Journal of Social Issues, Vol. 60, No. 3, 2004, pp.

453--468

Children of the Troubles: The Impact

of Political Violence in Northern Ireland
Orla T. Muldoon
Queens University Belfast

This article explores the effects of political violence on children and young people
in Northern Ireland. The article begins with a brief historical account of the
Northern Irish conflict and the recently negotiated Belfast Good Friday Agreement
of 1998. This account illustrates, as is the case with many conflicts, its basis is
religious, national, economic, and political, despite its frequent construction as
a battle between Protestant and Roman Catholic. The article goes on to review
young peoples experience of conflict in Northern Ireland and the impact of conflict
experiences on three related areas of young peoples lives. These include the effects
of the conflict on everyday aspects of life, social identity, and mental health.
Ethno-political conflict is now considered one of the most important threats
to global security (Large, 1997; Mccgwire, 2002). Violent inter-group conflict
represents a difficult and intractable problem in many regions of the world. Over
the final decades of the 20th Century intra-state conflict (rather than inter-state
conflict or war) became an increasingly common problem. The United Nations
Development Programme recorded only three wars between states in the period
between 1989 and 1992, while documenting 79 instances of intra-state conflicts
over the same period, many of which had been underway for a decade or more
(Large, 1997).
These types of conflicts differ from traditional warfare in a number of ways.
The costs of such conflicts tend to be borne by civilians, rather than military personnel. In World War I, 10% of all fatalities were civilians. In World War II, civilians
were estimated to comprise 50% of casualties. During subsequent conflict civilian
casualties have represented upwards of 80% of all casualties, many of whom are
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Dr. Orla Muldoon, School of
Psychology, Queens University Belfast, David Keir Building, 1830 Malone Road, Belfast BT9 5BP,
Northern Ireland [e-mail: o.muldoon@qub.ac.uk].
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children and their mothers (Barenbaum, Ruchkin, & Schwab-Stone, 2004; Dodge,
1990). This rise in civilian casualties can be attributed to the weapons and strategies
of intra-state conflict. These conflicts tend to be characterized by the proliferation
and use of small arms, land mines, bombings and low intensity dirty war tactics
(Large, 1997). Further, problems such as political insecurity, state disintegration,
and population displacement are exacerbated (Aluwihare, 1997). Indeed the net
effects of these experiences can often create a vicious circle, contributing to the
intractable nature of intra-state conflict.
The impact of protracted political conflict and violence is an important social issue. First, there is a need to understand and highlight the human cost of
armed conflict and war. The focus of war and conflict is generally on the opposing objectives of the factions involved, rather than the human cost of the conflict
(Cairns, 1996). Second, to help victims and survivors we need to understand their
needs (Dodge, 1990; Kuterovac, Dyregrov, & Stuvland, 1994). The WHO now
acknowledges (Large, 1997), that the certainties associated with inter-state conflict are absent where intra-state conflict is concerned (Rotberg, 2002), and our
knowledge of how to respond in these situations is as yet weak (Mccgwire, 2002).
Third, in order to create and maintain peaceful societies we need to understand the
causes of conflict and prevent the recreation of conflict (Cairns & Darby, 1998).
Understanding of these issues informs services within the conflicted country (e.g.,
Dodge, 1990; Kuterovac et al., 1994), those involved in provision of services to
refugees, (e.g., Blair, 2001; Sack, Him, & Dickason, 1999) as well as policy makers
and diplomats trying to negotiate peaceful solutions (Cairns, 1994).
Many of those most severely affected by war and political violence are resident
in the poorest regions of the world. In the year 2000, 300,000 people died as a
direct result of conflicts (WHO, 2002). Worldwide, the rate of mortality associated
with political violence varies from 1 per 100,000 of the population in high income
countries to 6.2 per 100,000 of the population in low and middle income countries
(WHO, 2002). Further the highest rates of fatalities due to war were in African
countries, with approximately 32 fatalities per 100,000 of the population (WHO,
2002). Besides the many thousands who are killed each year, huge numbers are
injured, including some who are permanently disabled. Others are raped or tortured,
or suffer disease and famine. Again, available evidence suggests that those at
highest risk of these experiences are those living in the least affluent nations of
the world (Cairns, 1996; WHO 2002).
Exact information about the nature of childrens experiences in particular during conflict is difficult to obtain (Browne, 2003; Dodge, 1990; Macksoud, 1992).
The particular problems documenting childrens experiences can be attributed to
a range of factors. First, violence and social disorganization often militate against
such documentation (Dodge, 1990). Second often the research undertaken reflects
researchers and practitioners most pressing concerns for children during political conflict (Aboud, Samuel, Hadera, & Abdulaziz, 1991). For instance, the The

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United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) currently estimates that
one million children have been orphaned in the last decade (UHNCR, 2001). Therefore, it is not surprising that the challenge of caring for unaccompanied children
and supporting their coping in response to this trauma is increasingly reflected
in the literature. Indeed many studies assess the impact of being orphaned rather
than a range of experiences associated with political violence on subsequent development (Aboud et al., 1991; Wolff, Tesfai, Egasso, & Aradom, 1995). Similarly,
other studies document the effects of a particular type of stressor on children.
For instance, McCloskey, Southwich, Fernandez-Esquer, & Locke (1995) document the effects of children experiencing or witnessing sexual abuse and rape as a
result of political violence. Sack et al. (1999) examined the impact of the oppressive Pol Pot regime (19751979) on Cambodian childrens subsequent health and
development.
While all of these studies suggest intense and severe childhood experiences
arise as a result of politically motivated violence, it is more difficult to comment
on the exact scale of these problems in particular conflict regions. Nonetheless,
theoretical and empirical evidence would suggest that war and political violence is
likely to have a qualitatively distinct impact when experienced during childhood.
Over the last 20 years, developmental psychopathology has become the dominant
paradigm in the conceptualization of mental health in both adulthood and childhood
(Rutter & Sroufe, 2000). Central to this understanding has been an appreciation of
the risk presented by adverse environments during childhood (Rutter, 1999; Rutter
& Maughan, 1997). Current evidence also suggests development of social identity
is a key task of childhood that is likely to be directly influenced by environmental
contexts (see Trew, this issue). In sum, socio-political identities and in-group and
out-group attitudes, which are central to the maintenance of prejudice and underpin
many political conflicts, also appear to be consolidated during childhood (Nesdale
& Flesser, 2001). It is for this reason that this issue, is focusing explicitly on the
effects of conflict on children and young people.
The Northern Irish Troubles
In the three decades since the start of the Troubles more than 3,000 people
have been killed, and thousands more injured (Cairns & Darby, 1998). Murray
(1982) estimated over a ten year period 103 people under the age of 17 had been
killed as a result of the Troubles, representing 8% of all fatalities. Cairns (1987)
subsequently estimated that, between 1969 and 1983, approximately 150 children
under the age of 14 had been killed or injured in Northern Ireland as a result of
political violence. The most recent estimates suggest, that between 1969 and 1998,
257 young people under the age of 17 (7.2% of all fatalities) and 1,276 under 25
years (36% of all fatalities) have been killed as a result of the Troubles (Smyth,
1998). Obviously the comparability of experiences amongst children in Northern

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Ireland to those experienced by children elsewhere is crucial to the application

and understanding of this research to other contexts. First, it is worth noting that
problems such as unaccompanied children and sexual violence as a result of the
Northern Irish conflict have not been reported (Bew & Gillespie, 1999). Further,
children in other conflict situations have been on the sharp end of the conflict
(Cairns, 1996; Simpson, 1993). For instance in year two of the South African conflict, 300 children were killed by police, 1000 wounded, 11,000 detained without
trial and 173,000 held in police cells (Simpson, 1993). Therefore the magnitude
of the Northern Irish conflict, the level of child involvement, and casualties was
less than in the South African situation.
Available research data support the contention that the intensity and severity
of the experiences of children in Northern Ireland have been less than in other
conflicts. Macksoud and Aber (1996) found that a sample of Lebanese children
reported more frequent and severe experiences than children of a comparable age
from Northern Ireland (Muldoon & Trew, 2000; McAuley, 1988). For example
70% of the Lebanese children had been bereaved by the conflict, whereas this was
the case for 7% of the Northern Irish sample. The intensity of the experiences
of children living in Croatia and South Africa would also appear to be more
severe than those of children in Northern Ireland (Kuterovac et al., 1994; Straker,
Mendelsohn, Moosa & Tudin, 1996). Experiences of shelling (25%), shootings
(58%), and bereavement (20%) were all more common in a Croatian sample of
children resident in their own homes than in the Northern Irish samples of a similar
age. Further to this, Kuterovac et al. (1994) went on to point out that the experiences
of displaced children in Croatia were even more extreme than those who were still
resident in their own homes (e.g., 59% of the sample had been bereaved and 94%
had been exposed to armed combat). Despite these figures however, Hayes and
McAllister (2001) argue that the Northern Irish conflict has been, easily, the most
intense and violent conflict in Europe.
Importantly, Northern Ireland, unlike many of the less developed areas of the
world affected by conflict, has attracted the interest of local, national, and international researchers (for reviews see Cairns, 1987; Muldoon, Trew, & Kilpatrick,
2000). As such, more is known about the consequences of the conflict for children
in Northern Ireland. Hence, this issue can provide some valuable insights into the
effects of growing up in a situation of armed conflict on children and young people. Generalizing these findings is, however, more problematic due to the relative
affluence of Northern Ireland (Browne, 2003). Logically, however, it would seem
that the sequelae are likely to be magnified and exacerbated amongst those children living in more impoverished and more acutely violent circumstances. Further
it is our hope that this issue will encourage research activity in areas where war
and poverty continue to affect children daily.
It is clear that in particular neighborhoods and towns, where deprivation in
Northern Ireland is most marked, the impact of the Troubles has been considerable

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(Muldoon & Trew, 2000; Reilly, Muldoon, & Byrne, this issue; Smyth, 2000).
Estimates of the number of families that have been altered as a result of the conflict,
due to bereavement, imprisonment, and enforced residential relocation are difficult
to obtain. The population of the region is 1.6 million, 40% of whom are under
25 years of age. More than 3,000 have been killed and more than 30,000 have been
injured as a result of the Troubles (Cairns & Darby, 1998). Thus it is clear that a
substantial minority of people in Northern Ireland have been directly affected by
the Troubles. Further, almost half of the population had no experience of peace
in Northern Ireland, until the onset of the recent cease-fires. Also, all children
and young people living in Northern Ireland today have grown up in a divided
society (Gallagher, this issue; McAuley, this issue). Although considerable social
polarization pre-dated the onset of the current troubles (Murray, 1995), years of
sectarian violence has exacerbated this situation. As a result, more than a generation
of young people in Northern Ireland have been exposed to unchecked and pervasive
sectarian prejudice that can be considered endemic to the region (Murray, 1995).
Northern Ireland is a region in the west of the European Union that would be
a relatively unknown and unremarkable place were it not for the armed political
conflict of the last thirty years. The conflict has resulted in bombings in both
the UK and the Republic (South) of Ireland. However, the vast majority of the
violence has undoubtedly been within Northern Ireland (Bew & Gillespie, 1999;
Hayes & McAllister, 2001). The conflict is most often constructed as a clash of
religious identities although religion is only one dimension of the conflict (Dunn,
1995). To those unfamiliar with Northern Ireland, these two groups, are ostensibly
very similar groupsbeing White, Christian, and of European descent. The two
main protagonists to the conflict are the Roman Catholic Irish nationalists, who
wish to be united with the rest of the island of Ireland, and the Protestant British
unionists, who wish to remain part of the United Kingdom. They may also be
viewed as two distinct national, ethnic, and cultural groups (Trew & Benson,
1996). Although, Northern Ireland is a highly segregated society and religious
group membership is central to this division, constructing the conflict in this way
does not acknowledge the combined effect of historical, national, religious, and
economic factors in causing and maintaining the conflict. The importance of these
factors is best understood by reference to history, which is outlined below.
Northern Irish society is deeply divided due to the enduring nature of the
divisions. Following the Norman Invasion of Ireland in the twelfth century, King
Henry II of England attempted to attach Ireland to his kingdom (Darby, 1995).
He succeeded in establishing control over a small area around the capital Dublin,
which became known as the pale. Over the following four centuries, this area
became the administrative center of English rule in Ireland, adopting the English
language and English cultural practices. The Irish clans living outside of this
area did not accept English rule and viewed England as a major threat to their
sovereignty. Language and cultural practices outside of this area were Irish and

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attempts to overthrow and undermine the English base in the capital were frequent.
This perceived lawlessness of the Irish clans resulted in the phrase, beyond the
pale, entering common parlance. At this level, the basis of the current conflict is
very much related to national identity, a point clearly evidenced in two contributions
to this issue (Trew, this issue; Gallagher, this issue).
The particular problems, however, that have developed in Northern Ireland can
be more directly related to the plantation of Ulster in 1609 (Darby, 1995). Ulster
is one of the four provinces of Ireland and six of the nine counties of the original
province now form Northern Ireland. Prior to plantation it was the area over which
the English had not established rule by the beginning of the 17th century. When
the Ulster clans were finally defeated, their land was confiscated and distributed
to colonists from Britain. These colonists built new towns from which the native
Irish were excluded, being displaced to the bogs and margins of the land they had
previously owned. The plantation community spoke a different language, had a
different way of life, and, for the most part, were Protestant, whereas the native
Irish were Catholic. Essentially, the conflict was sketched out within fifty years of
plantation. The same area, Ulster, was occupied by two hostile groupsone group,
Catholic, believed their land had been unjustly stolen from them and the other,
Protestant, believed their possession of the land was constantly under threat. The
groups generally lived in separate areas and identified their differences as cultural,
territorial as well as religious (Darby, 1995). The association of these differences
with religion resulted in religious affiliation becoming integral to the conflict.
Evidence of this religious division remains most indelibly marked in Northern
Irelands education system, which in the main remains religiously segregated (see
Kilpatrick & Leitch, this issue; Gallagher, this issue).
The partitioning of Ireland in 1922 can be seen as the most recent prelude
to the Troubles. After many failed attempts over the course of the previous two
centuries, nationalists, predominantly Roman Catholics in the south of Ireland
rebelled against British rule in an attempt to create a free state. The Protestant
people in the North, however, wanted to remain within the UK and under British
rule. Partition came about as a result of an attempt to satisfy the demands of
both groups (Darby, 1995). The end result was a free state, later the Republic of
Ireland in the south, whose population was predominantly Catholic, with a small
minority of Protestants. The area in the north, comprising six of the nine counties of
Ulster, now called Northern Ireland, became a new political administration. This
area retained a substantial minority (approximately 35%) of nationalist Roman
Catholics. However, a majority unionist Protestant population had political control
of Northern Ireland. Thus the region was once infamously described as a Protestant
state for a Protestant people (Darby, 1995).
The beginning of the recent conflict, the Troubles, is generally dated from the
civil rights movement in the late 1960s (Bew & Gillespie, 1999). At that time, civil
rights movements across the world were demanding equal rights for all regardless

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of race, creed, or color. In Northern Ireland, the Protestant unionist majority had
enjoyed four decades of power and, in some cases, this power had been severely
abused. The greatest injustices at this time were related to gerrymandering and
discrimination in housing and employment. In effect, there was now an economic
dimension to the conflict which undoubtedly remains (Darby, 1995; Dunn, 1995;
Reilly et al., this issue). In addition, the police force was almost exclusively Protestant, an issue that has not yet been fully resolved. In the late sixties the civil rights
movement came onto the streets of Northern Ireland. It was seen by many, particularly in the unionist community, as a front for a military campaign by Republicans
who sought the end of British involvement in Ireland and the reunification of the
island. This contention was hotly disputed by the civil rights activists, who viewed
themselves as peaceful protestors.
These early demonstrations often ended in street violence. As it became more
regular and Northern Ireland descended into a situation of ongoing violence, the
British government intervened (Bew & Gillespie, 1999). At first troops were sent
in. Later as the situation failed to improve, the British government introduced direct
rule from Westminster. By this time the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA)
had emerged, as, too, had the Loyalist paramilitaries, the Ulster Volunteer Force
(UVF) and Ulster Defence Association (UDA). For close to three decades, violence between and within paramilitary groups has proliferated and heavily armed
police and soldiers patrolled the streets of Northern Ireland. Though the violence
has varied in form and intensity over this time, it can generally be characterized as
low intensity urban guerrilla warfare. Assassinations and assassination attempts,
sniper attacks, bombings, bomb scares, street riots, civilian searches, and vehicle
checkpoints had become part and parcel of life in Northern Ireland. Against this
backdrop of violence, considerable positive and negative political and legislative
change occurred. For instance, security measures such as internment and police
powers to stop and search children and adults have been viewed as counterproductive. However, housing, employment, and electoral reform were introduced
to better effect (Darby, 1995). The inequalities in allocation of public housing
and the gerrymandering of electoral boundaries have been addressed. Legislation
to prevent religious discrimination in employment has been introduced also. Despite this, Catholic unemployment remains higher, and income lower, than that of
Protestants (Borooah, McKee, & Smyth, 1995). In many ways these reforms can
be seen as precursors to the Belfast Agreement of 1998.
The Belfast Agreement of 1998, also known as the Good Friday Agreement,
was seen as a watershed in Northern Ireland (Ruane & Todd, 2001). This agreement was negotiated between the two traditionally opposing traditions, resulting
in an elected Northern Irish Assembly for the first time in almost 30 years. This
elected assembly representing the two traditions was based on shared governance.
This is designated within the agreement, aimed at promoting coalition building
between the traditionally opposed political parties (Evans & Tonge, 2003). Since

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its inception, the Executive of the Assembly has stumbled from crisis to crisis,
but the institutions remain operational (Ruane & Todd, 2001). The paramilitary
cease-fires have remained largely intact, however political conflict and violence
continue at a much lower level (Knox, 2002). Over 100 people have died as a
consequence of such violence since the 1994 cease-fires and street violence and
sectarianism stubbornly remain on Northern Irelands social issues agenda (Knox,
2002; Ruane & Todd, 2001). Nonetheless, Northern Ireland is closer to a peaceful
resolution to its violent past than it has been for many decades (Stevenson, 2003).
Given the dramatic changes over the last number of years it seems timely to reflect
on the effects the Troubles may have had on children and young people.
Background to this Issue
In September 1978, the Northern Ireland Branch of the British Psychological
Society sponsored a two day conference on the theme of young people living in
Northern Ireland, to begin the process of examining the relationship between the
on-going political violence and child development. Until that point, there had been
little serious scientific study of the causes or effects of the political violence in
Northern Ireland, in particular psychologists had been noticeable only by their
absence. Thankfully, the ensuing interest in the issue changed this situation. The
conference resulted in three publications, the first resulting directly from the conference (Harbison and Harbison, 1980), the second and third demonstrating the
growth in the psychological literature in 1982 (Harbison, 1983; Harbison, 1989).
Indeed many of the contributing authors have now become established figures in
this area, three of whom (Cairns, Whyte, and Trew) are contributing to this issue.
This issue was again prompted by a conference organized by the Northern Ireland
branch of the British Psychological Society, this time to commemorate the Societys centenary. Further support was provided by a research seminar series funded
by the Economic and Social Research Council (UK), entitled Northern Ireland
After the Good Friday Agreement. The articles in this issue center around three
themes, namely the cost of the conflict for young people in Northern Ireland, the
everyday social and psychological impact of the conflict, and the role of identity
in the conflict.
The Conflict and Psychological Adjustment
The impact of the conflict on children growing up in Northern Ireland has
been hotly debated among researchers and practitioners alike. Some of the early
research conducted suggested a range of negative effects (Fields, 1980; Fraser,
1971, 1973; Lyons, 1979). The severity of these effects were asserted by some to
be both severe and long term, both in terms of childrens psychological adjustment
and their social and moral development (Fields, 1980). Research conducted from

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the 1980s onwards painted a brighter future for the children of Northern Ireland
(see Cairns, 1987) and issues related to coping and resilience were increasingly
of interest (McWhirter, 1990). In more recent years, this belief that children can
successfully adjust to conflict has again been questioned (see Gallagher, this issue;
Morrissey & Smyth, 2001).
It is hoped that the current issue will go some way to resolving these apparently paradoxical research findings. In the early years the majority of research
undertaken focused on the impact of conflict on mental health (e.g., Fraser, 1971,
1973; Lyons, 1979). To date there is little evidence that the Troubles has impacted
on mental health in terms of depressive symptomotology (Donnelly, 1995; Joseph,
Cairns, & McCollam, 1993), anxiety (Murray & Clifford, 1988), or self-esteem
(Granleese, Turner, & Trew, 1989; Muldoon, 2000) at least at the population level.
However, anxiety and depression represent only one dimension of mental health
problems in childhood, and historically experience of war has been related to
externalizing rather than internalizing behaviors (Cairns, 1996).
Evidence for a link between externalizing behaviors and conflict experiences
is more ambiguous. Fee (1980) found some evidence of a heightened incidence of
antisocial behavior problems in school-going children (particularly boys) using a
standard child behavior rating scale. Similarly, McWhirter (1984), Eysenck and
Kay (1986) and Granleese et al. (1989) found higher levels of psychoticism, as
measured by the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) in a community sample of school-going Northern Irish children and young people than among English
contemporaries. More recently, Muldoon and Trew (2000) found that the experience of conflict was related to self-reported behavioral maladjustment among
Northern Irish school children. Despite this, there is little evidence of an associated increase in problems such as antisocial behaviors truanting or delinquent
behavior in Northern Irish young people (OMahony, 2000).
Two articles in the current issue consider issues related to antisocial and
externalizing behaviors in young people in Northern Ireland. For instance, one
possible explanation for this low level of juvenile crime and delinquency, despite
higher psychometric indices of acting out behaviors, was the low level of adolescent
drug use during the period of the Troubles (Higgins, Percy, & Mc Crystal, this
issue). Indeed Higgins et al.s analysis points to the importance of wider social
and cultural factors in determining the prevalence of drug use. The strong anti-drug
stance taken by the Irish Republican Army (IRA), security force measures together
with the influence of the churches, is believed to have curbed supply and usage of
illegal drugs during the Troubles. This article points to the increased use of drugs
by adolescent post-cease-fires and the need for a policy response to this problem.
Indicators of externalizing behavior problems evidenced at the population
level in school-going children, on the other hand, may reflect problems experienced
by particular subgroups of the population. Available evidence suggests that the
conflict experiences themselves are not evenly distributed within the population

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(Bryce, Walker, Ghorayeb and Kanj, 1989; Cairns, 1996; McAuley, 1988; McGrath
and Wilson, 1985; Muldoon & Trew, 2000; Simpson, 1993; Smyth, 1998). Young
people from deprived backgrounds generally report greater experience of political
violence than their middle class counterparts, boys report more experience than
girls and ethnic minority group members report more than those from the majority
group. The net effect of these wider social factors is crucial to a full understanding
of the impact of conflict. Inequity of experiences may contribute to feelings of
disempowerment and alienation in young people, particularly when issues such as
equity and social justice are central to the conflict itself.
Indeed the issue of marginalization and alienation among young people in
Northern Ireland is a theme revisited by the article by Reilly et al. (this issue).
Alienation from the justice system, as well as the social and political changes
that have occurred through out the Troubles, has led to a rise in informal criminal
justice being meted out by paramilitaries (Knox, 2002). Reilly et al. reports on
a qualitative study of young men living in socially disadvantaged circumstances.
These young men are living on the margins of society and have considerable
experience of the twin risks of violence and deprivation. On interviewing these
young men, a number of key themes in relation to the impact of Troubles are
identified. These young men feel alienated from institutions of social control. In
line with suggestions from previous research (Cairns, 1996), violence is seen as
prevalent and pervasive in their communities and as an acceptable solution to many
of their problems. Mirroring the findings of others (McAuley, this issue), violence
is generally seen as consistent with and, in many ways, essential to the experience
of being young and male. In effect, violent behavior is a component of masculine
identity for these young men.
The Conflict and Identity
The second group of articles addresses the centrality of identity to so many
of young peoples experiences in Northern Ireland. Indeed the issue of identity is
increasingly acknowledged to be central to the development and maintenance of
political violence in Northern Ireland and elsewhere (Cairns & Lewis, 2003). In
many ways, social identity theory has provided the theoretical focus for much of
this research, in much the same way that its influence has pervaded European social
psychology over the last decade. Three articles in this issue attest to the current
vibrancy of the area (Trew, this issue; Cassidy & Trew, this issue; McAuley, this
issue). Trews article (this issue) focuses on the development of self-categorization
and socio-political identities in young people in Northern Ireland and reexamines
our knowledge in light of current theoretical perspectives. Further to this, her
particular analysis outlines how identity may be central to coping and adjustment
to the stresses associated with political violence, an important and interesting
development in this area.

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Cassidy & Trews (this issue) study of young people in transition from school
to university also adds to our understanding of the role and nature of identity in
Northern Ireland. Importantly, student, family, and friend identities are judged to
be more salient for this group than religious or national identity. This finding is
an important one. Although the media characterization of Northern Ireland is that
of a war-torn society, for many, life is very ordinary and mundane. Young people
define themselves in terms of their family and friends, rather than in terms of
the conflict (Cassidy & Trew, this issue). Admittedly, Cassidy and Trews sample
were privileged at least in the sense that they were obtaining a university education. Nonetheless, they represent a considerable proportion of Northern Irelands
young population. This article also underlines the stability of national identity for
Northern Irish students, together with an increase in the salience of religious identity over time. Cassidy and Trew postulate that this increase may be attributable
to the religiously heterogeneous environment young people in Northern Ireland
find themselves in for the first time on entering a university. This heightens their
awareness of religious identity and probably reflects the enduring nature of the
social divisions in Northern Ireland.
The extent and effects of these divisions are outlined by McAuleys (this issue)
thought provoking article on the socially constructed nature of identity. His analysis
highlights how many institutions in Northern Ireland, including the Belfast Peace
Agreement, affirm the division in Northern Irish society on the basis of religious
or socio-political identity. Further, his analysis of the discourse of the Unionist
political leadership asserts that identity is used as a tool in the political rhetoric
used to coax young people to conform and support traditional allegiances. Further
to this, because the two main identities in Northern Ireland, Protestant British and
Roman Catholic Irish are so often presented as opposing, many young loyalists
believe that the new Northern Ireland may pose a threat to their identity. The
alienation of loyalist youth, and young people more generally, from mainstream
politics in Northern Ireland is a theme again revisited in the final section of the
issue.
The Everyday Impact of the Conflict
The conflict in Northern Ireland has repeatedly demonstrated its intractability.
The protracted nature of the conflict is due in part to the enduring nature of the social
divisions in Northern Irish society. While considerable effort has been expended on
considering the negative impact of traumatic violent experiences on young people
growing up in Northern Ireland, the effect of growing up in a divided society
has less frequently been considered. The final section of this issue attempts to
document these more everyday effects and, again, three articles address this issue.
The first by Whyte and Schermbrucker (this issue) speaks to the concerns
raised by McAuley (this issue) and examines the nature and extent of young

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peoples political involvement in Northern Ireland over a ten year period during the Troubles. It is widely accepted that engagement with the political processes and institutions of the state is indicative of a healthy democracy. Whyte
and Schermbrucker present data from their longitudinal research project which
examined the importance of politics to young people, aged 17 and 27, in Northern Ireland. The importance of psychosocial factors such as national identity and
occupational status is again evidenced in relation to political engagement. Sadly,
it would also appear that the years of the Troubles may have had an effect. Young
people report feeling increasingly distant from political institutions.
The second article in this trio documents the experience of an important everyday social context for children and young people in Northern Ireland, namely
school. Kilpatrick and Leitch (this issue) highlight the segregated nature of education in Northern Ireland. The system is segregated on many levelsby ability,
social class, and religious affiliation. Kilpatrick and Leitch document, also, the
effects the conflict has had on education and schooling in Northern Ireland. This
article represents an important contribution to the existing literature, not least because of this focus. Too often, the impact of the conflict on academic achievement
has been the focus of research, resulting in group level data being analyzed and
used as representative of childrens adjustment. Kilpatrick and Leitch, however,
document the everyday effects the Troubles have had on their sample of schools
and consider the supports developed in response to the challenges schools have
faced over the course of the conflict. Valuable lessons can be learned from their
thoughtful analysis.
McLernon, Cairns, Hewstone, and Smith (this issue) consider the issue of
forgiveness in the Northern Irish context. The lack of research in this area is marked
and the work being undertaken by this team represents an exciting and timely
research development as Northern Ireland faces a new and, hopefully, brighter
future. McLernon et al.s findings suggest that the young people in their sample,
all of whom had been bereaved or experienced verbal or physical injury as a result
of the Troubles had high forgiveness scores when compared to scale norms. Their
data also suggested that forgiveness was predicted by the context of young peoples
experiences, namely the severity of their experience. In effect, it is more difficult
for young people to forgive (and perhaps adjust to the events fully) where the
experience was more severe or life altering.
Conclusions
This issue represents an important contribution to the existing literature. Locally it will act as a milestone, documenting the development of the research area
over the last decade as well as reporting on current knowledge. More importantly,
perhaps, there are many lessons to be learned from the conflict in Northern Ireland.
The research undertaken in Northern Ireland highlights a number of key issues.

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465

First, the impact of political violence on childrens adjustment is highly variable.

This is not surprising given childrens experiences in times of conflict are also
highly variable. Second, childrens conflict experiences may be more likely to result in acting out or externalizing behaviors than in anxiety or depression, despite
the latter reaction being more commonly expected.
Further, mental health represents only one dimension of the potential impact of political conflict and violence on children and young people. Deep social
divisions generally accompany political violence; most areas of conflict are particularly affected by other social ills such as poverty, deprivation, sectarianism,
or racism. It is perhaps because of these problems that the themes of alienation
and marginalization are so clearly evident in the articles presented in the current
issue. Several articles make reference to the distance young people feel between
themselves and their institutions of governance. While this problem is more pressing in some sections of Northern Irish society than others, young peoples apathy,
indifference, and hostility to politics should be addressed as a matter of urgency.
A final theme evident throughout this issue is the influence of wider social
contexts on young peoples experiences in times of conflict. For instance a number
of articles in this issue attest to the centrality of identity to the maintenance of
conflict, the effect of conflict experiences on identity strength, and the variability
in the strength and salience of identity across social groups. The current issue
points, also, to the fact that the identity which is ostensibly the most salient in
terms of the conflict in Northern Ireland represents only one dimension of social
identity for any given person. Other identities such as the masculine identity or
particular gang identities may in fact heighten young peoples risk in conflict
situations. Indeed, the complexity of many of these processes point to the need for
further research in this area.
This issue successfully identifies and documents some of the effects of the
Troubles on children in Northern Ireland by undertaking methodologically sound
and ethical research. It is important that researchers consider the many ways that
their research questions can be answered. For many years, much of the research undertaken in Northern Ireland relied heavily on traditional methods. The value in a
variety of theoretical standpoints, methods, analyses (for example longitudinal research designs, qualitative methods and secondary data analyses) is clearly evident
in the current issue. These articles also highlight the many ways researchers can
ethically and sensitively undertake sometimes difficult and distressing research.
Children affected by political violence are a particularly vulnerable group and
ethical treatment of child participants is a central concern. This issue exemplifies
how such research can be undertaken.
Combined, this series of articles provides a useful review of the existing literature, in many cases reanalyzing and reinterpreting past findings. Many of the
articles also break new ground allowing us to consider issues that heretofore have
not be addressed. Gallaghers final article (this issue) represents a synthesis of

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current thought and draws together the contributions to this issue. His exposition
provide a synopsis of the impact of past research on policy and practice, highlights the needs of Northern Irish children, and considers how the Troubles have
differed from other conflicts. Undoubtedly, many readers will be interested in
how the findings presented relate to other situations of conflict. Often, the specific can inform the general. The context provided in this article will go some
way to informing readers of the applicability of these findings to other situations. Regardless, the importance of these research endeavors will continue to
be emphasized by the endurance of armed political violence as a pressing global
issue.
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DR. ORLA T. MULDOON is a senior lecturer at Queens University Belfast. She

has been involved in a range of research projects relating to the impact of political
violence on mental health, identity, and attitudes of children and adults in Northern
Ireland. She has published a range of papers and book chapters in this area since the
completion of her PhD in 1996. She was awarded a John F. Kennedy Scholarship
the same year.