Building a Safety Net
Explaining the Strength of Ex-Military Networks
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6121663 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Anders Themnér (0000-0003-1884-8109, corresponding author), Niklas Karlén (0000-0001-8428-4861) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 29 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 268-300 |
| Publication date | 2020-03-14 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Security Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0963-6412 • E-ISSN: 1556-1852 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/09636412.2020.1722851 |
| OpenAlex | W3005698178 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 12 |
The disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration of ex-combatants has become an integral part of peacebuilding. Although the main purpose of such interventions is to dissolve the military structures of armed groups, there is growing evidence that ex-combatant networks often remain intact. We investigate why such structures continue to thrive. We argue that ex-military networks are stronger when ex-commanders have weak links to elite patronage systems. Ex-combatants who are unable to rely on their former superiors for economic assistance must instead build denser ties to each other to gain access to a social safety net. To assess our argument, we conduct a comparative social network analysis (SNA) of two ex-military networks in Liberia. This innovative approach helps us uncover previously overlooked, but central, dynamics related to ex-combatant groups. We thereby show that SNA provides a range of underutilized tools and exact definitions that can increase our understanding of ex-military networks
Combatant · Demobilization · Disarmament · Elite · Peacebuilding · Political science · Politics · Sociology · International Relations and Foreign Policy · Law · Peacebuilding and International Security · Political Conflict and Governance
Renamobilised
When reintegration of ex-combatants turns deadly
Reintegration of Ex-Combatants by Civil Society Organizations
A Response to Ilmari Käihkö’s “On Brokers, Commodification of Information and Liberian Former Combatants”
On Brokers, Biases and Leaving the Veranda
Ambiguity and Methodological Transparency in the Study of Civil War
Can the Rebel Body Function without its Visible Heads? The Role of Mid-Level Commanders in Peacebuilding
Veteran politics
What structures ex-combatants' political participation? Exploring the dynamics of identification and groupness in rebel-to-party transformations
Ex-combatants thinking differently
Once a combatant, always a combatant'? Revisiting assumptions about Liberian former combatant networks
Peer Effects and Recidivism
| Unique citing works | 12 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 2 |
| Citation span | 2020 - 2026 (7) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 11 |