Aimed at scholars, students and lay persons interested in peace and conflict studies, The Ashgate Research Companion to Political Violence is a comprehensive resource to understand the principal debates on political violence, a field which is becoming an increasingly important part of courses on peace and conflict. Organized into seven main sections, this volume deals with a wide range of issues covering the following important research areas: A* Issues of definition and nomenclature and how contests over these relate to political violence. A* Theoretical frameworks and methods for understanding and researching political violence. A* Motivations and goals of those who use political violence. A* The various forms of political violence. A* Perspectives on countering political violence, by state and non-state actors. A* Why and how political violence ends. A* The aftermath of political violence. Contributions by leading scholars in the field provide an authoritative guide and source book on political violence for the scholar, the researcher and the informed general reader.