Children Affected by Armed Conflict: Theory, Method, and Practice

Societal turbulence, state collapse, religious and ethnic conflict, poverty, hunger, and social exclusion all underlie children's involvement in armed conflict. Drawing from empirical studies in eleven conflict-ridden countries, including Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Colombia, Uganda, Palestine, Somalia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, and South Sudan, Children Affected by Armed Conflict crosses cultures and contexts to capture a range of perspectives on the realities of armed conflict and its aftermath for children. Children Affected by Armed Conflict upends traditional views by emphasizing the experience of girls as well as boys, the unique social and contextual backgrounds of war-affected children, and the resilience and agency such children often display. Including children who are victims of, participants in, and witnesses to armed conflict in their analyses, the contributors to this volume highlight innovative methodologies that directly involve war-affected children in the research process. This validates the perspectives of children and ensures more effective outcomes in postwar reintegration and recovery. Deficits-based models do not account for the realities many war-affected children face. The alternative approaches presented in this edited collection-which acknowledge the realities of both trauma and resilience-aim to generate more effective policies and intervention strategies in the face of a growing global public health crisis.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments Introduction: Approaches to Studying Children Affected by Armed Conflict: Reflections on Theory, Method, and Practice, by Myriam Denov and Bree Akesson Part I. Understanding the Realities of Children in Armed Conflict: Theoretical And Conceptual Considerations 1. “Raising the Dead” and Cultivating Resilience: Postcolonial Theory and Children’s Narratives from Swat, Pakistan, by Lubna N. Chaudhry 2. Young Children’s Experiences of Connectedness and Belonging in Postconflict Sri Lanka: A Socioecological Approach, by Nanditha Hettitantri and Fay Hadley 3. Contending with Vio lence and Discrimination: Using a Social Exclusion Lens to Understand the Realities of Burmese Muslim Refugee Children in Thailand, by Mollie Pepper 4. A Social Constructionist Approach to Understanding the Experiences of Girls Affected by Armed Conflict in Colombia, by Maria Camila Ospina- Alvarado, Sara Victoria Alvarado, Jaime Alberto Carmona, and Hector Fabio Ospina 5. Armed with Resilience: Tapping into the Experiences and Survival Skills of Formerly Abducted Girl Child Soldiers in Northern Uganda, by Jessica A. Lenz Part II. Methodological Approaches to Understanding the Realities of Children Affected by Armed Conflict 6. Socioecological Research Methods with Children Affected by Armed Conflict: Examples from Northern Uganda and Palestine, by Bree Akesson and Myriam Denov 7. What Children and Youth Can Tell Us: A Rapid Ethnography Approach to Understanding Harms to Children in Somaliland and Puntland, by Kathleen Kostelny, Ken Justus Ondoro, and Michael G. Wessells 8. Surviving Disorder: Children, Vio lence, and War Stories in Liberia, by Sukanya Podder 9. Reweaving Relating in Social Reintegration: Participatory Action Research with War-Affected Young Mothers and Their Children in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Northern Uganda, by Angela Veale, Miranda Worthen, and Susan Mckay Part III. Practice And Service Delivery: Professional Applications to Address the Realities of Children Affected by Armed Conflict 10. Health Care Services to War-Affected Children in Northern Uganda: Accounting for Discrepancies Between Interventions and Children’s Needs, by Grace Akello 11. When the System “Works”: Exploring the Experiences of Girl Survivors of Sexual Violence in Postconflict Liberia, by Debbie Landis and Lindsay Stark 12. Working with Children Affected by Armed Conflict: Practical Protection Work During the Darfur Crisis in the Sudan, by Ghada Kachachi 13. Meeting the Needs of Children Affected by Conflict: Teacher Training and Development in South Sudan, by Jan Stewart Conclusion: Putting the Pieces Together: Future Directions in Research with Children Affected by Armed Conflict, by Bree Akesson and Myriam Denov List of Contributors Index

About the Author :
Myriam Denov is a full professor and holds the Canada Research Chair in Youth, Gender, and Armed Conflict at McGill University. Her research centers on international child protection, the effects of war and migration on children and families, as well as participatory and arts-based research approaches. She is the author or coauthor of five books, including Child Soldiers: Sierra Leone's Revolutionary United Front (2010) and Children's Rights and International Development: Lessons and Challenges from the Field (2011). Bree Akesson is an assistant professor in the Faculty of Social Work at Wilfrid Laurier University in Canada. Her research focuses on international child protection, psychosocial effects of war and disaster on children and families, and global social work practice.

Review :
This timely and impressive volume utilizes a socioecological framework to examine the experiences of children affected by armed conflict. Using a holistic approach that considers children's diverse cultures and contexts, the contributors illuminate the complexities of war and postwar realities on the everyday lives of children. -- Sophie Yohani, University of Alberta This is a powerful book-a must-read. Its strength lies in its empathy; and in how it eschews categories, avoids simplicity, transcends binaries, and turns limits into opportunities. While recognizing their suffering, and doing so with great sensitivity, this book also foregrounds the humanity, resilience, intrepidness, and potential of all children affected by armed violence. -- Mark Drumbl, Washington and Lee University Far from sparing children, war exposes young persons to physical harm and other deprivations, including separation from family and forcible displacement. This volume draws on case studies from across the globe to provide an invaluable, contemporary analysis of theories, methods, and practices by which to address the needs of children affected by armed conflict. -- Diane Marie Amann, University of Georgia