The Major Episodes of Contention (MEC) data project: an introduction

Abstract Although both violent and nonviolent campaigns for political change come in many varieties, scholars of civil resistance have thus far overwhelmingly focused on large campaigns seeking maximalist goals such as the overthrow of a regime, the removal of a foreign occupier, or secession. Most mass movements, however, have reformist goals—like economic, political, environmental, or social policy change—rather than maximalist ones. This article introduces the Major Episodes of Contention data, which identifies the onset, outcomes, and additional variables of 2,734 reformist and maximalist contentious episodes globally from 1955–2018. The dataset relies on English language sources to capture all reported episodes lasting over a week and involving at least a thousand participants. Comparable to the NAVCO v1 Data Series, episodes are classified according to size, goals, duration, defection and/or repression by the incumbent government, and their outcomes. The dataset therefore allows for more differentiation and comparability between like and unlike campaigns. The article presents the major features of the dataset and describes patterns and trends for a more nuanced understanding of different types and forms of contentious mobilization.