Inter-group social trust is one of the main elements for peacebuilding and, as a common feature of civil wars, Forced Internal Displacement is creating further complexities and challenges for post-war inter-group social trust. However, research revealed that among the internally displaced people, some tend to have a higher level of post-war inter-group trust compared to the other IDP. Surprisingly, an analysis based on this topic revealed that only a small number of studies are focusing on the condition of Internally Displaced People’s post-war intergroup social trust in the long run. This study examines the inter-group social trust of internally displaced people to provide a theoretical explanation for the following question; under what conditions the internally displaced people tend to trust more/less the conflicting party in the post-war context? With an examination of the social psychology research, this thesis argues that under the condition of postwar the IDP who have experienced continuous pre-war inter-group contact the post-war intergroup social trust will be stronger than the IDP who do not have such inter-group contact experience. The reason behind this expectation is the expected effect of inter-group contact on eliminating the prejudices and promoting the ‘collective knowledge’ regarding the war and displacement, thus promoting inter-group trust. This research is collected data from two groups of internally displaced people of Cyprus; IDP displaced from heterogeneous areas and homogenous areas, using the method of qualitative single case analysis. The findings show strong support for the expected causal relationship.

Do the experiences that an immigrant faces in their country of origin affect the political attitudes and behavior when an immigrant is in their country of residence? Although there is a considerable amount of work exploring the political behavior of racial and ethnic minorities, some work on immigrant political behavior, and some work that that connects premigratory experiences with post migration political behavior, there is relatively little work that examines premigratory experiences with autocracy, corruption, and violence and how that affects the political behavior of immigrants. In this project I observe how experiences with corruption, political violence, and conflict has an affect on political trust, political behavior, and social trust among immigrants that have experienced such events.

This project explores the impact of a mobile website (MWS) designed to enhance knowledge and interest in local history among residents of Eberswalde as a sample for an Eastern German post-communist city. It aims to strengthen the sense of regional identity and attachment, potentially affecting their decision to remain in or leave the region. The MWS features digitised old postcards, new images, audio memories, short films, and text about historical locations preceding communism in East Germany. Building on previous research showing that interest and engagement in local history can raise, i.a., individuals 'place attachment', 'local identity', and 'regional pride', the research's theoretical frame joins Stefaniak et al.'s (2017), Twells et al.'s (2018) and Pearson and Plevyak's (2020) research outcomes. It groups them into six spheres of effects (SoEs) and reorders them into six individual personal growth dimensions (IPGDs). While the SoEs represent a researcher's bird's-eye view, the IPGDs aim to understand individuals from a frog's-eye viewpoint. The MWS was developed using WordPress with the Divi Editor. A local choir of approximately 35 members critically accompanied the development process, from naming the domain to creating and initial testing a prototype for a location page, which then served as a template for subsequent locations. Subsequently, the MWS was evaluated on-site by five participating local individuals who were not part of the initial testing by the choir members and had at least one family member who experienced the region under communist rule. They were observed during this process, and audio notes were taken. Approximately one to two weeks later, each participant was interviewed using a retrospective semi-structured interview exploring their experiences and any possible perceptual changes regarding their local history. The results show that despite the temporal and scope limitations of the project, the short engagement with local history via the MWS has enriched participants' attachment to the city. It shows further that the worth of local history in this process lies in that sites and monuments of local history are perceived as accomplishments of the local community. This perception fosters an emotional connection and a sense of pride in being part of the locality. In contrast, the presence of natural beauty, as exemplified by the surroundings of Eberswalde, elicits appreciation. Even though nature, not being a human achievement, is admired by participants, it does not evoke the same emotional expressions or pride in belonging to the location. Both are essential for establishing a lasting bond and participation in the city's public and social life.

Depuis le retour de la démocratie l’Amérique Latine a expérimenté une série de transformations importantes. Les premières, furent économiques et se caractérisent principalement par une grande vague de libéralisation économique qui a signifié entre d’autres choses, un type de changement fluctuant, des réductions des dépenses publiques, ainsi que, la privatisation des entreprises et des services de l’État qui ont fini pour réduire considérablement leur rôle. Les secondes, furent politiques et ont été marquées par l’arrivée des partis de gauche au pouvoir et la mise en œuvre d’une série de politiques sociales visant à réduire la pauvreté et les inégalités, qui ont permis d’améliorer significativement les conditions de vie de millions de Latino-américains. Tous ces changements, en plus de la fréquente alternance entre l’autoritarisme et la démocratie vécue durant les dernières années ont inévitablement eu un effet sur la confiance que les individus ont envers les institutions. Dans ce sens, comment le niveau de confiance institutionnelle en l’Amérique Latine a-t-il évolué au cours des dernières années? Spécifiquement, comment l’alternance au pouvoir des partis de gauche et de droite qui ont gouverné en Amérique Latine durant les derniers trente ans, a-t-il impacté sur les niveaux de confiance que les Latino-américains ont envers leurs institutions? Utilisant un modèle statistique multiniveau longitudinale de mesures répétées, cette recherche a comme premier objectif, de comprendre l’évolution historique du niveau de confiance institutionnelle en Amérique Latine entre 1995 et 2021, à partir de la combinaison des données incluses dans les sondages réalisées par Latinobarómetro, LAPOP et l’Enquête Mondiale des Valeurs (WVS), et comme deuxième objectif, d’estimer l’impact de l’orientation idéologique des individus et des partis au pouvoir sur le niveau de confiance institutionnelle. Les résultats montrent que quand le parti au pouvoir est de gauche, le niveau de confiance moyen envers les institutions est significativement plus élevé. Ils montrent également que la confiance institutionnelle se renforce positivement chez ceux qui déclarent avoir la même orientation que le parti au pouvoir. L’évolution de la confiance institutionnelle dans la région s’explique donc en partie, par l’orientation idéologique des individus et du parti au pouvoir. / Desde el retorno de la democracia América Latina ha experimentado una serie de importantes transformaciones. Las primeras, fueron económicas y se caracterizaron principalmente por una gran ola de liberalización económica que significó, entre otras cosas, un tipo de cambio fluctuante, recortes en el gasto público, la privatización de las empresas y servicios públicos que terminaron por reducir considerablemente el papel del Estado. Las segundas, fueron políticas y estuvieron marcadas por la llegada de los partidos de izquierda al poder y la implementación de una serie de políticas sociales dirigidas a reducir la pobreza y la desigualdad que permitieron mejorar significativamente las condiciones de vida de millones de latinoamericanos. Todas estas experiencias más la frecuente alternancia entre el autoritarismo y la democracia vivida durante los últimos años inevitablemente han ejercido un efecto en la confianza que los individuos tienen sobre las instituciones. En este sentido, ¿Cómo ha evolucionado el nivel de confianza institucional en América Latina los últimos años? Específicamente, ¿Cómo la alternancia en el poder de partidos de izquierda y de derecha que han gobernado en América Latina durante los últimos treinta años, ha impactado en los niveles de confianza que los latinoamericanos tienen de sus instituciones? A través de un modelo estadístico multinivel longitudinal de medidas repetidas, esta investigación tiene como objetivo en primer lugar, comprender la evolución histórica del nivel de confianza institucional en América Latina entre 1995 y 2021, a partir de la combinación de datos incluidos en las encuestas realizadas por Latinobarómetro, LAPOP y la Encuesta Mundial de Valores (WVS), y en segundo lugar, estimar el impacto de la orientación ideológica de los individuos y de los partidos gobernantes sobre el nivel de confianza institucional. Los resultados muestran que cuando el partido gobernante es de izquierda, el nivel de confianza medio hacia las instituciones es significativamente más alto. Por otra parte, muestran que la confianza hacia las instituciones se refuerza positivamente en aquellas personas que declaran tener la misma orientación que el partido gobernante. Por lo tanto, la evolución de la confianza institucional en América Latina se explica en parte, por la orientación ideológica de los individuos y del partido en el poder. / Since the return of democracy, Latin America has experienced a series of important transformations. The first, were economic and were mainly characterized by a big wave of economic liberalization that meant, among other things, a fluctuating exchange rate, curs in public spending, the privatization of public organizations and services that ended up considerably reducing the role of the State. The second, were politics and were marked by the arrival of left-wing parties to power and the implementation of a series of social policies aimed at reducing poverty and inequality that allowed to significantly improved millions of Latin Americans’ life conditions. All those experiences, plus the frequent alternance between authoritarianism and democracy in recent years, have inevitably had an effect on the trust that individuals have in institutions. Therefore, how has the level of institutional trust evolved in Latin America in recent years? Specifically, how has the alternance in power of left and right parties that have governed in Latin America during the last thirty years, had an impact on the levels of trust that Latin Americans have in their institutions? Through a longitudinal multilevel statistical model of repeated measures, this research aims, first, at understanding the historical evolution of the level of institutional trust in Latin America between 1995 and 2021, from the combination of data included in the surveys carried out by Latinobarómetro, LAPOP and the World Values Survey (WVS), and secondly, to estimate the impact of the ideological orientation of individuals and of the ruling parties on the level of institutional trust. The results show that when the ruling party is from the left, the average level of trust towards the institutions is significantly higher. They also show that trust in institutions is positively reinforced in those people who declare that they have the same orientation as the ruling party. Therefore, the evolution of institutional trust in Latin America is explained in part by the ideological orientation of individuals and the party in power.