Professor Dr Anke Hoeffler

Research Priorities: Civil war, interpersonal violence, violence against children, wellbeing of refugees
Anke Hoeffler is a German-British social scientist. Her main research areas are violence, conflicts, civil war, and societal development. She studies the social causes and effects of interpersonal violence and asks what conditions tend to foster violence, why some societies and individuals are less violent than others, and how violence can be reduced, prevented, and treated.
Anke Hoeffler’s current research projects focus on violence against children. In a series of randomised, controlled experiments she tested the impact of training for parents and teachers aimed at significantly reducing the use of physical punishment both at home and at school. She also examines the costs of violence, in particular the economic costs of violence and war. Her research indicates that domestic violence is the costliest form of violence worldwide, though to date it has received comparatively little attention.
She also studies the wellbeing of refugees. Due to their experience of violence, refugees suffer from higher levels of psychological stress. The refugee health screener makes it possible to recognise refugees’ psychological stress at an early stage and thus provide suitable counselling and support. Participative research and studies are used to evaluate this tool for recognising psychological stress and mental illness among refugees.
Anke Hoeffler’s research incorporates aspects from psychology, public health, social work, migration, political science, sociology, and economics. She integrates various scientific disciplines and combines them in the new field of conflict and violence research. She aims to shed light on the causes and effects of violence and to develop strategies to prevent violence and solve conflicts.