Veto Players in Post-Conflict DDR Programs: Evidence from Nepal and the DRC

Under what conditions are Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) programs successfully implemented following intrastate conflict? Previous research is dominated by under-theorized case studies that lack the ability to detect the precise factors and mechanisms that lead to successful DDR. In this article, we draw on game theory and ask how the number of veto players, their policy distance, and their internal cohesion impact DDR implementation. Using empirical evidence from Nepal and the Democratic Republic of Congo, we show that the number of veto players, rather than their distance and cohesion, explains the (lack of) implementation of DDR

Making energy efficiency pro-poor : insights from behavioural economics for policy design

This paper reviews the current state of behavioural economics and its applications to energy efficiency in developing countries. Taking energy efficient lighting in Ghana, Uganda and Rwanda as empirical examples, this paper develops hypotheses on how behavioural factors can improve energy efficiency policies directed towards poor populations. The key argument is that different types of affordability exist that are influenced by behavioural factors to varying degrees. Using a qualitative approach, this paper finds that social preferences, framing and innovative financing solutions that acknowledge people’s mental accounts can provide useful starting points. Behavioural levers are only likely to work in a policy package that addresses wider technical, market and institutional barriers to energy efficiency. More research, carefully designed pre-tests and stakeholder debates are required before introducing policies based on behavioural insights. This is imperative to avoid the dangers of nudging

The Civil Peace Service: Initial opportunities for university graduates ; results of a conference at the University of Tuebingen

Die Deutsche Stiftung Friedensforschung (DSF) veranstaltete gemeinsam mit der Abteilung Internationale Beziehungen/Friedens- und Konfliktforschung des Instituts für Politikwissenschaft der Universität Tübingen im November 2007 die Tagung „Berufsfelder für zivile Friedensfachkräfte - Voraussetzungen und Einstiegsmöglichkeiten“. Die Veranstaltung war ein Teil des Rahmenprogramms, welches den Gastaufenthalt der vom Forum Ziviler Friedensdienst e.V. konzi-pierten Wanderausstellung „Frieden braucht Fachleute“ in Tübingen begleitete. Die Tagung war in erster Linie eine Berufsinformationsveranstaltung für Studierende der Friedens- und Konfliktforschung, die sich für das Arbeitsfeld des Zivilen Friedensdienstes (ZFD) interessieren. Darüber hinaus war es den Organisatoren ein Anliegen, den TeilnehmerInnen Beschäftigungsmöglichkeiten und Wege zum Berufseinstieg im Bereich der zivilen Konfliktbearbeitung aufzuzeigen.The German Foundation for Peace Research (DSF) organized jointly with the Department of International Politics/Peace- and Conflict Research at the Institute of Political Science at the University of Tuebingen in November 2007 the conference "professional fields for civilian peacekeeping staff - conditions and opportunities." The event was part of the support program of the traveling exhibition "Peace needs professionals" in Tuebingen. The meeting was primarily a professional briefing for students of peace and conflict research, which are interested for the work of the Civil Peace Service (ZFD). In addition, it was a concern for the organizers, to show the participants employment opportunities and career paths in the field of civilian conflict transformation

Ordered Rape : A Principal–Agent Analysis of Wartime Sexual Violence in the DR Congo

Policy makers and academics often contend that organizational anarchy permits soldiers to perpetrate sexual violence. A recent United Nations report supports this thesis especially with regard to the massive sexual abuse in the Congolese civil war. We challenge the anarchy argument and maintain, based on a principal-agent framework, that opportunistic military commanders can order their soldiers to rape through the use of sanctions and rewards. Our qualitative and quantitative analysis of a survey of 96 Congolese ex-soldiers shows that ordered rape is more likely in organizations where soldiers fear punishment and in which commanders distribute drugs as stimulants

Analyzing the microfoundations of human violence in the DRC : intrinsic and extrinsic rewards and the prediction of appetitive aggression

BackgroundCivil wars are characterized by intense forms of violence, such as torture, maiming and rape. Political scientists suggest that this form of political violence is fostered through the provision of particular intrinsic and extrinsic rewards to combatants. In the field of psychology, the perpetration of this kind of cruelty is observed to be positively linked to appetitive aggression. Over time, combatants start to enjoy the fights and even the perpetration of atrocities. In this study, we examine how receiving rewards (intrinsic versus extrinsic) influence the level of appetitive aggression exhibited by former combatants.MethodWe surveyed 95 former combatants in the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.ResultsLinear regression analyses reveal that intrinsic as well as extrinsic rewards are linked to the former combatants’ Appetitive Aggression score. However, this relationship is partly determined by the way in which combatants are recruited: While abducted combatants seem to react more strongly to extrinsic rewards, the score of those that joined voluntarily is primarily determined by intrinsic rewards.ConclusionsWe conclude that receiving rewards influence the level of appetitive aggression. However, which type of rewards (intrinsic versus extrinsic) is of most importance is determined by the way combatants are recruited

Cain´s choice : causes of one-sided violence against civilians

This article offers a survey of the literature on one-sided violence, focussing on strategic and organizational explanations of this phenonmenon. The authors discuss the circumstances under which international interventions are successful and reduce the death toll

Becoming cruel : appetitive aggression released by detrimental socialisation in former Congolese soldiers

Appetitive aggression – a rewarding perception of the perpetration of violence – seems to be an adaptation common to adverse conditions. Children raised within armed groups may develop attitudes and values that favour harming others when socialized within a combat force. Combatants who joined an armed force early in their lives should, therefore, perceive aggression in a more appetitive way than those who were recruited later. We interviewed 95 former members of armed groups operating in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Those combatants that were having higher levels of appetitive aggression were those who joined a rebel force earlier in life. Surprisingly, neither the amount of military training nor the amount of time spent in the forces had a significant effect on the level of appetitive aggression. Our results show that when civil socialization is replaced by socialization within an armed group early in life, self-regulation of appetitive aggression may become deficient, leading to a higher propensity towards cruelty