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Armed conflict typically worsens civilian life chances. The effects of social militarization (maintenance of armed forces) and economic militarization (military expenditures) on civilian life chances are disputed, and the joint effect of armed conflict and militarization on civilian life chances has not previously been examined. This study examines the joint effects of three types of major armed conflicts and two types of militarization on civilian life chances, using a fixed-effects negative binomial cross-national panel analysis (1985-1998) of data from 175 countries with populations larger than two hundred thousand. General economic development, political regime, and country-specific effects are controlled. Armed conflict and militarization interact in affecting civilian life chances. Armed conflict results in higher levels of civilian mortality; militarization interacts with armed conflict, producing the best civilian life chances at either medium-low or medium-high levels of militarization. [Reprinted by permission; copyright Inter-University Seminar on Armed Forces and Society/Sage Publications Inc.]

Armed conflict typically worsens civilian life chances. The effects of social militarization (maintenance of armed forces) and economic militarization (military expenditures) on civilian life chances are disputed, and the joint effect of armed conflict and militarization on civilian life chances has not previously been examined. This study examines the joint effects of three types of major armed conflicts and two types of militarization on civilian life chances, using a fixed-effects negative binomial cross-national panel analysis (1985-1998) of data from 175 countries with populations larger than two hundred thousand. General economic development, political regime, and country-specific effects are controlled. Armed conflict and militarization interact in affecting civilian life chances. Armed conflict results in higher levels of civilian mortality; militarization interacts with armed conflict, producing the best civilian life chances at either medium-low or medium-high levels of militarization.

Civil war adversely affects life chances (i.e. economic well-being, food production and education) that are key to social and economic development; civil war and these life chances all, potentially, affect the most basic life chance — mortality. Results show that civil war worsens child mortality despite controls for other life chances. In contrast, civil war accounts for much of the impact of other life chances on child mortality. Information comes from 175 countries from 1985 through 1998. Given the broad and persistent impact of civil war, future research concerned with social and economic development and, ultimately, the life chances of the masses should consider civil war as a factor in their theories and analyses.