Paths to peace in Northern Ireland (I): Civil society and consociational approaches

This article comes in two parts. Part I describes the consociational and civil society approaches to conflict resolution. Consociationalism is a ‘top‐down’ form of power‐sharing which is elite‐oriented and sceptical of democracy. It is also distinctive in its preference for ethnic autonomy or segregation as a means for producing a more conducive environment for conflict resolution. By contrast the civil society or ‘bottom‐up’ model favours the extension of democracy and greater interethnic contact. By extending democracy moderate civil society is able to put pressure on the political elite to accommodate. Part II of the article will consider the assumptions of the two models against the experience of the peace processes 1973–74 and 1994–96.