Social Networks and Migration in Wartime Afghanistan

"Kristian Berg Harpviken presents a framework for understanding how people's networks are essential for their responses to war and disaster. People's network resources are crucial for mobilizing or maintaining physical resources, for their security, and for the gathering of information. Applying this framework to the analysis of wartime migration, the book challenges one-dimensional victim images of wartime migrants, emphasizing the importance of agency and network resources in responding to unpredictable social environments. The book's systematic application of a network analytical perspective, building on mechanisms developed through studies in other areas (particularly economic and organizational sociology) is unique. This analytical bridge-building brings new insights to the study of responses to armed conflict, where there has previously only been loose debate on whether social networks fragment or gain strength in the face of war. Discussing migration throughout three decades of war in Afghanistan, the book is based on original fieldwork during the period of the Taliban's domination of Afghanistan, focusing on two villages in one of the country's most severely war-stricken areas."--Book cover.