“There are two versions of the UCDP Battle-related Deaths Dataset (BRD), depending on the unit of analysis (resolution) employed. As such, there is:
1. a dyadic version, where each individual conflict dyad (pair of two fighting actors) has its own individual entry in each year the conflict dyad was active;
Thus, each entry contains a single pair of opposing sides (one side A and one side B) in a given year.
Multiple dyads may form a single conflict, as a conflict is defined by its incompatibilities.
2. a conflict version, where each individual conflict has its individual entry.
Thus, each entry contains one side A (the contested party) and one or more contesters in a given year (each entry being one contested incompatibility).
As such, for each row in the BRD Conflict version, there are one or more rows in the BRD Dyadic version.
If you are not certain which version of the dataset to choose, it is safer to use the dyadic version; the conflict version is an automatic aggregation of the dyadic version that automatically aggregates and drops information.” (codebook, p. 3)
I/ Conflict variable
I/1/ Unit of conflict
| Event (< 0 or 1 death) | Conflict (< 25 deaths) | War (< 100 deaths) | Episode (< 500 deaths) |
|---|---|---|---|
| ∅ | X | ∅ | ∅ |
I/2/ Conflict domain
| State-based conflict | Non-state conflict | One-sided violence | TO BE DETERMINED |
|---|---|---|---|
| X | ∅ | X | ∅ |
One of the following four types of conflict over which the dyad is fought:
1 = extrasystemic (between a state and a non-state group outside its own territory, where the government side is fighting to retain control of a territory outside the state system).
2 = interstate (both sides are states in the Gleditsch and Ward membership system).
3 = intrastate (side A is always a government; side B is always one or more rebel groups; there is no involvement of foreign governments with troops, i.e. there is no side_a_2nd or side_b_2nd coded).
4 = internationalized intrastate (side A is always a government; side B is always one or more rebel
groups; there is involvement of foreign governments with troops, i.e. there is at least ONE side_a_2nd or side_b_2nd coded).” (codebook, p. 10)
II/ Time variable
II/1/ Unit of time
| Day | Year |
|---|---|
| ∅ | X |
The year of observation (1989-2021).” (codebook, p. 9)
II/2/ Time domain
| Time domain |
|---|
| 1989 – 2021 |
III/ Space variable
III/1/ Unit of space
| Coordinates | Country | Region | TO BE DETERMINED |
|---|---|---|---|
| ∅ | X | ∅ | ∅ |
The name of the country/countries in which battle- related deaths have been recorded in this conflict-year: battle_location is a string variable, where the different countries are separated by a comma (‘,’).
WARNING: This variable SHOULD NEVER be used for any geographical or spatial analyses of conflict as the distribution of violence as well as the relative magnitude of violence by country is not captured. In effect, a country is listed here if even one dead in the given conflict has occurred in that country. In fact, UCDP provides much better geographic coverage of conflict (including distribution of violence for each conflict and each country) in the UCDP Georeferenced Event Dataset (GED).” (codebook, pp. 10-11)
III/2/ Space domain
| Global | Mediterranean Sea and Sahel | TO BE DETERMINED |
|---|---|---|
| X | ∅ | ∅ |
IV/ Data structure
IV/1/ Unit of observation
| Unit of conflict (UC) | UC-year | UC-actor | Country-year |
|---|---|---|---|
| ∅ | X | ∅ | ∅ |
| Actor-year | Dyad-year | OTHER | TO BE DETERMINED |
|---|---|---|---|
| ∅ | ∅ | ∅ | ∅ |
Thus, each entry contains one side A (the contested party) and one or more contesters in a given year (each entry being one contested incompatibility).” (codebook, p. 3)
(ucdp-brd-conf-221.xlsx, 18/05/2022)
IV/2/ Number of observations
| Number of observation |
|---|
| 1 403 |
(ucdp-brd-conf-221.xlsx, 18/05/2022)
V/ All variables
| Conflict name | Conflict type | Intensity |
|---|---|---|
| X | X | ∅ |
| Outcome | Time | Space |
|---|---|---|
| ∅ | X | X |
| Actor | Type of actor | Dyad |
|---|---|---|
| X | ∅ | X |
| Coalition | Deaths | Non-conflit variables |
|---|---|---|
| X | X | ∅ |
The unique identifier of the conflict, as given in the UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset version 22.1 and the UCDP Dyadic Dataset version 22.1″ (codebook, p. 9)
“type_of_conflict
One of the following four types of conflict over which the dyad is fought:
1 = extrasystemic (between a state and a non-state group outside its own territory, where the government side is fighting to retain control of a territory outside the state system).
2 = interstate (both sides are states in the Gleditsch and Ward membership system).
3 = intrastate (side A is always a government; side B is always one or more rebel groups; there is no involvement of foreign governments with troops, i.e. there is no side_a_2nd or side_b_2nd coded).
4 = internationalized intrastate (side A is always a government; side B is always one or more rebel
groups; there is involvement of foreign governments with troops, i.e. there is at least ONE side_a_2nd or side_b_2nd coded).” (codebook, p. 10)
“year
The year of observation (1989-2021).” (codebook, p. 9)
“battle_location
The name of the country/countries in which battle- related deaths have been recorded in this conflict-year: battle_location is a string variable, where the different countries are separated by a comma (‘,’).
WARNING: This variable SHOULD NEVER be used for any geographical or spatial analyses of conflict as the distribution of violence as well as the relative magnitude of violence by country is not captured. In effect, a country is listed here if even one dead in the given conflict has occurred in that country. In fact, UCDP provides much better geographic coverage of conflict (including distribution of violence for each conflict and each country) in the UCDP Georeferenced Event Dataset (GED).” (codebook, pp. 10-11)
“side_a
The name of the country/countries of Side A in a conflict. Always the government side in intrastate conflicts, as given in the UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset. Comma separated if multiple.” (codebook, p. 9)
“dyad_id
A string variable listing all the dyads active in the current conflict-year separated by commas (‘,’).” (codebook, p. 9)
“side_a_2nd
side_a_2nd lists all states that enter a conflict with troops to actively support side A in the dyad.
A secondary warring party on side A shares the position in the incompatibility with Side A in the conflict.
Side_a_2nd does not need to meet the 25 battle-related deaths criterion to be included in the dataset; an active troop participation is enough.” (codebook, p. 9)
“bd_best
The UCDP Best estimate for battle-related deaths in the conflict in the given year.” (codebook, p. 10)
VI/ Transparency
VI/1/ Sources
| Intergovernmental organizations | Governmental organizations | Non-governmental organizations |
|---|---|---|
| X | ∅ | X |
| Research organizations | Press media | Social media |
|---|---|---|
| ∅ | X | ∅ |
| Other databases | OTHER | TO BE DETERMINED |
|---|---|---|
| X | X | ∅ |
1. an automatic filtering and aggregation of the UCDP Georeferenced Event Dataset from incident/event level to the conflict/dyad-year level.
2. an automatic join of that aggregation with dyad and conflict-year data (such as secondary warring party support or conflict typology) from the UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset and the UCDP Dyadic Dataset.
The original reporting underlying the dataset is collected from three sets of sources:
1. global newswire reporting
2. global monitoring and translation of local news performed by the BBC
3. secondary sources such as local media, NGO and IGO reports, field reports, books etc.” (codebook, p. 13)
VI/2/ Codebook
| Date | Version |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 22.1 |
VII/ Update
VII/1/ Current version
| Date | Version |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 22.1 |
The version number is a combination of a year and a number. The year refers to when the dataset is updated with new observations. If there are changes in the data between yearly updates, or if there are substantial changes in the structure of the dataset, the number behind the year is incremented.” (codebook, p. 13)
VII/2/ Regularly updated ?
| Real-time | Month | Quarter | Annually |
|---|---|---|---|
| ∅ | ∅ | ∅ | X |
| YES, PERIOD TO BE DETERMINED | TO BE DETERMINED |
|---|---|
| ∅ | ∅ |
The version number is a combination of a year and a number. The year refers to when the dataset is updated with new observations. If there are changes in the data between yearly updates, or if there are substantial changes in the structure of the dataset, the number behind the year is incremented.” (codebook, p. 13)
VIII/ Access
VIII/1/ Registration ?
| YES | NO |
|---|---|
| ∅ | X |
VIII/2/ Formats
| .XLS/.XLSX | .CSV | .DTA (STATA) | .RDTA |
|---|---|---|---|
| X | X | X | X |
VIII/3/ API ?
| YES | NO | TO BE DETERMINED |
|---|---|---|
| X | ∅ | ∅ |