Non-State Actors in Civil Wars: A New Dataset

The authors present the Non-State Actors (NSA) in Civil Wars dataset, covering internal armed conflicts from 1945 to 2011. The dataset shifts the unit of analysis from country-years to state-rebel group dyad spells, allowing researchers to examine the specific characteristics of opposition forces rather than just macro-level state variables. Key indicators include rebel strength relative to the government, territorial control, organizational structure (such as the presence of political wings), and external support from states or non-state actors. Descriptive statistics from the dataset show that while over 85% of rebel groups are weaker than their governments, nearly half are at least equal in their specific capacities to mobilize support, procure arms, and fight. The dataset is designed to be compatible with the Uppsala Conflict Data Project (UCDP) Dyadic Dataset to facilitate data aggregation across different research projects.

• The NSA dataset identifies a significant asymmetry in power, with over 85% of rebel groups categorized as either "much weaker" or "weaker" than their respective governments.
• Despite overall weakness in troop numbers, approximately one-third of rebel groups are measured as equivalent to the government in their specific abilities to fight, procure arms, and mobilize support.
• Territorial control varies among rebel groups, with approximately one-third of groups controlling territory; among those that do, 60.7% exercise a "moderate" level of control.
• External state support is common for both sides of a conflict, with 39.05% of rebel groups and 48.88% of governments receiving explicit support, the majority of which is military in nature.
• The dataset allows for the analysis of intra-conflict variation, demonstrating that different rebel groups within the same civil war can differ significantly in their strength, external support, and organizational structure.

APA

Cunningham, D., Gleditsch, K. S., & Salehyan, I. (n.d.). Non-State Actors in Civil Wars: A New Dataset. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/164c4537-09b1-478e-83e0-7f9354ad3a96/Non-state actors in civil wars A new dataset.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Cunningham, David, Kristian Skrede Gleditsch, and Idean Salehyan. Non-State Actors in Civil Wars: A New Dataset. Peace Research Institute Oslo, n.d. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/164c4537-09b1-478e-83e0-7f9354ad3a96/Non-state actors in civil wars A new dataset.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Cunningham |first1=David |last2=Gleditsch |first2=Kristian Skrede |last3=Salehyan |first3=Idean |title=Non-State Actors in Civil Wars: A New Dataset |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/164c4537-09b1-478e-83e0-7f9354ad3a96/Non-state actors in civil wars A new dataset.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cunninghamndnonstate, author = {Cunningham, David and Gleditsch, Kristian Skrede and Salehyan, Idean}, title = {{Non-State Actors in Civil Wars: A New Dataset}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/164c4537-09b1-478e-83e0-7f9354ad3a96/Non-state actors in civil wars A new dataset.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }