What causes Genocide? A Comparison of Benjamin Valentino’s and Matthew Krain’s theories of Genocide Onset in the German and Guatemalan cases

Charland, Leigh

What causes Genocide? A Comparison of Benjamin Valentino’s and Matthew Krain’s theories of Genocide Onset in the German and Guatemalan cases

Persistent URL

http://hdl.handle.net/10456/34425

Author(s)

Charland, Leigh

Date Issued

April 10, 2013

Abstract

Genocides have occurred far too frequently in the last century. In this comprehensive project, I attempt to discover what causes the onset of genocides. Benjamin Valentino argues that elites use genocide as a tool to solve their most difficult problems. Matthew Krain argues that circumstances can create the right conditions for genocide. I chose to test and compare these theories in the German and Guatemalan cases, while paying attention to specific and unique historical events that may demonstrate weaknesses in the theoretical approaches. I found that Krain explained the German Holocaust better than Valentino did. However, I felt that Krain’s approach did not completely capture the reasons why genocide occurred in Germany and that Valentino’s explanation was better for why the Guatemalan genocide occurred. Overall, it seemed that both theories were an imperfect fit. Instead, I would recommend an approach that advocates for a set of variables, as genocide does not seem to be explained by only one or two variables.

First Reader(s)

Kirschner, Shanna A.