Cornelia Beyer

Since 2001, I have been researching in the area of International Relations/ Security Studies, first with a focus on terrorism, later with a focus on violence and war more broadly. My previous publications focused on the causes of terrorism and international processes of cooperation in counterterrorism. For this purpose, I applied peace studies theories and International Relations theories, from Galtung to Gramsci to Gilpin. My recent monograph focuses on the connection between violence and war and inequality. In this work, I seek to demonstrate how economic and status inequality contributes to various forms of violence at all three levels of analysis, the individual, the state and the international system. In this monograph, I engage with Waltz’s works (predominantly Man, the State and War) and seek to move forward his argument by involving psychological approaches (such as status theory, frustration aggression theory) and other approaches.

Since 2010, I have developed a keen interest in Psychology. My research in this area is currently culminating in a monograph under contract with Palgrave entitled “Psychology of Hegemony: Insights from Psychology into Contemporary International Relations”. This project seeks to illuminate international issues and debates in IR by applying theories in particular from Social Psychology (such as social dominance theory, status theory, the humiliation approach, and others), but also from related fields, such as Feminist Psychology and Transpersonal Psychology.

More information on www.corneliabeyer.net