New publication by Alina Greiner-Filsinger

In their new study published in World Development, Alina Greiner-Filsinger and Daniel Kammer (University of Konstanz) examine how the Rwandan genocide has shaped attitudes toward violence against children. Their analysis shows that women who grew up in regions more heavily affected by the genocide are significantly less likely to endorse violence against children – and that these attitudes are passed on to their own children. Drawing on regional variation in genocide intensity and differences in the timing of socialization across birth cohorts, the authors employ a difference-in-differences design complemented by instrumental variable analyses to causally identify these effects. The study further demonstrates that this intergenerational attitude shift is driven by genocide-induced changes in women’s empowerment, which altered gender dynamics and strengthened women’s roles within the household and community. Overall, the findings highlight the lasting imprint of mass violence and the potential for progressive attitude change to unfold across generations.