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STATE–SOCIETY RELATIONS AND FRAGILE DURABILITY IN ZIMBABWE: LEGITIMATION, CONTENTION, AND STATE RESPONSE ACROSS HISTORICAL PERIODS
Dissertation

STATE–SOCIETY RELATIONS AND FRAGILE DURABILITY IN ZIMBABWE: LEGITIMATION, CONTENTION, AND STATE RESPONSE ACROSS HISTORICAL PERIODS

Tinashe Chirume
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Washington State University
2026
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Tinashe Chirume Dissertation - State-Society Relations - Spring 2026
Embargoed Access, Embargo ends: 07/16/2028

Abstract

Archival research Fragile durability Protest policing Social movements State ideas State practices
This dissertation examines how state–society relations in Zimbabwe have evolved across threekey periods: the colonial company-state (1890–1923), the early postcolonial state (1979–1987), and the later postcolonial era (1998–2013). It investigates how ruling authorities maintain authority amid recurring crises and societal challenges by analyzing the relationship between state ideas (the narratives used to justify rule) and state practices (the coercive and institutional mechanisms through which authority is exercised). Using a comparative-historical, mixed- methodological approach, the study integrates archival analysis of political discourse and legal frameworks with ACLED protest event data and World Values Survey data on public attitudes. The findings show that while the primary axes of contention shift (from race to ethnicity to issue- based protest), the Zimbabwean state exhibits a pattern of fragile durability. As legitimacy erodes, narratives are reconstructed alongside continued coercion, enabling the ruling authority's persistence despite enduring gaps between state claims and practices.

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