Sadeen Haddad awarded Departmental PhD Scholarship

My research focuses on how armed organisation's ideologies are disseminated to, and co-produced by, civilian communities in conflict-affected environments. Armed organisations that are situated within civilian communities do not have rigid boundaries, and yet oftentimes when we study socialisation processes or the effects of ideology, we understand these through the lens of mobilisation into armed organisations, or socialization within them. My focus is on how these processes seep beyond the boundaries of armed organisations, specifically focusing on how armed group ideology is disseminated within civilian communities, and the role they play in co-producing these belief systems. My empirical focus is on the case study of the Shi'a community in Lebanon. 

I believe that the University of York's Politics and International Relations Department is a suitable host for my project as the Department offers a vibrant research environment, with several research centres, including the York Centre for Conflict and Security. The interdisciplinary nature of the Department, and the array of research conducted within it, provides access to wide ranging insights within and beyond conflict studies. Further, my supervisory team, which includes Professor Anastasia Shesterinina, Dr. Matthew Whiting, and Dr. Jacob Eriksson, have offered indispensable support in developing the project. Therefore, the Department's academic plurality, specifically within the sub-field of conflict studies, and its focus on community, were few of the key reasons that made the Department a fitting host institution for my project.