Learning to Learn and Building Communities of Practice: Non-governmental Organisations and Examples from Mine Action in Southeast Asia

How do non-governmental organisations (NGOs) interact with one another in specific geographical locations or over specific issue areas? This article evaluates the social learning capacities that may facilitate the development of new communities of practice among NGOs. It focuses on the structures in which NGOs have to work, the nature of the processes of interaction in which they participate, and their motivations for wanting to coordinate with one another in the first place. Based on fieldwork conducted in 2005 and 2006 in Southeast Asia, this paper focuses on the mechanisms for social learning among mine action NGOs in Southeast Asia and the ways in which what might be called a “community” of mine action in the region is starting to develop. At the same time, it raises a number of important questions regarding the coordination of NGO activities in all fields of activity and in any geographical situation.     

What Drives Political Participation? Motivations and Mobilization in a Digital Age

This article provides insights into the driving forces that underpin new forms of political participation. Digital technologies offer opportunities for engaging in a wide range of civically oriented activities, each of which can contribute to deeper democratic engagement. Conventional acts of political participation are argued to be driven primarily by intrinsic motivations relating to self-efficacy and empowerment, with participants feeling they can have influence over decision makers. Little research explores whether similar motivations drive participation in less conventional acts, as well as whether mobilization attempts via social media by peers or political organizations mediate those motivations. Drawing on data from a survey among a representative sample of the U.K. electorate, we find the offline and online spheres of agency remain fairly distinct. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations both matter but extrinsic motivations have the strongest explanatory power independent of the sphere of activity. The mediating effect of mobilization tactics has a minimal effect on extrinsic motivations, online or offline, but online intrinsic motivations lose their explanatory power. As intrinsic factors offer little explanatory power, some forms of online political participation may lack meaning to the individual. Rather, these non-conventional acts result from reward seeking and are more likely to be encouraged by nongovernmental campaigning organizations, suggesting social media users are most likely to perform simple acts in support of non-contentious causes.     

Ex-combatants as social activists: war,peace and ideology in Burundi

In both academic literature and policy discourse, ex-combatants are at times depicted as a threat to peace rather than agents of positive change. However, many of my ex-combatant interlocutors in Burundi were working actively on conflict resolution and peace-building projects. In addition, their experience and knowledge of combat was frequently stated as a deterrent for going back to such a situation. Though it may seem contradictory, the reasons my informants gave for having joined the war sounded remarkably similar to motivations for social activism. They usually expressed it as a desire to contribute to a better, more just, community. I argue that ideology played an important part in motivation to join armed groups during the war and carries over in participation in social activism today. These decisions need not be seen as polar opposites, but rather as similar motivations towards contributing to positive change taken in different circumstances.     

The Effect of Political Discussion in Producing Informed Citizens: The Roles of Information,Motivation, and Elaboration

Recent studies have demonstrated a strong empirical relationship between political discussion and political knowledge. However, as of yet there has been no clear discussion or demonstration of how political discussion translates into increased political knowledge. The present study proposes three explanations--exposure (similar to the two step flow), anticipatory elaboration (linking work on uses and gratifications and news information processing), and discussion-generated elaboration (focusing on how discussion itself can influence information processing)--for this observed empirical relationship. In order to test these three explanations, data from the 2000 ANES and a local community survey during the 1996 presidential election were employed. Findings suggest that the direct relationship between discussion and knowledge may be mediated through motivations and information processing behaviors. These findings support the anticipatory elaboration and discussion-generated elaboration explanations while questioning the exposure explanation, and link well with recent findings on the cognitive mediation model.     

The face of development aid: volunteers and their hosts in southern Israel

The current scholarship on development aid has asserted that a “transformation” of development, one that “puts people first”, is presently taking place in the particular form of volunteer aid. In southern Israel, this claim is evident in recent attempts to “strengthen” depressed “development town” communities through a movement that combines Zionist settlement with the volunteer aid of university students. Based on ethnographic work in the development town of Yeruham, this article problematises this claim by investigating the daily encounter of volunteers with members of their multiply marginalised host community. It challenges such claims of “transformation” and exposes the complex social reality of what it means to “develop” and “empower” a population routinely framed as disadvantaged and targeted for aid.     

Service delivery on the cheap? Community-based workers in development interventions

Within current neo-liberal approaches to development, models of community-driven development assume that community-based workers (CBWs) are key actors in improved and accessible service delivery. We argue that use of CBWs is under-theorised and seems to be based largely on untested assumptions about community participation and responsibility. Drawing on case studies on potable-water management and home-based care for HIV/AIDS patients in Tanzania and South Africa, the article explores issues of accountability, professionalism, and personal motivations in systems involving CBWs. It argues that many assumptions in relation to the effectiveness of CBW programmes require re-visiting.     

Should they be committed? Motivating volunteers in Phnom Penh,Cambodia

Expatriate volunteers in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, work in a country where many of their fellow expatriates are paid considerably more than they are. Such volunteers often find that the financial disparities affect the perceptions that people have of them. This paper explores the self-perceptions of volunteers working with Voluntary Service Overseas in Phnom Penh, and sets these perceptions within current theories of motivation and commitment. Two issues are then raised: whether these volunteers are willing and able to deliver quality assistance; and how perceptions of their status can affect their ability to deliver such assistance.     

Deciding to Intervene: An Analysis of International and Domestic Influences on United States Interventions in Intrastate Disputes

Although the United States has been the most prolific intervener in the international system since the end of World War II, there has been little consensus among scholars regarding the motivations of U.S. interventions in domestic political disputes abroad. In addition, scholars do not agree on the relative effects of international factors and domestic factors on intervention decisions by the U.S. Previous research on the motivations of U.S. interventions has occurred within at least two distinctive “streams” of literature: (1) studies of state interventions; and (2) studies of the use of military force by the U.S. Hypotheses regarding U.S. interventions in intrastate disputes are derived from the previous literature, and the hypotheses are tested using recently-compiled data on intrastate disputes and U.S. interventions in intrastate disputes occurring between 1945 and 2002. The results suggest a combination of international factors, including geographic proximity and ideological linkage, significantly influence the decisions of the U.S. to intervene in intrastate disputes. The results also suggest international factors are generally more important than domestic factors, and the effects of both domestic factors and international factors on U.S. intervention decisions may differ depending on the specific type of intervention and the time period.     

Exploring host perspectives towards younger international development volunteers

Research on international development volunteering has increased significantly in recent decades, but there is a need for greater depth of understanding in relation to host communities. This article examines the impact of younger volunteers from the perspectives of host community members, evaluating the positive and negative aspects in working with young people from the “UniVol” programme of Volunteer Service Abroad, New Zealand. It argues that further insights into host community experiences can play a key role in enhancing youth IDV volunteering, creating assignments that are more beneficial for hosts, and moving away from neo-liberal “volunteer-centric” youth volunteering.     

The Ancient Fire: Religion and Suicide Terrorism

Does religion lead to greater destructiveness from suicide terrorism? And if so, how does it influence this form of political violence? Recent analyses of terrorism point to the significance of religion, but are divided as to whether religion itself matters, or certain types of religious terrorist groups are actually driving suicide terrorist violence. This article draws on social movement theory and recent work in the study of suicide terrorism to argue that religion influences the severity of suicide terrorist attacks as an ideology groups use to justify their struggle and gain public support. This effect occurs regardless of a group's goals or organizational nature. The theory is tested using a generalized estimating equation to account for multiple attacks by several groups. The study finds that the religious ideology of a group greatly increases the number of deaths from a suicide attack, even if varying group motivations and structural factors are taken into account. The article helps to clarify the effect of religion on contemporary terrorism, contributing to the study of both terrorism and religion and politics.     

Towards a policy model for community radio broadcasting in Zambia

Abstract

This article, which is based on a focused synthesis of a range of historical, political, policy, regulatory and other factors, proposes a normative policy model for community radio broadcasting in Zambia. It starts with a historical analysis of the factors that have influenced the development of community radio broadcasting in the country, particularly in the period before and after 1991. It is argued that community radio broadcasting in Zambia is largely reflective of the state-centric policy-making regime. This policy-making regime is itself a legacy of British colonialism. The policy proposal put forward in this article is informed by the assumptions of the group and organised anarchy models of policy-making and seeks to promote community radio broadcasting in terms of its vision, regulatory structures, funding, training, technology, production of local content and research.     

Survey Research in International Political Economy: Motivations,Designs, Methods

The use of surveys and survey experiments by international political economy scholars is increasing, adding to the ability to study a broad array of topics. In doing so, many scholars in international political economy draw on—and are contributing to—insights and arguments from American politics and comparative politics (Milner 1998), substantive fields with a history of using surveys and survey experiments. In this article, I review motivations for using surveys and survey experiments, the research designs, and analysis strategies in light of this issue’s contributions. I contrast these motivations and their accompanying designs and discuss the pros and cons of ways to approach the data generated by these research designs. The goal of this commentary is to situate surveys and survey experiments—especially those within the special issue—within a larger discussion about research motivations, design, and analysis techniques.     

Challenges and dilemmas of international development volunteering: a case study from Vanuatu

This article looks at the key challenges and dilemmas of international development volunteering (IDV) as experienced within a community project in Vanuatu. By focusing on the nature and significance of IDV engagements at the local community level, it offers critical insights into roles and relationships among international development volunteers and local host communities, together with the complex global–local interface in which projects are negotiated and constructed. The article concludes by offering some ways in which IDV can be more effective in assisting community projects address the needs of contemporary village life.     

Community development: Freire and Grameen in the Barrowfield Project,Glasgow, Scotland

This article is an attempt to examine one of the better-known failures in UK community development – the Barrowfield Project in Glasgow (1986–1996) – and to compare and contrast it with other attempts at community development, especially some associated with the work of Mohammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank, and the legacy of Paulo Freire. We conclude that both Freire and Yunus make assumptions about the pre-existence of community which limit the potential impact of their ideas in an area such as Barrowfield, where anomie and apathy were rife. We further find that just as actions intended to be liberating may reinforce the dominant hegemony, the converse may on occasion also be true. In recent years the Barrowfield Project has risen from the ashes of its previous demise, and so the present work needs to be seen in that context.     

A survey of micro-enterprise in urban West Africa: drivers shaping the sector

This article identifies some key factors shaping the micro-enterprise sector in urban French West Africa. Drawing on interviews with micro-entrepreneurs and micro-finance practitioners in Benin, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Togo, the study explores the needs, characteristics, motivations, and success factors for micro-entrepreneurship in the region, together with some of the impediments to the growth and success of micro-enterprise ventures. It was found that those operating micro-enterprises in the informal economy are entrepreneurs principally by necessity, and that their most basic needs tend to drive their business activities and behaviours. It was also observed that their success was constrained by a number of barriers, including poor access to capital, poor training, and general aversion to risk. As a result, the development of the micro-enterprise sector in urban French West Africa has been sub-optimal, and the authors conclude that this situation may persist unless broader economic and social barriers are addressed.     

The ‘Demand-Side’: Avoiding a Nuclear-Armed Iran

This article examines the historical record of “nuclear rollback” and the motivations for Iran's apparent pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability in order to identify the broad principles that should guide U.S. and international efforts to resolve the nuclear crisis with Iran.¹ The author argues that Iran, like all states, seeks security and respect. For many Iranians, the past three decades provide proof that such security and respect can only be attained with a strategic nuclear deterrent. In 2009, if the United States can show Tehran a genuine path to security and prestige that does not require nuclear weapons, Tehran might give it serious consideration. However, if the United States and the international community fail to address Iran's legitimate need for security or its desire for international respect, Bowman believes it may only be a matter of time until Iran obtains a nuclear weapons capability.     

Overcoming stigma and fostering participation: mechanisms for community reintegration in Colombia

ABSTRACT

Mechanisms for community reintegration are under-researched. In Colombia and elsewhere, scholars outline the importance of effectively reintegrating ex-combatants into local communities, but they hardly consider the practicalities of it. A major hindering factor to community reintegration is stigma. It leads to a fear of ex-combatants, causing people to refrain from participating in community reintegration projects. This article identifies and analyses four principal mechanisms that help to overcome stigma and foster participation: information provision, inclusion of target groups in design and implementation, provision of incentives for participation and a change in the narrative surrounding ex-combatants. The analysis is based on a series of interviews with project staff and ex-combatants, taking into account state-run and local projects in Colombia’s capital Bogotá. This article identifies potential for increased co-operation between state and local actors. Furthermore, it argues that projects should increasingly work with interest instead of geographic communities. Working with interest communities creates incentives for participation and facilitates community reintegration in urban environments. Accordingly, this article counters the argument that community reintegration in cities is difficult to achieve.     

Corporate citizenship: Creating social capacity in developing countries

A corporation has only limited ability to create social capital through philanthropic activity, and, in the context of a decline in official aid, the corporate sector is increasingly assuming a de facto developmental role. The presence of social capital assists communities in moving towards sustainable development and may contribute to the business case for corporate–community partnerships. While it is not the role of corporations to deliver social services, their ability to enhance social capital by partnering with community organisations can contribute both to development and work to their own commercial advantage. Such partnerships, whether philanthropic or commercial, will be more effective if delivered through balanced and transparent relationships with community organisations that help to create social capacity at the local level.