Project Members: 
Prof. Dr. Luisa Feline Freier (Institute for Latin American Studies), Dr. Francisca Castro (UC3M, Affiliated Researcher), Jun. Prof. Dr. Maria Böttche (Division of Clinical Psychological Intervention, E-Mental Health and Transcultural Psychology)

This project examines how women's participation in Peru's internal conflict (1980-2000) generates lasting effects on political empowerment and mental health across generations. The central question asks: through what mechanisms do women's wartime experiences transform into sustained political agency and psychological trauma - or resilience - for themselves, their daughters and granddaughters, and what is the relationship between the two? Peru offers a critical case because women participated on multiple sides of the conflict: as combatants in Sendero Luminoso, as members of state military and counter-insurgency forces, and as community organizers in civil defense and resistance movements. This variation allows comparison of how different forms of armed participation shape long-term outcomes.

This application seeks funding to complete the foundational first stage: documenting and mapping women's armed participation across all sides of Peru's conflict, classifying geographic regions by intensity and type of women's involvement, and establishing relationships with organizations and communities for future data collection. This preparatory work creates the foundation for the full project's subsequent objectives: measuring contemporary political behavior and attitudes across multiple generations in affected communities, and assessing transgenerational trauma and mental health outcomes in families affected by women's conflict participation.