Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Capabilities Perception Of Well-­‐Being And Development Effort: Some Evidence From Afghanistan, Jean-Francois Trani, Parul Bakhshi, Cécile Rolland

Brown School Faculty Publications

This paper examines the relationship between capabilities, well-being and the impact of development efforts in Afghanistan. Using data from a nationally representative survey, we argue that very vulnerable groups maintain a positive perception of well-being by referring to collective values and practices. Our data suggest that deprivation of individual basic capabilities does not systematically lead to a low perception of well-being if individuals have access to other capabilities such as love and care and participation in the community affairs. Nevertheless, access to basic capabilities remains crucial in order to ensure that social norms and expectations cease to constitute constraints and …

Ondervraging Van Irakese En Afghaanse Insurgents: De Nederlandse Ervaringen, George Dimitriu

George Dimitriu

Gedurende de afgelopen jaren is de Nederlandse Krijgsmacht een aantal jaren actief geweest in Irak en Afghanistan waarbij honderden mensen gevangen zijn genomen en zijn ondervraagd. In tegenstelling tot veel andere landen die ook in Irak en Afghanistan actief zijn of waren, zoals de Verenigde Staten, Groot-Brittannië, Spanje en Canada, is Nederland tot op heden gevrijwaard gebleven van een groot martelschandaal of een binnenlandse discussie. Afgezien van een incident in 2006 toen krantenkoppen Nederlanders betichtten van marteling tijdens de missie in Irak, is er maar weinig voorgevallen. Bovendien luwde de ophef over het vermeende martelincident in Irak al snel. Hoe …

The Legal Implications Arising From Economic And Social Reconstruction As An Aspect Of Peace Support Operations, Claire Breen

Peace and Conflict Studies

This article asserts that the link between peace and security and stabilization and development, as exemplified by the UN-mandated international presences in Afghanistan, is to be welcomed but that, from the perspective of the laws governing both the use of force and the conduct of warfare, such an evolution is problematic for a number of reasons. One, the broader functions of the military in peace support raises questions for jus ad bellum such as determining whether the basis for the peace enforcement has been achieved, as States and their armed forces engage in stabilization and state-building initiatives as a means …

Kabul City Clearance Project, Mohammad Akbar Oriakhil

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

After decades of conflict in Afghanistan, the Kabul City Clearance Project is addressing the dangers of mine and unexploded ordnance that pose a threat to the safety and livelihood of Kabul’s expanding urban population. KCCP is an 18-month collaborative project that utilizes the resources of Afghan Technical Consultants, a local clearance nongovernmental organization, to implement a mine-clearance plan in 36 impacted communities.

Strategische Communicatie In Afghanistan: Alles Draait Om Perceptie, George Dimitriu

George Dimitriu

Tijdens conflicten is beïnvloeding van de verschillende relevante doelgroepen – tegenstanders, de lokale bevolking en het eigen thuisfront – altijd al van doorslaggevend belang geweest. Maar door de geglobaliseerde nieuwe vormen van media dat heeft geleid tot ongekende beïnvloedings-mogelijkheden, de verwevenheid van target audiences en de communicatiesuccessen van terroristen is het belang van de ideologische strijd vandaag de dag enorm toegenomen. De westerse bondgenoten zijn in Afghanistan niet alleen in een fysieke strijd verwikkeld maar ook in een strijd om percepties. Zonder draagvlak van het thuisfront is langdurige inzet van troepen immers niet mogelijk en zonder steun van de lokale …

Examining The Circular Relationship Between The Heroin Trade In Afghanistan And Afghan Insurgency Funding, Edward J. Kljunich

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

The heroin trade is a vital part of the Afghan economy. The heroin trade in Afghanistan has represented 40% to 50% of the country's entire gross domestic product for the past 30 years. The aim of this study was to examine the heroin trade as a circular circuit. Disrupt or break the circuit and the heroin trade comes to a halt. A disruption in the drug trade is also a disruption for the insurgency since the majority of the insurgency's funding is generated by the heroin trade. Historically, there have been times when neighboring borders were closed, poppy crops failed, …

Amatc: Sustainable Solutions For Humanitarian Mine Action, Karen Reed-Matthee

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Kabul’s Afghan Mine Action Technology Center employs disabled deminers to create demining products. AMATC donates part of its revenue to local physical rehabilitation and treatment facilities, and now employs 11 disabled employees full time.

International Aid In Afghanistan: Examining The Effectiveness Of Traditional Aid And Development Programs, Samuel A. Merlin

Honors Theses

The US‐led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 brought to light the comprehensive destruction of the Afghan state. Twenty years of continuous war had ravaged the country, and with the Taliban’s expulsion of western aid agencies, Afghans were further deprived of their basic needs. The international community has rallied around this cause, donating nearly $40 billion in aid since 2001 to help develop Afghanistan. However, this international investment has not yielded optimal results; fundamental mistakes have limited the growth in capacity of the Afghan government and its people. Through analyzing the effectiveness of the major donor programs, a key lesson was …

The Use Of English-Language Internet Propaganda By The Taliban Insurgency In Afghanistan, 2007–2010, Matthew T. Calvin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

After nearly a decade of war in Afghanistan, military and government officials have described the propaganda efforts of the Taliban insurgency as increasingly sophisticated and effective. These statements fail to distinguish between insurgent propaganda efforts at the local level and those carried out online and targeted at Western populations. This research investigates the effectiveness of the Taliban's use of English-language media to reach Western populations and shape their own image in a way that furthers their strategic objectives. An analytical approach that combines quantitative analysis performed on a set of Taliban messages from 2007 to 2010 and a deeper, qualitative …

Counterterrorism In Afghanistan: Aligning Resources And Goals, Jeremy R. Willis

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

After US Central Intelligence Agency [CIA] and Special Operations Forces [SOF] counterterrorism [CT] operations routed al Qaeda and the Taliban regime, planning for the next phase was underway. It was determined that security and stability operations or counterinsurgency [COIN] operations would be necessary to stabilize the country. Soon after transitioning from CT to COIN operations, COIN operations stalled. Several factors have played a part in the unsuccessful attempts at COIN. First, the Global War on Terror [GWOT] campaign was designed to address a narrow set of goals including destroying, dismantling, and disrupting al Qaeda and its affiliates. Second, US leaders …

Hellfire And Grey Drones: An Empirical Examination Of The Effectiveness Of Targeted Killings, Matthew A. Morehouse

Department of Political Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study examines the effectiveness of the United States’ targeted killing program. Specifically, do targeted killings work as an effective program for combating global terrorism? This thesis is divided into parts. The first section provides a brief introduction to targeted killings. The second part consists of an examination of targeted killings as an essentially contested concept, arguing that targeted killings can be defined in a manner consistent with the scientific enterprise. The third section contains a thorough review of the literature on targeted killings, demonstrating that there is a dearth of works investigating the actual effectiveness of targeted killings. The …

Evaluation Of Dutch Support To Danish Demining Group In Afghanistan, Somaliland, And Sudan, Vera Bohle, Mohamed Ayan Handulle, Charles Lor, Ted Paterson, Mohammad Hamid Wardak, Anna Wood

Global CWD Repository

On 31 August 2007 the Netherlands Government (NG) decided to fund the Danish Demining Group (DDG) mine action activities in Somaliland, Sudan, and Afghanistan. The funding agreement runs from January 2008 to December 2011 and NG and DDG had preliminary discussions on the continuation of the project. The NG Decision of 31 August 2007 foresees an external evaluation initiated by the grant recipient.

The purpose of this evaluation is two-fold: (1) to evaluate progress towards objectives, thus contributing to improving the programme through documenting lessons learned and providing recommendations; and (2) to evaluate and inform NG and DDG on project …

‘Holding’ For Companies And Platoons In Counterinsurgency, George Dimitriu

George Dimitriu

In August 2010, the Dutch redeployed their forces after being active in Afghanistan for four years, aiding and abetting ISAF with around 2000 troops each rotation. Initially, the contribution after August had been discussed fiercely, but the collapse of the Netherlands’ coalition government in February 2010 meant also the end of the discussion about prolongation of the mission of Task Force Uruzgan; the withdrawal of troops is definite and more or less completed by the time of writing. In a recently published article about the performance of the Dutch forces in Uruzgan, which I wrote together with Dr. B.A. de …

Ddasaccident742, Hd-Aid

Global CWD Repository

According to external investigation report, the accident happened during the prodding operation on a detected signal. According to the witness statements the deminer may had been failed to pinpoint the signal or he may had started prodding directly from the top of it and not maintained the right angle of the prodder. The density of rocks there and hardness of the ground required more attention to be paid by deminer during the operation, but it seems that he was working in hurry without considering standard operating procedures to be applied during signal investigation. The record of QA shows that this …

A Personal Narrative Of A Visit To Ghuzni, Kabul, And Afghanistan, And Of A Residence At The Court Of Dost Mohamed, With Notices Of Runjit Sing, Khiva, And The Russian Expedition (1840), Godfrey Thomas Vigne

Digitized Afghanistan Materials in English from the Arthur Paul Afghanistan Collection

19th century travel and description of Afghanistan by written by Gedfrey Thomas Vigne.

Ddasaccident722, Hd-Aid

Global CWD Repository

According to external investigation report, the witness statements, injuries of involved de-miners and physical observation of the accident point, the accident occurred when [Victim No.1] was cutting bushes with scissor. During cutting off bushes in his clearance lane, he moved his right foot forward beyond the base stick, stepped on a Type-72 mine and caused it to go off. This accident caused traumatic amputation to his right foot below the ankle joint and left leg injuries. This also caused multiple injuries to the second deminer [Victim No.2], who was busy in marking the same lane in a 5 meters distance …

The Security Situation For Central Asia: Afghanistan, Water, And Uzbek Stability, Carleton Wesley Becks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Central Asia has emerged on the global stage after spending decades in isolation. As developing nations, most of Central Asia possesses the resources to spur rapid development. Things would seem to be in the region's favor. There are, however, a few events that could derail the region.

Afghanistan is on the periphery of the region and presents a series of difficult dilemmas such as creating a functioning government from a country that has been at war for nearly 30 years, the problem of the insurgency in the south, and narcotics trafficking.

Water is scarce in the region, the leaders cannot …

Looking At Afghanistan, Minnesota State University, Mankato

Current Events

Bibliography and photographs of a display of government documents from Minnesota State University, Mankto.

Material Support: Counternarcotics Vs. Counterinsurgency In Afghanistan, Jonathan D. Kulick, Jonathan P. Caulkins, Mark A. R. Kleiman

School of Public Policy Working Papers

Microeconomic analysis of counternarcotics strategies in Afghanistan suggests that current policies lend material support to the enemy. Vigorous enforcement can increase the flow of funds to insurgents and other parties that profit from trafficking. Rural-development programs, promoted as elements of a counternarcotics strategy, are open to some of the same objections. The benefits of drug-fighting in Afghanistan for consumer countries in Europe and North America are likely to be modest. Anti-corruption efforts in Afghanistan and demand-reduction programs both in Afghanistan and in consumer countries, insofar as they are feasible, could serve both counternarcotics and counterinsurgency objectives.

Women In Afghanistan: A Human Rights Tragedy Ten Years After 9/11, Hayat Alvi

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Ten years after the September 11th attacks in the United States and the military campaign in Afghanistan, there is some good news, but unfortunately still much bad news pertaining to women in Afghanistan. The patterns of politics, security/military operations, religious fanaticism, heavily patriarchal structures and practices, and ongoing insurgent violence continue to threaten girls and women in the most insidious ways. Although women’s rights and freedoms in Afghanistan have finally entered the radar screen of the international community’s consciousness, they still linger in the margins in many respects.

Socio-cultural and extremist religious elements continue to pose serious obstacles to reconstruction …

A Conceptualization Of Treatment Stigma In Returning Veterans, Jason B. Flick

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The dissertation project combines three theoretical models that inform conceptualizations of the origins, manifestations, and consequences of stigma: the Social Psychological model (SPM), the Sociological model (SM), and the Cognitive-behavioral model (CBM). These models merge into a single, integrative lens, through which stigma can be examined on both cultural and individual levels. This lens is then applied to the cultural and individual manifestations of the stigma of seeking psychological treatment experienced by veterans who have served in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). Through this lens, an understanding of the inception, maintenance, and effects of this treatment …

Resilience Factors Affecting The Readjustment Of National Guard Soldiers Returning From Deployment, D. Patricia Tackett

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Following the September 11, 2001 attack on the United States, there has been increased utilization of the Reserve Components (RC) by the military to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Service members in the National Guard and Reserve (NG/R) represent approximately 40% of the forces involved in these conflicts. Current research indicates that NG/R personnel and their families may be at greater risk to deployment stressors than their Active Component counterparts. Estimates for the development of mental health problems including PTSD among returning RC personnel, range as high as 42%. The focus of this study was to advance the …

Using The Unmatched Count Technique To Increase The Accuracy Of Base Rate Estimates Of Psychosocial Problems In Returning Active Duty Service Members, Sean C. Sheppard

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan represent the most extensive conflicts since the Vietnam War, and a large body of research has focused on identifying base rates of PTSD, depression, and alcohol abuse and related behaviors in returning service members.

Identity, Reality, And Truth In Memoirs From The Iraq And Afghanistan Wars, Travis L. Martin

Online Theses and Dissertations

This research uses trauma theory, memoir theory, narratology, and recent scientific research into the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) to explore developments in the memoir coming from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Specifically, the author examines the works of Shoshana Johnson, Colby Buzzell, and Anthony Shaffer to uncover the ways in which identity, reality and truth present themselves in the destabilized narratives of traumatized subjects.

Travis Martin is himself a veteran of the Iraq War, using his first-hand knowledge as a compass to guide him through intricate memoirs written by his contemporaries. Beginning …

The Taliban: A Study Of Book Collections On The Taliban In Academic, Public And West Point Libraries., Seamus O'Scanlain

Publications and Research

The purpose of this study was to document and compare the extent of book collections on the topic of the Taliban in selected academic libraries in New York and New Jersey, the New York Public Library and the military academy at West Point.

The Path To Prosperity In Afghanistan And Central Asia: Obstacles At The Crossroads, Owen Lloyd

Global Tides

Despite America’s lengthy nation-building project in Afghanistan, many Afghans still lack the basic resources and security necessary for a viable nation. Furthermore, the insecurity in Afghanistan is increasingly spilling over into their neighbors, stressing an already fragile region. While we in the West have largely forgotten Afghanistan, its neighbors look on with trepidation as they prepare for potential unrest. With vast amounts of natural resources and increased competition between the Russians and Chinese over the region, Afghanistan and its insecurity could lead to continued Central Asian economic and political stagnation. Despite the dangers in failure, inconsistent action and a destabilizing …

The Invisible Home Front : Impact, Coping, And Needs Assessment Of Family And Friends Of Unmarried U.S. Military Service Members Deployed To Iraq And Afghanistan, Sarah Elizabeth Keyes

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

Purpose: U.S. military institutions define service members' loved ones as including only dependent (married) spouse and children and provide information and support services to this group. However, around 50% of active duty military service members are unmarried and have "nondependent" loved ones such as parents, siblings, significant others, and friends who cannot access any of the military-provided information and support services. The aim of this study was to document the impact of war zone deployments on the family, significant others, and friends of unmarried service members and their coping methods, and to describe the support resources needed by this group. …

Mental Health Screening And Coordination Of Care For Soldiers Deployed To Iraq And Afghanistan., M Hicks

Madelyn Hsiao-Rei Hicks

No abstract provided.