Johan Galtung (1930–2024): The Norwegian Scholar Who Helped Build Peace Studies

Johan Galtung was a Norwegian sociologist whose work helped establish peace research and conflict studies as important academic fields. Born in Oslo on October 24, 1930, and dying on February 17, 2024, at the age of 93, he spent much of his life studying why conflicts occur, how violence develops, and how societies might move toward more peaceful relationships.

He is frequently described as the “father of peace studies”, a recognition of the enormous influence he had on the academic study of peace, conflict and violence. Over a career spanning roughly seven decades, Galtung produced a remarkably large body of work and was involved not only in academic research but also in mediation, peacebuilding and public discussions about international affairs.

Looking back at his life, what stands out is not simply the number of institutions he helped establish, but the attempt to treat peace as something that could be systematically studied rather than merely hoped for.

Early Life and Education

Galtung was born in Oslo, Norway, in 1930. His intellectual background was unusually broad.

Before becoming one of the best-known figures in peace research, he studied both mathematics and sociology, eventually completing master’s degrees in the two subjects. This combination of quantitative and social-science thinking became characteristic of his later work.

Rather than viewing social problems through a single academic discipline, Galtung developed an approach that crossed traditional boundaries.

That interdisciplinary outlook would eventually become one of the defining characteristics of the peace research institution he helped create.

The Birth of PRIO

One of Galtung’s most important achievements came in 1959, when he established what became the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO).

The origins of PRIO are somewhat more complicated than a single founding date suggests. PRIO itself notes that scholars have debated the precise date of its foundation, with archival research pointing to May 29, 1959, while Galtung himself later identified January 1959.

What is not disputed is Galtung’s central role.

He had wanted to establish a dedicated department for conflict and peace research rather than work only as an individual specialist. In a later interview, Galtung described how the department began with a very small group and gradually developed into a stronger research environment.

That small initiative eventually became one of the world’s best-known institutions for peace and conflict research.

PRIO describes Galtung as being at the core of the group of intellectuals behind its establishment and states that the institute would not have come into existence without his enormous effort and personality.

Why PRIO Was Important

The creation of PRIO represented something unusual for its time.

Rather than treating peace simply as a political aspiration, Galtung and his colleagues wanted to investigate it systematically.

What causes war?

Why do conflicts escalate?

What conditions allow violence to continue?

How can societies reduce violence?

What does a genuinely peaceful society look like?

These questions helped establish peace research as a recognizable academic field.

PRIO’s approach was also deliberately international and interdisciplinary. Galtung brought together researchers from different areas of the social sciences, while the institute developed an international orientation rather than limiting itself to Norwegian affairs.

That philosophy remains visible in PRIO today.

The Journal of Peace Research

Galtung’s influence extended beyond the creation of an institute.

In 1964, he founded the Journal of Peace Research, an interdisciplinary and international academic journal that became an important publication in the field.

PRIO describes Galtung as the journal’s founder and first editor. He helped establish its vision as a multidisciplinary publication with a broad conception of peace.

Some of Galtung’s most influential academic writings appeared through the journal.

Among them was his 1969 article “Violence, Peace, and Peace Research,” which became one of his most cited works. His writing on structural violence, peace concepts, international news and imperialism helped shape debates far beyond peace research itself.

The journal therefore became another lasting part of his legacy.

Structural Violence

Perhaps one of Galtung’s most influential ideas was the concept of structural violence.

Traditional understandings of violence often focus on direct physical harm: one person harming another, an army attacking a population, or a war between states.

Galtung encouraged researchers to look beyond direct violence.

He argued that social structures themselves can produce conditions in which people are systematically prevented from meeting their basic needs or reaching their potential.

This expanded the question from:

“Who is committing violence?”

to broader questions such as:

“What social structures are producing suffering or inequality?”

This distinction became an important part of peace and conflict studies.

It also helped move discussions of peace beyond the simple absence of war.

Peace Is More Than the Absence of War

For Galtung, peace was not simply the opposite of armed conflict.

A society might not be experiencing a conventional war while still containing severe inequality, discrimination, exploitation or other forms of harm.

This led to an important distinction in his thinking between the absence of direct violence and the presence of conditions that allow people to live fulfilling lives.

His broader conception of peace helped influence generations of researchers who began examining economic, social, political and cultural factors alongside conventional military conflict.

That remains one of the most important aspects of his intellectual legacy.

From Research to Conflict Resolution

Galtung was not satisfied with studying conflicts from a distance.

He also became involved in conflict mediation and peacebuilding.

Right Livelihood reports that he participated in mediation efforts involving more than 150 conflicts among states, nations, religions, local communities and civil society. His work included conflicts and disputes in regions such as Korea, the Middle East, the Gulf and the former Yugoslavia.

This practical work reflected his belief that conflict analysis should ultimately contribute to finding alternatives to violence.

His approach included a methodology sometimes summarized as:

diagnosis → prognosis → therapy

In simple terms, the first task is to understand the conflict, the second is to consider how it might develop, and the third is to explore possible ways of addressing it.

TRANSCEND

In 1993, Galtung founded TRANSCEND, a network focused on peace and development.

The organization reflected another important part of his thinking: peace and development should not be treated as completely separate subjects.

A society cannot necessarily achieve lasting peace simply by stopping direct violence. Questions of inequality, opportunity, development and social relationships can also affect whether peace survives.

TRANSCEND subsequently developed activities involving peace education, research, mediation and public communication.

The organization became another vehicle through which Galtung’s ideas reached audiences outside conventional universities.

The Right Livelihood Award

In 1987, Galtung received the Right Livelihood Award for what the award organization described as his systematic and multidisciplinary study of the conditions that can lead to peace.

The award recognized the connection between his academic work and his broader efforts to promote peaceful approaches to conflict.

Right Livelihood describes Galtung as a pioneer who helped develop an academic understanding of peacebuilding while also working directly in conflicts around the world.

Receiving the award placed his work in a broader international context and reinforced the idea that peace research could have practical as well as academic significance.

Peace Journalism

Another area associated with Galtung was peace journalism.

He argued that the way conflicts are reported can influence how audiences understand them.

Traditional conflict reporting can sometimes focus heavily on violence, opposing sides and immediate events. Galtung encouraged journalists and researchers to consider underlying causes, possible solutions and the human consequences of conflict.

The idea was not simply to make journalism more positive.

Rather, it was about reporting conflict in a way that does not unnecessarily reinforce an “us versus them” framework and that gives greater attention to possibilities for resolution.

Right Livelihood identifies peace journalism as one of Galtung’s contributions to efforts to counter war- and violence-centered reporting.

A Prolific Writer

Galtung was extraordinarily productive.

Right Livelihood credits him with more than 1,600 articles and over 160 books related to peace issues.

His work covered subjects far beyond a narrow definition of peace research, including:

• Conflict analysis
• Peace theory
• Development
• Sociology
• International relations
• Media research
• Comparative civilizations
• Economics
• Nonviolence
• Conflict mediation

This breadth reflected his belief that major social problems could rarely be understood from only one academic perspective.

A Controversial Intellectual

Galtung’s legacy is not without controversy.

His willingness to make strong arguments and predictions attracted critics as well as supporters. PRIO’s obituary notes that he became increasingly polemical in some of his later public statements and that he had many critics.

This is an important part of remembering historical intellectual figures.

Being influential does not mean being universally accepted.

Galtung’s work generated debate precisely because he was willing to challenge established assumptions and make ambitious claims about international politics, conflict and the future.

PRIO’s Nils Petter Gleditsch wrote that Galtung’s bold predictions could be seen as a strength because research advances partly through dialogue between bold ideas and critical responses.

In that sense, disagreement became part of the intellectual legacy itself.

His Relationship With PRIO

Galtung eventually left PRIO and became Professor of Conflict and Peace Studies at the University of Oslo in 1969. He later pursued an increasingly international academic career, including a long period at the University of Hawaii.

Although he no longer remained formally connected to PRIO for most of his later life, his influence on the institute was lasting.

PRIO continued to develop as an international and interdisciplinary research institution.

Its later achievements can therefore be viewed partly as an extension of the foundations Galtung helped establish in the late 1950s and 1960s.

His Final Years and Death

Johan Galtung died on February 17, 2024, at the age of 93.

His death was reported by PRIO and Right Livelihood, both of which emphasized the extraordinary breadth of his contribution to peace research and peacebuilding.

There was also a symbolic coincidence in his life: Galtung was born on October 24, 1930—the same date on which the United Nations was founded in 1945. PRIO noted this coincidence in its remembrance of him.

It is an especially fitting coincidence for someone whose life’s work was so closely connected with the study of international conflict and peace.

The Legacy of Johan Galtung

Johan Galtung’s greatest contribution may not be a single book, institution or theory.

It may be the idea that peace itself deserves systematic study.

Before the development of modern peace research, discussions of peace were often dominated by philosophy, religion, diplomacy and politics.

Galtung helped demonstrate that peace could also be investigated through empirical research, sociology, political science and interdisciplinary analysis.

He helped create institutions for that research.

He founded journals through which researchers could publish their findings.

He developed theories about violence and conflict.

He participated in mediation.

He established TRANSCEND.

He promoted peace journalism.

And he influenced generations of students and researchers.

Remembering a Complicated but Important Figure

It is tempting to describe Galtung simply as a champion of peace and leave the story there.

But a more useful way to remember him is as a complex and ambitious intellectual.

He was enormously productive, highly influential and deeply committed to the study of peace. He was also outspoken and controversial, and some of his arguments and predictions attracted substantial criticism.

Those things can exist simultaneously.

His importance does not depend on agreeing with every conclusion he reached.

Instead, his historical importance comes from the questions he helped place at the center of academic and public discussion.

What creates violence?

What makes peace possible?

How do social structures contribute to conflict?

How can conflicts be transformed without relying on violence?

And how can research become useful to people attempting to resolve real-world disputes?

These questions continue to matter.

Final Reflection

Johan Galtung died in 2024 after a career that stretched across more than seven decades. From the establishment of peace research in Norway in the 1950s to his later international work in conflict resolution and peacebuilding, his career was defined by an unusually persistent attempt to understand conflict and search for alternatives to violence.

The institutions he helped establish—particularly PRIO, the Journal of Peace Research and TRANSCEND—gave his ideas a life beyond his own career.

His influence is therefore not limited to the books and articles he wrote.

It can also be seen in the existence of an entire academic field devoted to studying peace and conflict.

That may ultimately be the most enduring part of his legacy.

Johan Galtung did not merely advocate for peace.

He helped create a discipline dedicated to understanding how peace might be studied, built and sustained.

Sources

• Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), “Johan Galtung” — remembrance and institutional biography.
• Right Livelihood, “Johan Galtung” — biography, 1987 award and contributions to peacebuilding.
• Right Livelihood, “Johan Galtung, ‘the father of peace studies,’ dies at 93” — 2024 remembrance.
• PRIO, “About the Journal of Peace Research” — history of the journal founded by Galtung.