Making sense of communal conflict : the role of federalization, party polarization, and regionalist party strength in the case of Belgium (1979-2006)

Scholars and politicians have long debated the effect -if any- of federalization on communal conflict in divided states. This paper uses novel data on conflicts in power-sharing cabinets to explore the historical impact of federalization reforms in the case of Belgium (1979-2006). It also addresses the role of two additional factors of relevance: regionalist party strength and the degree of party polarization on state reform. Logistic and linear regression analyses indicate that federalization pacifies tensions, while polarization has an escalating effect. Surprisingly, the strength of regiona... Mehr ...