Emotional Legacies of War among Former Colombian Paramilitaries
Journal
Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology
ISSN
1078-1919
ISSN-Digital
1532-7949
Type
journal article
Date Issued
2012-11
Author(s)
Abstract
Drawing on 62 interviews with former members of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia), a right-wing paramilitary umbrella organization that fought against guerrilla groups and was involved in drug trafficking, I develop a model of the emotional legacies of war. The proposed model is critical to the understanding of ex-combatants' behavior in the context of postwar disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration. This study connects three related elements: ex-combatants' recollection of their initial reason for joining the war and their war experiences, their present perception of those reasons and experiences, and an emotional legacy tied to their perceptions. I have designated the emotional residue that emerges from the remembered past, including regret, pride, resentment, nostalgia, and tiredness of being at war, an emotional legacy. These emotional legacies connect ex-combatants' perception of their past with the present.
Language
English
Keywords
ex-combatants
Colombia
emotional legacies
peacebuilding
grounded theory
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
HSG Profile Area
SHSS - Kulturen, Institutionen, Maerkte (KIM)
Refereed
Yes
Publisher
Educational Publishing Foundation of the American Psychological Association
Publisher place
Washington DC
Volume
18
Number
4
Start page
369
End page
383
Pages
15
Subject(s)
Division(s)
Eprints ID
218019