17 posts · 10,165 views
Applying social and behavioral science research to preserve global security and to understand, prevent, and mitigate armed conflict and violent extremism.
Randy Borum
17 posts
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- August 2, 2010
- 04:00 PM
- 351 views
The Science of Interpersonal Trust
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
Interpersonal trust - a willingness to accept vulnerability or risk based on expectations regarding another person’s behavior – is a vitally important concept for human behavior, affecting our interactions both with adversaries and competitors as well as with allies and friends. Indeed, interpersonal trust could be said to be responsible in part for nudging competitors towards becoming allies, or – if betrayed – leading friends to become adversaries.
This document sum........ Read more »
Randy Borum. (2010) The Science of Interpersonal Trust. Monograph. info:/
- June 18, 2010
- 12:00 AM
- 207 views
Starting a War in the Aftermath of Disaster
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
A new study conducted by Travis Nelson from University of Vermont carefully examines the security nexus of natural disaster and armed conflict over the past half century.... Read more »
Nelson, T. (2010) When disaster strikes: on the relationship between natural disaster and interstate conflict. Global Change, Peace , 22(2), 155-174. DOI: 10.1080/14781151003770788
- June 14, 2010
- 10:02 AM
- 446 views
The "Urban Legend" of Civilian Casualty Rates in War
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
Adam Roberts - part of the Oxford Leverhulme Programme on the Changing Character of War - has a very thoughtful in the latest issue of Survival, titled: "Lives and Statistics: Are 90% of War Victims Civilians?".Roberts takes on the commonly made assertion that in contemporary warfare (since the early 1900s)that 80-90% of war victims/casualties have been civilians. This would suggest a civilian-military death ratio of 9:1. It is easy for such a startling statistic to take on a life of its own -........ Read more »
Adam Roberts. (2010) Lives and Statistics: Are 90% of War Victims Civilians?. Survival, 52(3), 115-136. info:/10.1080/00396338.2010.494880
- May 17, 2010
- 12:25 PM
- 439 views
On Patriotism & Prejudice
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
National Identity and Outgroup PrejudiceHaving a strong national identity does not necessarily foster prejudice or derogation of other groups. Antipathy toward other groups depends more on how one’s identity is represented - whether people draw us-them distinctions based on ethnic factors or civic factors, like citizenship, according to a new study published in the British Journal of Social Psychology.Professor Joke Meeus and colleagues from Katholieke Universiteit in Belgium undertook this s........ Read more »
Meeus, J., Duriez, B., Vanbeselaere, N., & Boen, F. (2010) The role of national identity representation in the relation between in-group identification and out-group derogation: Ethnic versus civic representation. British Journal of Social Psychology, 49(2), 305-320. DOI: 10.1348/014466609X451455
- April 2, 2010
- 03:36 PM
- 546 views
Mapping the Militant-Extremist Mindset
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
About a year ago, we reported here at SGSAC on a study attempting to identify key themes that might characterize a militant-extremist mindset. Gerard Saucier (University of Oregon) and his colleagues pored through numerous documents and extracted sixteen themes. Members of that same research team - this time led by Lazar Stankov (National Institute of Education in Singapore) - have continued this line of inquiry and spotted three central "psychological ingredients of the militant extremist min........ Read more »
Stankov, L., Saucier, G., & Knežević, G. (2010) Militant extremist mind-set: Proviolence, Vile World, and Divine Power. Psychological Assessment, 22(1), 70-86. DOI: 10.1037/a0016925
- February 1, 2010
- 10:53 AM
- 541 views
Authoritarianism, Totalitarianism, and Anti-Capitalism: Strange Bedfellows?
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
While much of the world is just now coming to grips with the demise of the old "superpower" system, a confluence of emerging ideologies and population-influence tactics are waiting eagerly in the wings.Last year, the folks from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Radio Free Asia published a report titled "Undermining Democracy: 21st Century Authoritarians," which looked at new ways that totalitarian-like leaders are squelching political freedoms throughout the world through strategic use of medi........ Read more »
Sternberg, E. (2010) Purifying the World: What the New Radical Ideology Stands For. Orbis, 54(1), 61-86. DOI: 10.1016/j.orbis.2009.10.006
- January 27, 2010
- 12:00 AM
- 392 views
Understanding Support for Militancy in Pakistan
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
Stability in Pakistan is in the fundamental interest of (at least most of) the global security community. And militancy is widely regarded as the most serious and present threat to that stability. Pew regularly conducts and reports on surveys of Pakistani public opinion. Policymakers and analysts also have their own set of working assumptions. As with all policy decisions our understanding and assumptions about the problem will affect, if not drive, our strategy and intervention. A recent study ........ Read more »
Shapiro, J., & Fair, C. (2010) Understanding Support for Islamist Militancy in Pakistan. International Security, 34(3), 79-118. DOI: 10.1162/isec.2010.34.3.79
- November 30, 2009
- 09:00 AM
- 666 views
Toward a Criminology of Genocide
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
In the most recent issue of the journal Theoretical Criminology (November 2009, Volume 13, No. 4 -Sage Publications), a special section is devoted to Criminology's potential contributions to the study and prevention of genocide. Nicole Rafter of Northeastern University sets the stage for the series of articles that follow. She uses as a platform for the discussion the 2009 book: Darfur and the Crime of Genocide by John Hagan and Wenona Rymond-Richmond {Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2........ Read more »
Rafter, N. (2009) Darfur and the Crime of Genocide by John Hagan and Wenona Rymond-Richmond: a symposium: Introduction. Theoretical Criminology, 13(4), 475-475. DOI: 10.1177/1362480609345440
- November 13, 2009
- 04:37 PM
- 531 views
Virtual Counterinsurgency
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
What seems to give the West the most trouble in counterinsurgency (COIN) is not killing bad guys, but preventing new flocks of bad guys from continuously emerging. There is often talk of “draining the swamps” and “stemming the tide,” but violent extremism continues to spread – though in some circles more easily than others. The US and Western allies seem to understand – at some level – that the informational element of the battlespace reaches beyond traditional propaganda. They........ Read more »
Betz, D. (2008) The virtual dimension of contemporary insurgency and counterinsurgency. Small Wars , 19(4), 510-540. DOI: 10.1080/09592310802462273
- July 29, 2009
- 04:07 PM
- 801 views
Everything You Know About Counterinsurgency History Is (possibly) Wrong!
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
Everything You Know About Counterinsurgency History Is (possibly) Wrong!I find it refreshing to hear an historian analyze ideas about counterinsurgency (COIN), if only to break the monotony of listening to COIN practitioners and doctrineers analyzing history. A new article by Professor Jonathan Gumz from USMA West Point makes the point.Gumz begins by noting that a flood of new scholarship on COIN has emerged - particularly in military journals - over the past six years. Articles typically inc........ Read more »
Gumz, J. (2009) Reframing the Historical Problematic of Insurgency: How the Professional Military Literature Created a New History and Missed the Past. Journal of Strategic Studies, 32(4), 553-588. DOI: 10.1080/01402390902986972
- July 16, 2009
- 07:09 PM
- 807 views
Natural Resources & Armed Conflict
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
Natural resources can make conflicts more deadly. When gems or oil/gas production exist inside a conflict zone, more combat deaths tend to result. This finding comes from an analysis of 258 worldwide conflicts conducted by Paivi Lujala from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.Lujala's research builds on earlier studies showing linking the presence of natural resources to the onset and likelihood of armed conflict in a given area. His analysis extends this knowledge by focusing o........ Read more »
Lujala, P. (2008) Deadly Combat over Natural Resources: Gems, Petroleum, Drugs, and the Severity of Armed Civil Conflict. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 53(1), 50-71. DOI: 10.1177/0022002708327644
- June 30, 2009
- 12:03 AM
- 721 views
Human Endeavor of War
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
Using more machines in war may diminish a force's chance of success according to a new study authored by Jason Lyall of Princeton and Isaiah Wilson III of the US Military Academy.... Read more »
Lyall, J., & Wilson, I. (2009) Rage Against the Machines: Explaining Outcomes in Counterinsurgency Wars. International Organization, 63(01), 67. DOI: 10.1017/S0020818309090031
- June 8, 2009
- 10:31 AM
- 675 views
Democracy May Support Stability and Sustainability
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
Interested in building healthy, sustainable communities? Consider the value of democratic governance. Democracy may not be perfect, but perhaps it's the best imperfect system of government available.New research supports this conventional wisdom in a study of 45 African countries and 18 Latin American states over the time period 1996–2004. "While controlling for the material wealth of a country, education, population, armed conflict, ethnic tension, and debt, this pooled timed series analysi........ Read more »
Stockemer, D. (2009) Does democracy lead to good governance? The question applied to Africa and Latin America. Global Change, Peace , 21(2), 241-255. DOI: 10.1080/14781150902872141
- May 25, 2009
- 05:05 PM
- 850 views
Genocide: Criminological and CJ Perspectives
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
The June, 2009 issue of International Criminal Justice Review is a special issue devoted to genocide (defined here as the mass murder of people based on a specific agenda). It is guest edited by Professor John Winterdyk, who also serves as the outgoing chair (2009) of the International Section for the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS). In his Introduction to the special issue, Professor Winterdyk notes that: "this is the first time a mainstream criminology/criminal justice journal h........ Read more »
Winterdyk, J. (2009) Genocide: International Issues and Perspectives Worthy of Criminal Justice Attention. International Criminal Justice Review, 19(2), 101-114. DOI: 10.1177/1057567709334217
- May 22, 2009
- 11:05 AM
- 806 views
How Armed Groups Make Money from Crime
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
In the latest issue of Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, Bilal Saab and Alexandra Taylor look at the different ways in which Colombian armed groups are connected to criminal activity.Transnational crime poses a daunting economic security problem. The volume of activity, including the $300-500 billion drug trade, accounts for between 2 and 5 % of the global GDP. Pretty remarkable.That connections exist between armed groups, including guerillas and insurgents, and transnational crime is rathe........ Read more »
Saab, B., & Taylor, A. (2009) Criminality and Armed Groups: A Comparative Study of FARC and Paramilitary Groups in Colombia. Studies in Conflict , 32(6), 455-475. DOI: 10.1080/10576100902892570
- May 15, 2009
- 09:46 AM
- 635 views
Common Themes in Violent Extremist Ideologies.
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
Are there common structures or patterns to violent extremist ideologies, even when the content of the beliefs is dramatically different? Social and political scientists have explored elements of this question for decades using a variety of different methods. And the method does seem to matter. ... Read more »
Saucier, G., Akers, L., Shen-Miller, S., Knežević, G., & Stankov, L. (2009) Patterns of Thinking in Militant Extremism. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 4(3), 256-271. DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-6924.2009.01123.x
- May 13, 2009
- 07:34 PM
- 751 views
Weak states may be hazardous to your health (and your rights).
by Randy Borum in Science of Global Security & Armed Conflict
Human rights abuses are commonly associated with despotic, totalitarian regimes, not with weak and failing states. But Professor Neil Englehart’s recent study of 140 nations suggests that weak states may actually put personal security rights at the greatest risk. Englehart defined state "capacity" as "the willingness and capability of the state apparatus to carry out government policy" not by a particular government’s stability, longevity, or popularity. He used three measures of capacity: ........ Read more »
Englehart, N. (2009) State Capacity, State Failure, and Human Rights. Journal of Peace Research, 46(2), 163-180. DOI: 10.1177/0022343308100713
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