DO REBEL GROUPS THAT RECRUIT CHILD SOLDIERS PERPETRATE MORE SEXUAL VIOLENCE? A quantitative analysis of rebel groups in armed conflicts between 1989-2009.

Abstract

This master thesis explores the relationship between child soldier recruitment and rebel groups’ perpetration of sexual violence. As research has shown that levels of sexual violence not only vary across conflicts, but also across armed groups, scholars have recently come to examine what armed group characteristics can explain this variation. Even though the literature has emphasized rebel groups’ recruitment practices as important factors, no study has yet considered the impact of child soldier recruitment on rebel groups’ perpetration of sexual violence. This thesis aims to fill this research gap by examining how the recruitment of child soldiers may influence rebel-perpetrated sexual violence. I develop a theoretical framework that presents four different, yet interrelated, arguments as to why rebel groups that recruit child soldiers are more likely to engage in higher levels of sexual violence. To test the hypothesized relationship empirically, I analyze rebel groups active in armed conflicts between 1989-2009, using a newly compiled dataset on child soldier recruitment combined with group-level data on conflict-related sexual violence. The results show that child soldiering is strongly associated with higher levels of sexual violence by rebel groups. Thus, my findings have important implications for both scholars and policymakers.