores the relationships between nationalism and the politics of treason,... more
This article reviews three recent books on nationalism each focusing on the different aspect of this multifaceted phenomenon. Mylonas and Radnitz's volume explores the relationships between nationalism and the politics of treason, Hadžidedic's book zooms in on the historical interdependence of capitalism and nationalism, while Maxwell's historical monograph explores nationalist habitus as a form of lived experience. These three insightful contributions show how diverse and plastic is nationalist ideology and practice.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Review of Collins's new book.
Research Interests:
Michel Foucault's philosophy has recently come under sharp criticism across the political spectrum. While right-wing and centrist commentators identify Foucault as the intellectual progenitor of "woke" dogmatism and an irrationalist... more
Michel Foucault's philosophy has recently come under sharp criticism across the political spectrum. While right-wing and centrist commentators identify Foucault as the intellectual progenitor of "woke" dogmatism and an irrationalist hostility to science, left-wing critics associate his work with neoliberalism and animosity towards the welfare state. Neither critique is grounded in an accurate understanding of the epistemological motivation of Foucault's project.
Research Interests:
This paper explores the complex and contradictory relationships between nationalism and racism. It aims to show that these two ideological projects have developed distinct and independent trajectories which are based on their intrinsic... more
This paper explores the complex and contradictory relationships between nationalism and racism. It aims to show that these two ideological projects have developed distinct and independent trajectories which are based on their intrinsic conceptual differences. However, there is also a substantial degree of ideological and organisational compatibility between nationalism and racism which has allowed that in some historical contexts these two ideologies were able to coalesce into one ideological project, while in other situations nationalism and racisms have developed as ideological opponents. The paper explores the historical trajectories of nationalism and racism and analyses how these two ideologies operate in the contemporary world.
Research Interests:
In this paper, I analyze the changing nationalist narratives of golden age in the Balkans. By zooming in on the case studies of the late nineteenth-and early twenty-first-century SouthEast European societies, I explain how and why the... more
In this paper, I analyze the changing nationalist narratives of golden age in the Balkans. By zooming in on the case studies of the late nineteenth-and early twenty-first-century SouthEast European societies, I explain how and why the images of the mythical past are articulated differently in the two historical periods. I argue that in the nineteenth century golden age rhetoric was mostly a top-down phenomenon centered on transforming Balkan peasantry into the loyal members of their new nation-states. By the early twenty-first century, this process has reached its institutional limits and the golden age narratives have become a bottom-up phenomenon: the key agents of their creation and dissemination are members of civil society, social movements, and ordinary people. I focus on the structural processes that underpin this change to explain the historical dynamics of nationalisms. The paper is based on the qualitative text analysis using nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century archival materials and the documents from the contemporary mass media, official records, educational materials, and popular culture in the Balkans.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Book symposium on 'Grounded Nationalisms: A Sociological Anlysis' (CUP, 2019)
Research Interests:
Review of K.Kumar's Empires: A Historical and Political Sociology (Polity 2021)
Research Interests:
Twelve historians and social scientists reflect on Miroslav Hroch's contributions to the field of nationalism studies. There are essays on his pioneering comparative historical studies of 'small nation' national movements and his... more
Twelve historians and social scientists reflect on Miroslav Hroch's contributions to the field of nationalism studies. There are essays on his pioneering comparative historical studies of 'small nation' national movements and his distinction between nationalism and national movements. Other essays focus on concepts such as those of protagonist, the three phases of national movements, the small nation and nationally relevant conflict of interest. A further set of essays explores how Hroch's approach can be extended beyond small nations, beyond Europe and into the contemporary period.
Research Interests:
A long review article on Hans Joas's 'The Power of The Sacred'. His response also available in the same issue of the journal.
Research Interests:
In this paper, we outline four key sociological processes that shape the character of rebel governance. Firstly, we review the complex relationships between rebel rule and state power and look at the ways social order is generated and... more
In this paper, we outline four key sociological processes that shape the character of rebel governance. Firstly, we review the complex relationships between rebel rule and state power and look at the ways social order is generated and maintained in the context of rebel governance. Secondly, we explore relational mechanisms of control and the capacity of rebel governance to penetrate the micro social world under its rule. Thirdly, we analyze the social mechanisms through which legitimacy is attained and maintained in a rebelocracy. Finally, we examine the organizational, ideological, and microinteractional similarities between state-and rebel governance in order to understand how and why some forms of rebel rule transform into the established governmental structures while others fragment or collapse. We argue that in order to further develop our understanding of power relations in civil wars, we need to look at the details of concrete interactions and patterns of relationships at the local level, in which orders of violence, legitimacy and control manifest themselves in everyday life, the lived experiences of those who rule and are ruled, the practices and institutions that emerge from them, and the processes in which they are negotiated.
Research Interests:
Social scientists regularly differentiate sharply between crime and political violence. They often argue that unlike the political forms of violence such as wars, terrorism, or revolutions the criminal acts of violence lack clearly... more
Social scientists regularly differentiate sharply between crime and political violence. They often argue that unlike the political forms of violence such as wars, terrorism, or revolutions the criminal acts of violence lack clearly defined ideological aims. In this short contribution, I reflect on the special issue articles which all successfully challenge this dichotomy. Furthermore, I expand on these arguments to emphasize the centrality of coercive power in the development and legitimation of social orders throughout history.
Research Interests:
This chapter briefly reviews and analyzes the key contributions on organized violence within historical sociology. It explores both the macro-and micro-level studies that have influenced recent debates within the field. The first section... more
This chapter briefly reviews and analyzes the key contributions on organized violence within historical sociology. It explores both the macro-and micro-level studies that have influenced recent debates within the field. The first section looks at war and warfare, the second section analyzes the clandestine political violence, the third section explores the revolutions, and the final section engages with the scholarship on genocides.
Research Interests:
In Memoriam for Richard Lachmann
Research Interests:
Ibn Khaldun and Ernest Gellner have both developed comprehensive yet very different theories of social cohesion. Whereas Ibn Khaldun traces the development of intense group solidarity to the ascetic lifestyles of nomadic warriors, for... more
Ibn Khaldun and Ernest Gellner have both developed comprehensive yet
very different theories of social cohesion. Whereas Ibn Khaldun traces
the development of intense group solidarity to the ascetic lifestyles of
nomadic warriors, for Gellner social cohesion is a product of different
material conditions. In contrast to Ibn Khaldun’s theory, where all social
ties are generated through similar social processes, in Gellner’s model
the patterns of collective solidarity change through time, that is, different
societies produce different forms of social cohesion. While Ibn Khaldun
argues that asbiyyah is the backbone of group unity in all social orders,
Gellner insists that modern societies are underpinned by very different
type of collective solidarity than their premodern counterparts. In this
paper I offer a critique of Ibn Khaldun’s and Gellner’s theories of social
cohesion and develop an alternative explanation, which situates the
social dynamics of group solidarity in the organisational and ideological
legacies of warfare.
very different theories of social cohesion. Whereas Ibn Khaldun traces
the development of intense group solidarity to the ascetic lifestyles of
nomadic warriors, for Gellner social cohesion is a product of different
material conditions. In contrast to Ibn Khaldun’s theory, where all social
ties are generated through similar social processes, in Gellner’s model
the patterns of collective solidarity change through time, that is, different
societies produce different forms of social cohesion. While Ibn Khaldun
argues that asbiyyah is the backbone of group unity in all social orders,
Gellner insists that modern societies are underpinned by very different
type of collective solidarity than their premodern counterparts. In this
paper I offer a critique of Ibn Khaldun’s and Gellner’s theories of social
cohesion and develop an alternative explanation, which situates the
social dynamics of group solidarity in the organisational and ideological
legacies of warfare.
Research Interests:
Их исследования содержат теоретический и эмпирический анализ взаимосвязи между вой ной и обществом. Однако в социологическом понимании долгосрочных исторических процессов, формирующих отношения между войной и обществом, по-прежнему... more
Их исследования содержат теоретический и эмпирический анализ взаимосвязи между вой ной и обществом. Однако в социологическом понимании долгосрочных исторических процессов, формирующих отношения между войной и обществом, по-прежнему существует серьезный пробел. Не совсем ясно, что происходит с современными войнами и каковы долгосрочные последствия этой социальной динамики. Возрастает ли организованное насилие в мире или сокращается? Данная статья нацелена на поиск ответа на этот вопрос. В первой части критически оцени ваются две доминирующие и противоположные концепции трансформации войны, кото рые настаивают на радикальном изменении характера отношений между войной и обществом. Во второй части приводится альтернативный подход, базирующийся на связи между войной, государством и обществом на протяжении длительного периода времени. Основной тезис этого подхода основан на ключевой роли организационной власти в этих исторически обусловленных, но по большей части совокупных и принудительных процессах. Автором утверждается, что до тех пор, пока организационный потенциал государств будет продолжать расти, вероятность того, что войны изживут себя, остается минимальной. Понимание современной войны: рост или сокращение? Несмотря на общепризнанность того, что институт войны претерпевает существенные изменения, остается не ясным, каковы причины и долгосрочные последствия этих изменений.
Research Interests:
Historical sociologists have questioned the idea that nationalism and imperialism are mutually exclusive phenomena. In contrast to traditional historiography that depicted empires as 'the prison houses of nations' contemporary scholarship... more
Historical sociologists have questioned the idea that nationalism and imperialism are mutually exclusive phenomena. In contrast to traditional historiography that depicted empires as 'the prison houses of nations' contemporary scholarship emphasises the structural and ideological ambiguities that characterised the 19th century European imperial projects. Hence instead of 'popular longings' for national independence the focus has shifted to the experiences of 'national indifference'. In this paper I aim to go beyond this dichotomy by questioning the role of (nationalist) agency in the collapse of imperial order. Drawing on the primary archival research I zoom in on the case of Bosnia and Herzegovina under the Austro-Hungarian rule (1878-1918). The paper contests the view that the imperial state was severely undermined by the presence of strong nationalisms. I also challenge the notion that the majority of Bosnian population remained 'nationally indifferent' during this period. Instead, I argue that understanding the character of the Austro-Hungarian rule is a much better predictor of social change that took place in this period. Rather than stifling supposedly vibrant nationalisms or operating amidst widespread national indifference the imperial state played a decisive role in forging the nation-centric world through its inadvertent homogenisation of discontent.
Research Interests:
El artículo analiza las bases sociológicas de la violencia militar en el siglo XXI. En la primera parte, se debaten críticamente los tres enfoques contemporáneos que son dominantes en la explicación de la violencia organizada: a) la... more
El artículo analiza las bases sociológicas de la violencia
militar en el siglo XXI. En la primera parte, se debaten
críticamente los tres enfoques contemporáneos que son
dominantes en la explicación de la violencia
organizada: a) la perspectiva del declive de la
violencia, b) el enfoque de las “nuevas guerras” y c) la
aproximación del desplazamiento tecnológico. Se
sostiene que, a pesar de sus indiscutibles fortalezas,
estas perspectivas no proporcionan una interpretación
adecuada de los cambios sociales contemporáneos. En
particular, se cuestiona su énfasis en la ruptura radical
en el carácter de la violencia militar contemporánea en
comparación con otros periodos históricos. En la
segunda parte el artículo se desarrolla una visión
alternativa, sociológica y de larga duración, centrada
en el papel de los poderes coercitivos, ideológicos y
micro-interactivos en la transformación de la violencia
militar. En oposición a las tres perspectivas
dominantes, se argumenta que la violencia organizada
en el siglo XXI se ha transformado pero exhibe aún
mucha más continuidad con los tres últimos siglos de
lo que se viene asumiendo. Concretamente, se enfatiza
el impacto a largo plazo de tres procesos históricos que
han dado forma a la dinámica de la violencia militar:
la burocratización acumulativa de la coerción, la
ideologización centrífuga y el envolvimiento de microsolidaridades.
militar en el siglo XXI. En la primera parte, se debaten
críticamente los tres enfoques contemporáneos que son
dominantes en la explicación de la violencia
organizada: a) la perspectiva del declive de la
violencia, b) el enfoque de las “nuevas guerras” y c) la
aproximación del desplazamiento tecnológico. Se
sostiene que, a pesar de sus indiscutibles fortalezas,
estas perspectivas no proporcionan una interpretación
adecuada de los cambios sociales contemporáneos. En
particular, se cuestiona su énfasis en la ruptura radical
en el carácter de la violencia militar contemporánea en
comparación con otros periodos históricos. En la
segunda parte el artículo se desarrolla una visión
alternativa, sociológica y de larga duración, centrada
en el papel de los poderes coercitivos, ideológicos y
micro-interactivos en la transformación de la violencia
militar. En oposición a las tres perspectivas
dominantes, se argumenta que la violencia organizada
en el siglo XXI se ha transformado pero exhibe aún
mucha más continuidad con los tres últimos siglos de
lo que se viene asumiendo. Concretamente, se enfatiza
el impacto a largo plazo de tres procesos históricos que
han dado forma a la dinámica de la violencia militar:
la burocratización acumulativa de la coerción, la
ideologización centrífuga y el envolvimiento de microsolidaridades.
Research Interests:
Emotions play a central role in warfare. Nearly all soldiers who encounter combat zones experience intense emotional reactions. Some of these emotions are negative, such as fear, panic, anger, rage, or shame, while others are more... more
Emotions play a central role in warfare. Nearly all soldiers who encounter combat zones experience intense emotional reactions. Some of these emotions are negative, such as fear, panic, anger, rage, or shame, while others are more positive, including pride, elation, joy, or exhilaration. These emotional responses are usually characterized by physiological and psychological changes that affect the bodies and minds of soldiers facing close-range fighting encounters. Researchers have documented a number of physiological effects that accompany intense emotional reactions on the battlefield, including hormonal increases, heavy breathing, increased heart rate, dilation of the pupils, and the loss of urinary control, among others. These similarities in biological responses have led some scholars to make generalizations about the inherent uniformity of emotional reactions on the battlefield. However, recent studies indicate that emotional dynamics in the combat zone are more complex and flexible. In particular, much contemporary historical, sociological, and anthropological scholarship shows that the emotional responses of soldiers are highly variable and context-dependent. Although some physiological reactions are present in many battlefield situations, they too, like psychological effects, tend to be specific to time and place. In other words, there are pronounced historical and cultural differences in the emotional responses of soldiers in combat zones. Facing the same realities of the close-range fighting, soldiers tend to display different emotional reactions and these reactions are more variable as the cultural and historical contexts change. Military organizations have become aware that emotions are central to the behavior of soldiers on the battlefield and they continue to devise new methods to control and shape the emotional reactions of soldiers.
Research Interests:
Book forum on G. Lawson's 'The Anatomies of Revolution'.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
This paper compares different strategies of legitimation deployed by the nationalist movements in the Balkans and Ireland in the 19th and early 20th century. In contrast to the traditional accounts that posit nations and empires as... more
This paper compares different strategies of legitimation deployed by the
nationalist movements in the Balkans and Ireland in the 19th and early
20th century. In contrast to the traditional accounts that posit nations
and empires as mutually exclusive projects, I show how imperial and
nationalist discourses can reinforce one another. The paper zooms in on the changing dynamics of imperial and national legacies by exploring how specific social movements strategically deploy concepts such as the ‘small’ or ‘greater’ nation to facilitate different nationalist projects. By contrasting the historical experiences of the Balkan states and Ireland I show how geopolitical and historical contexts shape the complex and contradictory relationships between imperial and the national projects.
nationalist movements in the Balkans and Ireland in the 19th and early
20th century. In contrast to the traditional accounts that posit nations
and empires as mutually exclusive projects, I show how imperial and
nationalist discourses can reinforce one another. The paper zooms in on the changing dynamics of imperial and national legacies by exploring how specific social movements strategically deploy concepts such as the ‘small’ or ‘greater’ nation to facilitate different nationalist projects. By contrasting the historical experiences of the Balkan states and Ireland I show how geopolitical and historical contexts shape the complex and contradictory relationships between imperial and the national projects.
Research Interests:
The outbreaks of major pandemics have historically been associated with the proliferation of conspiracy theories. This article explores what role conspiratorial narratives have played in the development of different “imagined communities”... more
The outbreaks of major pandemics have historically been associated with the proliferation of conspiracy
theories. This article explores what role conspiratorial narratives have played in the development of different
“imagined communities” in the premodern, modern, and contemporary worlds. I argue that the premodern
conspiratorial narratives were mostly focused on eschatological and theological images, aiming to blame and
delegitimise the religious Other. In these imaginary plots, spread of disease was interpreted as an attack on
one’s religious beliefs. The prevalence of religious conspiracies helped reinforce religiously based, yet
temporary, “imagined communities.” With the rise of nation-states and the decline of empires and
patrimonial kingdoms, the periodic outbursts of epidemics gradually attained more nationalist interpretations.
Hence in the modern era, pandemics often triggered the growth of nationalist conspiracies. In these
narratives the threatening Other was usually nationalised, and even traditional religious groups became
reinterpreted as a threat to one’s national security. In recent times, new technologies and modes of
communication have created space for the emergence of global conspiracy theories. The onset of Covid-
19 has been associated with the dramatic expansion of such conspiracies. Some scholars have interpreted this
as a reliable sign that the nation-states and nationalisms have lost their dominance. However, this article
shows that many global conspiracies in fact reinforce nationalist ideas and practices and, in this process,
foster the perpetuation of national imagined communities.
theories. This article explores what role conspiratorial narratives have played in the development of different
“imagined communities” in the premodern, modern, and contemporary worlds. I argue that the premodern
conspiratorial narratives were mostly focused on eschatological and theological images, aiming to blame and
delegitimise the religious Other. In these imaginary plots, spread of disease was interpreted as an attack on
one’s religious beliefs. The prevalence of religious conspiracies helped reinforce religiously based, yet
temporary, “imagined communities.” With the rise of nation-states and the decline of empires and
patrimonial kingdoms, the periodic outbursts of epidemics gradually attained more nationalist interpretations.
Hence in the modern era, pandemics often triggered the growth of nationalist conspiracies. In these
narratives the threatening Other was usually nationalised, and even traditional religious groups became
reinterpreted as a threat to one’s national security. In recent times, new technologies and modes of
communication have created space for the emergence of global conspiracy theories. The onset of Covid-
19 has been associated with the dramatic expansion of such conspiracies. Some scholars have interpreted this
as a reliable sign that the nation-states and nationalisms have lost their dominance. However, this article
shows that many global conspiracies in fact reinforce nationalist ideas and practices and, in this process,
foster the perpetuation of national imagined communities.
Research Interests:
The battlefields are spaces of death and destruction. In the combat zone soldiers fight and kill while witnessing the death of their comrades. These unprecedented life experiences are regularly shaped by strong emotional responses. In... more
The battlefields are spaces of death and destruction. In the combat zone soldiers fight and kill while witnessing the death of their comrades. These unprecedented life experiences are regularly shaped by strong emotional responses. In this paper I analyse the complex emotional dynamics of fighting and killing in the combat zone. I explore the
war-time experiences of ordinary soldiers who fought in the 1991-1995 wars in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The paper is based on the interviews I conducted with the members of the Croatian Army and the Bosnian Serb Army who had direct experience of the battlefield. The focus is on the relationship between emotions and violence in the
theatres of war with a spotlight on the personal experiences of fighting and killing. The paper challenges the existing interpretations of this phenomenon and argues that the killing in war is neither uniformly easy nor unvaryingly difficult but is context dependent, variable and highly contingent. Furthermore, the acts of fighting and killing do not automatically trigger pre-existing and stable emotions but the violent processes themselves generate distinct emotional dynamics. Rather than simply following the violent actions emotions are in fact often made in the very acts of fighting and killing.
war-time experiences of ordinary soldiers who fought in the 1991-1995 wars in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The paper is based on the interviews I conducted with the members of the Croatian Army and the Bosnian Serb Army who had direct experience of the battlefield. The focus is on the relationship between emotions and violence in the
theatres of war with a spotlight on the personal experiences of fighting and killing. The paper challenges the existing interpretations of this phenomenon and argues that the killing in war is neither uniformly easy nor unvaryingly difficult but is context dependent, variable and highly contingent. Furthermore, the acts of fighting and killing do not automatically trigger pre-existing and stable emotions but the violent processes themselves generate distinct emotional dynamics. Rather than simply following the violent actions emotions are in fact often made in the very acts of fighting and killing.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
The killing of human beings is one of the defining features of war. Yet there has not been much research on understanding its emotional dynamics. The act of close-range killing in war is often interpreted through the two contrasting... more
The killing of human beings is one of the defining features of war. Yet there has not been much research on understanding its emotional dynamics. The act of close-range killing in war is often interpreted through the two contrasting perspectives: the neo-Darwinian approaches which see killing as an optimal tactic of genetic survival and the micro-sociological perspectives which centre on the tension and fear that arise in an inability to forge effective interactional ritual chains. While the former approach insists that taking lives in war is relatively easy the latter perspective describes it as an extremely difficult and traumatic event. In this paper, I challenge both of these influential views and argue that the process of killing is defined by its variability, contingency and context-dependence. Rather than assuming, as the dominant perspectives do, that violence simply triggers biologically ingrained and uniform emotional responses I argue that the emotional dynamics is created through the acts of violence. Drawing on the primary research with the ex-combatants from wars in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (1991–1995) I show how the shared experience of close-range violence generates highly diverse forms of emotional dynamics.
Research Interests:
My response to the 'Grounded Nationalisms' book debate in Irish Journal of Sociology (other contributors Jon Fox, Liliana Riga and Kevin Ryan).
Research Interests:
This introduction to a special issue outlines the significance of Randall Collins’s contribution to sociology. The first section briefly reviews Collins’s main books and assesses their impact on social science. The second section offers a... more
This introduction to a special issue outlines the significance of Randall Collins’s contribution to sociology. The first section briefly reviews Collins’s main books and assesses their impact on social science. The second section offers a summary overview of the papers that comprise the special issue.
Research Interests:
This paper explores the ways nationalism has been theorised in classical and contemporary sociology. More specifically, the author analyses the relevance of Randall Collins’s contribution to theories of nationalism. Since Collins’s work... more
This paper explores the ways nationalism has been theorised in classical and contemporary sociology. More specifically, the author analyses the relevance of Randall Collins’s contribution to theories of nationalism. Since Collins’s work is firmly rooted in the classical tradition, including the reinterpretation and synthesis of Weber, Durkheim and Goffman, the first part of this paper zooms in on the classics of sociology and their treatment of nations and nationalism. The second part of the paper outlines the key features of Collins’s approach and identifies the strengths and weaknesses of this position. The final part builds on the footsteps of Collins and others to articulate an alternative approach focused on the coercive organisational, ideological and microinteractional grounding of nationalisms.
Research Interests:
book review
Research Interests:
Since the end of the WWII, nationalism has mostly been associated with disorder and violence. Initially nationalist ideologies were blamed for the rise of fascist movements that brought about the most destructive war ever fought on this... more
Since the end of the WWII, nationalism has mostly been associated with disorder and violence. Initially nationalist ideologies were blamed for the rise of fascist movements that brought about the most destructive war ever fought on this planet. With the collapse of the imperial order in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, the anti-colonial nationalisms were held responsible for the disarray and protracted brutal conflicts witnessed throughout Asia and Africa. The violent collapse of communist federations in 1990s and genocide in Rwanda firmly established the popular perception of nationalism as an extremist and violence-prone ideology. More recently the global rise of nativist and populist movements defined by pronounced hostility to immigrants has reinforced this image of nationalism as a force of darkness. However, nationalism is rarely if ever a direct cause of violence. More often than not nationalism emerges as an indirect consequence of larger structural changes including the making, breaking, and reshuffling of states. In this chapter, I explore how warfare shapes state formation and what role nationalism plays in this relationship. The first part of the paper offers a review of the classical and contemporary bellicit theories of state formation. These theories interpret nationalism through the prism of warfare and geopolitics while largely neglecting the internal social dynamics of nationhood. Hence, in the second part of the paper, I provide a critical analysis of the bellicist approach and also offer a brief outline of an alternative explanation that centers on the historical development of grounded nationalisms and its relationship with war and state making. The final two parts of the paper explore the strength of the main argument using the nineteenth-and twentieth-century Balkans as a case study.
Research Interests:
This review article explores the role nationalism has played in the world dominated by the Eastern Orthodox Churches. The focus is on the recent contributions of Paschalis Kitromilides who has written extensively on this topic. The... more
This review article explores the role nationalism has played in the world dominated by the Eastern Orthodox Churches. The focus is on the recent contributions of Paschalis Kitromilides who has written extensively on this topic. The article assesses the four books dealing with the relationship between religion, politics, Enlightenment and nationalism in the Balkans and Eastern Europe. The analysis emphasises the complex and contradictory relationship between nationalisms and the Orthodox Churches pointing to the profound transformation that has taken the place in this relationship over the last 250 years
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Ethnopolitics journal symposium on F. Bieber's article
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
The private military and security contractors (PMSCs) are often described as the profit-seeking mercenaries. More specifically the commentators usually make no distinction between the traditional 'soldiers of fortune' such as corsairs,... more
The private military and security contractors (PMSCs) are often described as the profit-seeking mercenaries. More specifically the commentators usually make no distinction between the traditional 'soldiers of fortune' such as corsairs, pirates, privateers, mercenaries or marauders and the twenty-first-century contractors. However, in this chapter I aim to challenge such simplified historical analogies by focusing on the different ideological and organisational dynamics of PMSCs and their pre-modern mercenary counterparts. I aim to show that unlike mercenaries who had no sense of loyalty to any nation, the employees of PMSCs were born and raised in the nation-centric environments and as such are inevitably ideologically and organisationally wedded to the nationalist realities of modern life. The chapter explores how private military contractors manage and negotiate the organisational aims of profit maximisation with the often-conflicting ideological goals set by national governments and the wider public.
Research Interests:
A Croatian translation of my 'The Sociology of War and Violence' (Cambridge UP, 2010).
Research Interests:
The Croatian translation of 'Grounded Nationalisms: A Sociological Analysis' (CUP 2019).
Research Interests:
Malešević offers a novel sociological answer to the age-old question: 'Why do humans fight?'. Instead of focusing on the motivations of solitary individuals, he emphasises the centrality of the social and historical contexts that make... more
Malešević offers a novel sociological answer to the age-old question: 'Why do humans fight?'. Instead of focusing on the motivations of solitary individuals, he emphasises the centrality of the social and historical contexts that make fighting possible. He argues that fighting is not an individual attribute, but a social phenomenon shaped by one's relationships with other people. Drawing on recent scholarship across a variety of academic disciplines as well as his own interviews with the former combatants, Malešević shows that one's willingness to fight is a contextual phenomenon shaped by specific ideological and organisational logic. This book explores the role biology, psychology, economics, ideology, and coercion play in one's experience of fighting, emphasising the cultural and historical variability of combativeness. By drawing from numerous historical and contemporary examples from all over the world, Malešević demonstrates how social pugnacity is a relational and contextual phenomenon that possesses autonomous features.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Introducing the founders of sociological theory-from Marx, Weber, Durkheim and Martineau through to Simmel, DuBois, Mead and others-this accessible textbook locates each thinker within their own social, political and historical context.... more
Introducing the founders of sociological theory-from Marx, Weber, Durkheim and Martineau through to Simmel, DuBois, Mead and others-this accessible textbook locates each thinker within their own social, political and historical context. By doing so, it helps readers to understand the development of central sociological concepts and how they can help us understand the contemporary world. The book includes: Lively biographical sections to help readers get to know each thinker Clear and easy-to-understand accounts of each theorist's arguments-and the most common criticisms Key concept boxes highlighting the most influential ideas This comprehensive, enlightening text brings the rich and diverse field of classical sociological theory to life.
Research Interests:
Globalisation is not the enemy of nationalism; instead, as this book shows, the two forces have developed together through modern history. Malešević challenges dominant views which see nationalism as a declining social force. He explains... more
Globalisation is not the enemy of nationalism; instead, as this book shows, the two forces have developed together through modern history. Malešević challenges dominant views which see nationalism as a declining social force. He explains why the recent escalations of populist nationalism throughout the world do not represent a social anomaly but are, in fact, a historical norm. By focusing on ever-increasing organisational capacity, greater ideological penetration and networks of micro-solidarity, Malešević shows how and why nationalism has become deeply grounded in the everyday life of modern human beings. The author explores the social dynamics of these grounded nationalisms via an analysis of varied contexts, from Ireland to the Balkans. His findings show that increased ideological diffusion and the rising coercive capacities of states and other organisations have enabled nationalism to expand and establish itself as the dominant operative ideology of modernity.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Challenging the prevailing belief that organised violence is experiencing historically continuous decline, this book provides an in-depth sociological analysis that shows organised violence is, in fact, on the rise. Malešević demonstrates... more
Challenging the prevailing belief that organised violence is experiencing historically continuous decline, this book provides an in-depth sociological analysis that shows organised violence is, in fact, on the rise. Malešević demonstrates that violence is determined by organisational capacity, ideological penetration and micro-solidarity, rather than biological tendencies, meaning that despite pre-modern societies being exposed to spectacles of cruelty and torture, such societies had no organisational means to systematically slaughter millions of individuals. Malešević suggests that violence should not be analysed as just an event or process, but also via changing perceptions of those events and processes, and by linking this to broader social transformations on the inter-polity and inter-group levels he makes his key argument that organised violence has proliferated. Focusing on wars, revolutions, genocides and terrorism, this book shows how modern social organisations utilise ideology and micro-solidarity to mobilise public support for mass scale violence.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
H-Diplo roundtable about my book "Tha Past Can't Heal Us: The Dangers of Mandating Memory in the Name of Human Rights" (CUP, 2020) with Robert Hayden, Sinisa Malesevic, Yuval Benziman, Monika Palmberger and Sara Dybris McQuaid
Research Interests:
Twelve historians and social scientists reflect on Miroslav Hroch's contributions to the field of nationalism studies. There are essays on his pioneering comparative historical studies of 'small nation' national movements and his... more
Twelve historians and social scientists reflect on Miroslav Hroch's contributions to the field of nationalism studies. There are essays on his pioneering comparative historical studies of 'small nation' national movements and his distinction between nationalism and national movements. Other essays focus on concepts such as those of protagonist, the three phases of national movements, the small nation and nationally relevant conflict of interest. A further set of essays explores how Hroch's approach can be extended beyond small nations, beyond Europe and into the contemporary period.
Research Interests:
The current volume aims to make a contribution to collective identity research in the Middle Ages, drawing attention to the role of war in shaping and renegotiating various types of collective identification and visions of community in... more
The current volume aims to make a contribution to collective identity research in the Middle Ages, drawing attention to the role of war in shaping and renegotiating various types of collective identification and visions of community in the Middle Ages. It has become a common place that collective identifications, group solidarity and homogeneity are not a cause but rather a product of war and inter-group violence. Within this framework, our non-Eurocentric approach is intended to problematize the role of inter-state and intra-state warfare in generating, renegotiating and reproducing, or deconstructing, various kinds of collective identifications and attachments. This alternative approach to the study of group formation in the medieval world seeks to redirect the focus from collective identities in the hard sense to collective attachments as ideological practices. Contents: Chapter 1: "War and Peoplehood in the Middle Ages: An Introduction," by Yannis Stouraitis; Chapter 2: "War and Peoplehood through Time: A Sociological Longue Durée Perspective," by Siniša Malešević; Chapter 3: "Making War Ethnic: Identity and Conflict on the Arabian-Mesopotamian Frontier," by Peter Webb; Chapter 4: "Captive Identities: Inscribing Armenianness from Sebēos to Ayrivanec‘i," by Sergio La Porta; Chapter 5: "War and Identity in Early Medieval Bulgaria," by Panos Sophoulis; Chapter 6: "Collective Identifications in Byzantine Civil Wars," by Yannis Stouraitis; Chapter 7: "Warfare and Peoplehood: The Vikings and the English," by Clare Downham; Chapter 8: "Medieval European Civil Wars, Local and Proto-National Identities of Toulousains, Czechs in Prague, and Parisians," by Philippe Buc; Chapter 9: "The Crusades and French Political Identity in the Thirteenth-Century Mediterranean," by Gregory Lippiatt; Chapter 10: "The Song-Jurchen Conflict in Chinese Intellectual History," by Shao-yun Yang; Chapter 11: "Faithful to a Vanishing Past: Narrating Warfare and Peoplehood in Yuan China," by Francesca Fiaschetti; Chapter 12: "War and Collective Identifications in Medieval Societies: Drawing Comparisons," by Yannis Stouraitis; Selected Bibliography; Index