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Full-Text Articles in Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration

Breaking The Shackles Of Poverty: How Bridging Ties Enable Subsistence Entrepreneurs To Upgrade Their Businesses To A Prosperous Level, Asifa Ilyas, Ralf Wagner Dec 2023

Breaking The Shackles Of Poverty: How Bridging Ties Enable Subsistence Entrepreneurs To Upgrade Their Businesses To A Prosperous Level, Asifa Ilyas, Ralf Wagner

Subsistence Marketplaces

Subsistence entrepreneurs establish and run their business ventures under harsh economic and social conditions. These survival-driven businesses are impoverished and generate insufficient income for entrepreneurs and their families. Subsistence entrepreneurs can break this vicious poverty cycle by upscaling their ventures into more sustainable and profitable businesses. However, it is not clear what prevents these entrepreneurs from developing more prosperous and sustainable business ventures.

This study fills the gap by investigating the effect of bridging social ties on subsistence businesses' performance. Further, the study examines the impact of group identity, jealousy, gender, and power on subsistence entrepreneurs' efforts to build bridging …


Book Review: Kings, Conquerors, Psychopaths: From Alexander To Hitler To The Corporation, Tim Bakken Nov 2023

Book Review: Kings, Conquerors, Psychopaths: From Alexander To Hitler To The Corporation, Tim Bakken

Genocide Studies and Prevention: An International Journal

The book Kings, Conquerors, Psychopaths is a survey of a vast amount of human wrongdoing. It lays bare the motivations of aggressors who wish to subjugate nations or groups of people and corporate executives and government bureaucrats who make discretionary decisions that harm people. Along with cataloging mass killings by despots and soldiers, the book includes stories about Ponzi-schemers and the deaths of automobile drivers and passengers who were killed by vehicle defects known to the manufacturer. The book posits that “[p]owerful, elite forces are trying to force us backward toward a non-democratic state, one where power, wealth, and prerogative …


Du Undergraduate Showcase: Research, Scholarship, And Creative Works, Caitlyn Aldersea, Justin Bravo, Sam Allen, Anna Block, Connor Block, Emma Buechler, Maria De Los Angeles Bustillos, Arianna Carlson, William Christensen, Olivia Kachulis, Noah Craver, Kate Dillon, Muskan Fatima, Angel Fernandes, Emma Finch, Colleen Cassidy, Amy Fishman, Andrea Francis, Stacia Fritz, Simran Gill, Emma Gries, Rylie Hansen, Shannon Powers, Jacqueline Martinez, Zachary Harker, Ashley Hasty, Mykaela Tanino-Springsteen, Kathleen Hopps, Adelaide Kerenick, Colin Kleckner, Ci Koehring, Elijah Kruger, Braden Krumholz, Maddie Leake, Lyneé Alves, Seraphina Loukas, Yatzari Lozano Vazquez, Haley Maki, Emily Martinez, Sierra Mckinney, Mykaela Tanino-Springsteen, Audrey Mitchell, Kipling Newman, Audrey Ng, Megan Lucyshyn, Andrew Nguyen, Stevie Ostman, Casandra Pearson, Alexandra Penney, Julia Gielczynski, Tyler Ball, Anna Rini, Christina Rorres, Simon Ruland, Helayna Schafer, Emma Sellers, Sarah Schuller, Claire Shaver, Kevin Summers, Isabella Shaw, Madison Sinar, Claudia Pena, Apshara Siwakoti, Carter Sorensen, Madi Sousa, Anna Sparling, Alexandra Revier, Brandon Thierry, Dylan Tyree, Maggie Williams, Lauren Wols May 2023

Du Undergraduate Showcase: Research, Scholarship, And Creative Works, Caitlyn Aldersea, Justin Bravo, Sam Allen, Anna Block, Connor Block, Emma Buechler, Maria De Los Angeles Bustillos, Arianna Carlson, William Christensen, Olivia Kachulis, Noah Craver, Kate Dillon, Muskan Fatima, Angel Fernandes, Emma Finch, Colleen Cassidy, Amy Fishman, Andrea Francis, Stacia Fritz, Simran Gill, Emma Gries, Rylie Hansen, Shannon Powers, Jacqueline Martinez, Zachary Harker, Ashley Hasty, Mykaela Tanino-Springsteen, Kathleen Hopps, Adelaide Kerenick, Colin Kleckner, Ci Koehring, Elijah Kruger, Braden Krumholz, Maddie Leake, Lyneé Alves, Seraphina Loukas, Yatzari Lozano Vazquez, Haley Maki, Emily Martinez, Sierra Mckinney, Mykaela Tanino-Springsteen, Audrey Mitchell, Kipling Newman, Audrey Ng, Megan Lucyshyn, Andrew Nguyen, Stevie Ostman, Casandra Pearson, Alexandra Penney, Julia Gielczynski, Tyler Ball, Anna Rini, Christina Rorres, Simon Ruland, Helayna Schafer, Emma Sellers, Sarah Schuller, Claire Shaver, Kevin Summers, Isabella Shaw, Madison Sinar, Claudia Pena, Apshara Siwakoti, Carter Sorensen, Madi Sousa, Anna Sparling, Alexandra Revier, Brandon Thierry, Dylan Tyree, Maggie Williams, Lauren Wols

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

DU Undergraduate Showcase: Research, Scholarship, and Creative Works


"I Think It's Biblically Wrong, But Temptation Gets The Better Of Me": A Survey On Out-Of-Control Sexual Behavior In A Christian Cohort Of Men In The Uk, Timothy C Y Lau, Glenn M. Miles May 2023

"I Think It's Biblically Wrong, But Temptation Gets The Better Of Me": A Survey On Out-Of-Control Sexual Behavior In A Christian Cohort Of Men In The Uk, Timothy C Y Lau, Glenn M. Miles

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

The current study aims to better understand influences on men within the UK Christian community on their engagement with pornography and prostitution. The authors utilized the Carnes (2012) survey to examine the landscape of sexual knowledge and behaviours, and to identify symptoms, and the propensity towards, “out-of-control sexual behavior” among participants. Data from a survey sent to the Christian community through church networks and word of mouth was used for this study. Of the 491 men who participated, the majority (94%, 460) described their personal Christian faith as “strong.” Despite the Christian faith community's moral code of conduct, the survey …


Attitudes Of Muslim Americans Regarding Prejudice And Discrimination Displayed By Non-Muslims, Munder Abderrazzaq Apr 2023

Attitudes Of Muslim Americans Regarding Prejudice And Discrimination Displayed By Non-Muslims, Munder Abderrazzaq

Journal of Social Work in the Global Community

Abstract

Muslim Americans have reported experiencing racial profiling, physical threats, and verbal abuse based on their religion, ethnicity, and color (Samari, 2016). These types of lived experiences can have negative personal consequences for Muslim Americans and influence their attitudes and behavior toward non-Muslims. A literature review conducted by Simon et al. (2018) suggests the need for research that explores the point of view of minorities regarding intolerance displayed by majority members. Intolerance is defined as the refusal and unwillingness to tolerate or respect individuals from different social or minority groups who hold different beliefs. Prejudice and discrimination can hinder the …


A Wedge Issue For The 21st Century: The Conditional Effect Of Party Identification For Predicting Feelings Towards Immigrants And Refugees In A Higher Ed Setting, Nicholas Bauroth, Kjersten Nelson Apr 2023

A Wedge Issue For The 21st Century: The Conditional Effect Of Party Identification For Predicting Feelings Towards Immigrants And Refugees In A Higher Ed Setting, Nicholas Bauroth, Kjersten Nelson

Online Journal of Rural Research & Policy

The issue of immigration played an important role in recent U.S. elections. How did the salience of immigration and refugees in the 2016, 2018, and 2020 elections play out amongst young voters? Did increased opportunities to interact with immigrants and refugees affect respondents’ feelings towards these groups, as social contact theory might predict? The analyses here focus on a sample of college students, given that the higher education experience presents conditions for social contact theory to play out. We find that party identification is a key piece of the puzzle – measures of social contact theory operate differently for Democratic …


Construction Of Public Psychological Service System In Rural Areas To Boost Rural Revitalization Strategy, Keqiang Meng, Li Wang, Wang Li, Fenglan Li, Zheng Zhang, Min Chen Mar 2023

Construction Of Public Psychological Service System In Rural Areas To Boost Rural Revitalization Strategy, Keqiang Meng, Li Wang, Wang Li, Fenglan Li, Zheng Zhang, Min Chen

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Rural revitalization is a comprehensive revitalization of rural areas, including not only the material dimension, but also the cultural and psychological aspects. The revitalization requires systematic construction of social psychology as well as the participation and intellectual support from psychological perspectives. Therefore, this study illustrated the endogenous demands of rural revitalization for the construction of rural public psychological service system, analyzed the current social psychological status of rural residents and its effects on rural revitalization, and proposed strategies and suggestions on the construction of rural public psychological service system to support rural revitalization. The suggestions include:(1) Incorporating the rural public …


Emotional Experiences Of Muslim Americans Regarding The Intolerance Displayed By Non-Muslims, Munder Abderrazzaq Jun 2022

Emotional Experiences Of Muslim Americans Regarding The Intolerance Displayed By Non-Muslims, Munder Abderrazzaq

Journal of Sustainable Social Change

Muslims in the United States report experiencing unequal treatment and racial profiling from non-Muslims. Recent literature (Simon et al., 2018) suggests the need for further research on the intolerance displayed by majority members from the point of view of minority members in the United States. The unwillingness or refusal to respect or tolerate individuals from a different social group or minority groups, who hold beliefs that are contrary to one’s own, is referred to as intolerance. The display of intolerance among members of different cultural and religious backgrounds can hinder the discovery of new information needed to promote positive social …


Invited Perspective - Nutritional Needs And Implications For Children In Subsistence Marketplaces, Nagendra Rangavajla Jan 2022

Invited Perspective - Nutritional Needs And Implications For Children In Subsistence Marketplaces, Nagendra Rangavajla

Subsistence Marketplaces

Today, while the number of stunted children is decreasing in all geographies, the progress is not consistent. Moreover, there is an increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescent. Globally, about half of all children under five do not receive essential nutrients, often unnoticed until too late. On the other end of the spectrum, the incidence of overweight and obesity in 5-19 year old has increased from 4% in 1975 to 18% in 2016 1. These trends reflect a ‘triple burden of malnutrition’, a burden that impacts the survival, growth, and development of children, and in turn, …


Invited Perspective - Engaging Aspirations To Nurture Communities, Kentaro Toyama Jan 2022

Invited Perspective - Engaging Aspirations To Nurture Communities, Kentaro Toyama

Subsistence Marketplaces

For subsistence communities, the question is whether aspirations can be applied to motivate behavior that is, on the one hand consistent with people’s aspirations, but which might otherwise be difficult to elicit. Could poorer households be encouraged to save, to spend more on their children’s education, or to act against unhealthy social norms? A couple of examples suggest this is not only possible, but highly successful in contexts where other appeals fail.


Civil Society Leaders’ Experiences Of Peacebuilding In Londonderry/Derry City, Northern Ireland: Transforming Cultural And Psychological Barriers, Leonardo Luna, Sean Byrne Nov 2021

Civil Society Leaders’ Experiences Of Peacebuilding In Londonderry/Derry City, Northern Ireland: Transforming Cultural And Psychological Barriers, Leonardo Luna, Sean Byrne

Peace and Conflict Studies

This article reviews the empirical data the second author collected from 120 semi-structured interviews with the leaders of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and funding agency development officers conducted during the summer of 2010 in Northern Ireland and the Border Counties. The research explores 44 Derry City respondents' experiences and perceptions regarding external economic aid in the Northern Ireland peace process. To this end, this article explores the role of economic aid from the International Fund for Ireland (IFI) and the European Union (EU) Peace and Reconciliation or Peace 3 Fund in engaging with civil society in transforming psychological and cultural …


Stories Of Survival. Book Review: Stripped, 2nd Edition: Inside The Lives Of Exotic Dancers By Bernadette Barton, Tk Logan Sep 2021

Stories Of Survival. Book Review: Stripped, 2nd Edition: Inside The Lives Of Exotic Dancers By Bernadette Barton, Tk Logan

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.


The Conspiracy Theory Defense In Response To Whistleblower Accusations: Turning A Hero Into A Villain, James K. Beggan Jun 2021

The Conspiracy Theory Defense In Response To Whistleblower Accusations: Turning A Hero Into A Villain, James K. Beggan

Heroism Science

Whistleblowers can be viewed as heroic actors who reveal institutional misdeeds. In contrast, conspiracy theorists are seen as members of a marginalized element perpetuating misinformation. Despite this apparent difference, the present analysis focuses on how similarities between the two constructs can allow a target to discredit a whistleblower accusation by countering that the whistleblower is operating as part of a conspiracy. More generally, this paper considers how the difficulty inherent in disproving conspiracy theory claims facilitates their utility as a defense. The case study of President Donald Trump’s responses to whistleblower accusations are considered to illustrate the arguments.


Subsistence Marketplaces: Journal, Knowledge-Practice Portal, And Organization, Madhu Viswanathan Mar 2021

Subsistence Marketplaces: Journal, Knowledge-Practice Portal, And Organization, Madhu Viswanathan

Subsistence Marketplaces

Subsistence Marketplaces: Journal, Knowledge-Practice Portal and Organization


Welcome To The New Dignity, Donna M. Hughes Feb 2021

Welcome To The New Dignity, Donna M. Hughes

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.


National Resilience To Protracted Violence In Ukraine, Karina V. Korostelina Nov 2020

National Resilience To Protracted Violence In Ukraine, Karina V. Korostelina

Peace and Conflict Studies

This paper concentrates on the production of power of the Ukrainian nation, that not only deals with continuous violence within the nation, but also develops national strength to address this violence. This paper aims to explore how the Ukrainian nation develops resilience to protracted violence as a form of transformative power and what factors contribute or impede this process. The paper defines resilience as a form of power that enhances the capacity of a national community to heal from trauma, effectively resists perpetrators of violence, and positively transform intergroup relations to remove communities from contexts of chronic violence and war. …


Measuring Intergroup Forgiveness: The Enright Group Forgiveness Inventory, Robert D. Enright, Julie Johnson, Fu Na, Tomaz Erzar, Matthew Hirshberg, Tina Huang, John Klatt, Chansoon (Danielle) Lee, Benjamin Boateng, Preston Boggs, Tung-En Hsiao, Chelsea Olson, Mei Ling Shu, Jacqueline Song, Peiying Wu, Baoyu Zhang May 2020

Measuring Intergroup Forgiveness: The Enright Group Forgiveness Inventory, Robert D. Enright, Julie Johnson, Fu Na, Tomaz Erzar, Matthew Hirshberg, Tina Huang, John Klatt, Chansoon (Danielle) Lee, Benjamin Boateng, Preston Boggs, Tung-En Hsiao, Chelsea Olson, Mei Ling Shu, Jacqueline Song, Peiying Wu, Baoyu Zhang

Peace and Conflict Studies

Until recently, researchers operationalized and measured the psychological construct of forgiveness at the individual, rather than the group, level. Social psychologists started applying forgiveness to groups and examining the role intergroup forgiveness may have in conflict resolution and peace efforts. Initial attempts to define and measure forgiveness at the group level either assumed individual and group capacities were the same, or insufficiently described what intergroup forgiveness meant. We developed a new measure of intergroup forgiveness, and a novel group administration process, that operationalized the construct in a philosophically coherent way. Our conceptualization of intergroup forgiveness was rooted in what groups, …


It's Capitalism, Stupid!: The Theoretical And Political Limitations Of The Concept Of Neoliberalism, Bryant William Sculos Oct 2019

It's Capitalism, Stupid!: The Theoretical And Political Limitations Of The Concept Of Neoliberalism, Bryant William Sculos

Class, Race and Corporate Power

This polemical essay explores the meaning and function of the concept of neoliberalism, focusing on the serious theoretical and political limitations of the concept. The crux of the argument is that, for those interested in overcoming the exploitative and oppressively destructive elements of global capitalism, opposing "neoliberalism" (even if best understood as a process or a spectrum of "neoliberalization" or simply privatization) is both insufficient and potentially self-undermining. This article also goes into some detail on the issues of health care and climate change in relation to "neoliberalism" (both conceptually and the material processes and policies that this term refers …


Book Review: Forced Confrontation: The Politics Of Dead Bodies In Germany At The End Of World War Ii, Christiane K. Alsop Apr 2019

Book Review: Forced Confrontation: The Politics Of Dead Bodies In Germany At The End Of World War Ii, Christiane K. Alsop

Genocide Studies and Prevention: An International Journal

No abstract provided.


Screening For Traumatic Brain Injury In Prostituted Women, Melissa Farley, Martha E. Banks, Rosalie J. Ackerman, Jacqueline M. Golding Apr 2018

Screening For Traumatic Brain Injury In Prostituted Women, Melissa Farley, Martha E. Banks, Rosalie J. Ackerman, Jacqueline M. Golding

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

Violence is pervasive in prostitution and can cause traumatic brain injury (TBI). This study estimated the prevalence and demographic correlates of TBI among 66 women and transwomen in prostitution. Ninety-five percent had sustained head injuries, either by being hit in the head with objects and/or having their heads slammed into objects. Sixty-one percent had sustained head injuries in prostitution. The women described acute and chronic symptoms resulting from head injury and/or concussions. These included dizziness, depressed mood, headache, sleep difficulty, poor concentration, memory problems, difficulty following directions, low frustration tolerance, fatigue, and appetite and weight changes. Screening for TBI is …


Introduction: Reading And Writing The T/Terror Narratives Of Black And Brown Girls And Women: Storying Lived Experiences To Inform And Advance Early Childhood Through Higher Education, Jeannine Staples, Uma M. Jayakumar Dec 2017

Introduction: Reading And Writing The T/Terror Narratives Of Black And Brown Girls And Women: Storying Lived Experiences To Inform And Advance Early Childhood Through Higher Education, Jeannine Staples, Uma M. Jayakumar

Occasional Paper Series

Staples and Jayakumar introduce this issue of the Occasional Paper Series that speaks to the #SayHerName social justice initiative. The movement aims to expose the experiences of Black and Brown girls and women who are subject to police violence in society and various violences in schools. In response to this movement, this issue includes stories of Black and Brown women from early childhood education through higher education.


Book Review: Prostitution Narratives: Stories Of Survival In The Sex Trade, Edited By Caroline Norma And Melinda Tankard Reist, Abigail Bray Jun 2017

Book Review: Prostitution Narratives: Stories Of Survival In The Sex Trade, Edited By Caroline Norma And Melinda Tankard Reist, Abigail Bray

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.


Appraising Positive Aspects Of Shared History Through Contact- A Preliminary Model Of Reconciliation Among Hindus And Muslims Of The Kashmir Valley, Sramana Majumdar Dr Apr 2017

Appraising Positive Aspects Of Shared History Through Contact- A Preliminary Model Of Reconciliation Among Hindus And Muslims Of The Kashmir Valley, Sramana Majumdar Dr

Peace and Conflict Studies

The long-standing political conflict in the Kashmir Valley has resulted in identity based polarization and subsequent displacement of communities. Reconciliation between Hindus (also known as Pandits) and Muslims is viewed as an important step in any sustainable effort towards conflict resolution and peacebuilding in the Valley. This paper begins by examining the much debated territorial and cultural concept of ‘Kashmiriyat’ and instead proposes an alternative lens that emphasizes on shared history as opposed to common identity. We approach reconciliation through a socio-psychological lens by examining the role of a shared cultural past and historical coexistence- or simply put as shared …


The Apocalyptic Imagination And The Fundamentalist Mindset, Charles B. Strozier Mar 2017

The Apocalyptic Imagination And The Fundamentalist Mindset, Charles B. Strozier

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article explores the psychological meanings of the apocalyptic imagination in what I call a fundamentalist mindset. That mindset has its own long history but is newly relevant in the nuclear age. We no longer need God to bring about ultimate destruction. There are many facets of the fundamentalist mindset (for example, its intense literalism), but the focus in the article is on two: its kairotic sense of time and its rampant paranoia. These two facets interact synergistically around violence that is experienced by those who revel in it as moral in a totalistic sense. Killing becomes healing. The evil …


Suicide Terrorism: Performance Violence As Public Plunge, Gregory Saathoff Mar 2017

Suicide Terrorism: Performance Violence As Public Plunge, Gregory Saathoff

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article explores the relationship between the social psychology of the individual and the final abyss of suicide terrorism. The boy on the high dive is a metaphor for the fearful pause before the leap. For a young child, the dive is exciting and dangerous: the fearful pause is somewhat analogous to thoughts and feelings before the terrorist’s catastrophically destructive contemplated homicidal/suicidal behavior. If we think about the leap itself, there may be a better analogy. Is there any corollary to a specific group of suicide completers? What can be learned from others who have contemplated and undertaken perhaps the …


Prostitution Survivors: Backlash In Australia, Melinda Tankard Reist Feb 2017

Prostitution Survivors: Backlash In Australia, Melinda Tankard Reist

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

This report is a personal account of prostitution survivors facing harassment from representatives of the sex industry in Australia. At events to promote a new collection of stories by survivors of the industry—Prostitution Narratives: Stories of Survival in the Sex Trade—speakers were intimidated and insulted. The survivors describe their experiences and their determination to speak-out against prostitution, even in the face of opposition.


Happiness Index Methodology, Laura Musikanski, Scott Cloutier, Erica Bejarano, Davi Briggs, Julia Colbert, Gracie Strasser, Steven Russell Jan 2017

Happiness Index Methodology, Laura Musikanski, Scott Cloutier, Erica Bejarano, Davi Briggs, Julia Colbert, Gracie Strasser, Steven Russell

Journal of Sustainable Social Change

The Happiness Index is a comprehensive survey instrument that assesses happiness, well-being, and aspects of sustainability and resilience. The Happiness Alliance developed the Happiness Index to provide a survey instrument to community organizers, researchers, and others seeking to use a subjective well-being index and data. It is the only instrument of its kind freely available worldwide and translated into over ten languages. This instrument can be used to measure satisfaction with life and the conditions of life. It can also be used to define income inequality, trust in government, sense of community and other aspects of well-being within specific demographics …


Losing My Religion? The Impact Of Spiritual Cues On Noncognitive Skills, Daniel H. Bowen, Albert Cheng Oct 2016

Losing My Religion? The Impact Of Spiritual Cues On Noncognitive Skills, Daniel H. Bowen, Albert Cheng

Journal of Catholic Education

Studies consistently show that Catholic schools produce positive impacts on educational outcomes. Many charter school networks in the United States now provide, what are essentially, secularized versions of the Catholic education model. However, charter schools cannot legally replicate the overt religious curriculum and mission of Catholic schools. Although difficult to disentangle its impacts from confounding variables, research suggests that religiosity is a positive predictor of educational outcomes. This relationship might suggest that religious-based education produces effects on outcomes of public value that could be difficult to replicate in secularized contexts. To examine this question we conducted an experiment where 180 …


A Moveable Beast: Subjective Influence Of Human-Animal Relationships On Risk Perception, And Risk Behaviour During Bushfire Threat, Joshua L. Trigg, Kirrilly Thompson, Bradley Smith, Pauleen Bennett Oct 2016

A Moveable Beast: Subjective Influence Of Human-Animal Relationships On Risk Perception, And Risk Behaviour During Bushfire Threat, Joshua L. Trigg, Kirrilly Thompson, Bradley Smith, Pauleen Bennett

The Qualitative Report

This article examines how human-animal connections influence risk perception and behaviour in companion animal guardians exposed to bushfire threat in Australia. Although the objective role of psychological bonds with companion animals is well accepted by researchers, subjective interpretations of these bonds by animal guardians are relatively underexamined in this context. We argue that the ways in which connections with pets and other animals are represented influences different forms of safety-risk perception and behaviour when managing animals’ safety in the face of disaster threat. Thematic analysis of 21 semi-structured interviews with South Australian residents in bushfire-affected areas supported the role of …


The Trouble With Truth-Telling: Preliminary Reflections On Truth And Justice In Post-War Liberia, Gabriel Twose Ph.D., Caitlin O. Mahoney Ph.D. Jan 2015

The Trouble With Truth-Telling: Preliminary Reflections On Truth And Justice In Post-War Liberia, Gabriel Twose Ph.D., Caitlin O. Mahoney Ph.D.

Peace and Conflict Studies

This study investigates perceptions of the Liberian Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), particularly focusing on understandings of, and the links between, truth, justice, and reconciliation. Forty-five semi-structured interviews were conducted at three research sites in Liberia. Findings indicate that although most Liberians agreed with the TRC in principle, most of those who followed its proceedings saw major problems in its implementation, harming perceptions of reconciliation. Participants expressed concerns that the Commission had failed to discover the full truth of wartime abuses, that the truth that was discovered was not told in the right way, and that there had been problems …