Synopses & Reviews
\Why do people commit violent acts? This indepth case study of Provisional Irish Republicans, based primarily on interviews with activists, goes a long way toward explaining small group political violence. This unique oral history is valuable not only for those concerned with Irish or British politics but also for those in many social science disciplines and the entire sub-field of terrorism and political violence. This is interesting reading that makes the Irish political activists come alive.
The case study opens with a history of the IRA and the Provisional Irish Republican Army and Provisional Sinn Fein since 1969. The people who participate in the republican movement are described in vivid detail; they tell about themselves and how they were recruited. The findings, implications, and a mobilization/political process perspective are analyzed carefully.
Review
. . .A splendid book, novel in sources, rigorous in method, and creative and valuable in interpretation of not only Irish events, but also aspects of politics of general and certainly popular interest.Bowyer Bell International Analysis Center
Synopsis
Why do people commit violent acts? This in-depth case study of the Provisional Irish Republicans, based primarily on interviews with activists, goes a long way toward explaining small-group political violence. This unique study gives a brief history of the IRA, the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and Provisional Sinn Fein, describes the participants and their recruitment, and offers a mobilization/political process perspective. The Irish political activists come alive through this history.
Synopsis
A unique study of provisional Irish Republicans, based on interviews with activists, that gives new understanding to political violence in Northern Ireland
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. [189]-198) and index.
About the Author
ROBERT W. WHITE is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Indiana University, Indianapolis.
Table of Contents
Understanding Small-Group Political Violence
Irish History, Irish Rebels: Predecessors of the Provisional Irish Republican Army
Commitment, Tradition, and Revolution
Peaceful Protest, State Violence, and the Working-Class
Nationalism, Northern Events and the Irish Republic
Recruitment, Interaction and Perceptions of Republicanism: Forces of Change and Inertia
Theoretical Issues and Implications: Continued Violence in Ireland
The Violent Field: Data Collection Procedures