Torture and terror post-9/11: The role of social work in responding to torture:
TL;DR: The authors argue that social work response to challenging pro-torture rhetoric has been limited at best, and to effectively address the problem there must be an international response if social work is to adhere to its obligations under the IFSW Code of Ethics, and fulfil its role as a human rights profession.
Abstract: Whilst terrorism is not a new global phenomenon, the fallout from the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US remain extensive and far reaching, including the sanctioning of harsher security measures and the denigration of human rights and civil liberties. Of particular concern is the move towards torture being an accepted practice for those deemed ‘terror suspects’ or captured ‘enemy’ combatants in countries where the so called ‘war on terror’ is still being played out. This article argues that the social work response, particularly in relation to challenging pro-torture rhetoric, has been limited at best, and to effectively address the problem there must be an international response if social work is to adhere to its obligations under the IFSW Code of Ethics, and fulfil its role as a human rights profession.
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TL;DR: In this book, Johnson primarily addresses a research audience, and his model seems designed to stimulate thought rather than to improve clinical technique, which suggests that lithium should have no therapeutic value in patients, such as those with endogenous depression, who already "under-process" cognitive information.
Abstract: basic research and clinical data in an attempt to derive a cohesive model which explains the behavioral effects of the drug. Johnson is an experimental psychologist, and his work underlies many of the chapters which suggest that lithium decreases the behavioral response to novel external stimuli. He then utilizes this foundation to propose a cognitive model for lithium's anti-manic action, its inhibition of violent impulsivity, and its prophylactic effects in recurrent depression. Previous formulations which were clinically based, such as that of Mabel Blake Cohen and her associates, stressed the primacy of depression and noted the \"manic defense\" as an attempt to ward off intolerable depression. In direct contrast, Johnson views mania as the primary disturbance in bipolar disorder. He considers depression in bipolar disease as an over-zealous homeostatic inhibitory responsf to a maniaassociated cognitive overload. Consistent with this, he believes, lit lum exerts its anti-manic effect by decreasing cognitive processing in a manner analogous to his animal studies. Johnson also suggests that lithium exerts its prophylactic effect in recurrent depressions by treating subclinical mania. These concepts are supported by the work of Johnson's associate, Kukopulos, to whom the book is dedicated. The bulk of the research which describes the cognitive disturbance in mania is complex, however, and uncomfortably open to multiple interpretations. Recognized as a preliminary effort, Johnson's formulation may help to guide further research. Although Johnson clearly traces lithium actions through a broad range of subjects, his discussion of the neurophysiological aspects of this drug is notably spotty. In particular, Johnson ignores the work of Svensson, DeMontigny, Aghajanian, and others who suggest that serotonergic systems may play an important role in the antidepressant actions of lithium. As a result, he fails to discuss one of the most important current uses of lithium: as an agent used in conjunction with antidepressant medications to increase treatment response in medication-resistant forms of depression. Lithium augmentation of antidepressant medication also challenges the formulation presented by Johnson. This formulation suggests that lithium should have no therapeutic value in patients, such as those with endogenous depression, who already \"under-process\" cognitive information. The omission of lithium augmentation in depression is clearly unfortunate in this text. Overall, this volume demonstrates the benefits of a single-authored text. It it clearly organized and readable. The bibliography is also broad and useful. In this book, Johnson primarily addresses a research audience, and his model seems designed to stimulate thought rather than to improve clinical technique. In this capacity, his book will be of most interest to behavioral psychologists. Other books, focusing purely on clinical data, may be more useful to clinicians. Nevertheless, the clear organization, the large bibliography, and the thoughtful presentation may make this text a useful addition to a clinical library as well.
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TL;DR: The treatment of detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq focused worldwide media attention on the US practice of torture and the history of counter-insurgency techniques which owed much to French warfare in Algeria.
Abstract: The treatment of detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq focused worldwide media attention on the US practice of torture. Underlying such a practice was not only a self-serving debate in US political circles, academia and entertainment media on how a liberal democracy could justify such methods but also a history of counter-insurgency techniques which owed much to French warfare in Algeria. Yet while the lessons of the torturer have been assiduously learnt, what has been ignored is the recent open debate in France on the profound damage done by such institutionalised barbarity both to the victims and to the individuals and regimes that deploy it.
48 citations
"Torture and terror post-9/11: The r..." refers background in this paper
...There are a number of residual and long-term impacts of the creation of a torture sustaining reality or one that reifies or implicitly or explicitly condones violence of that nature (Macmaster, 2004)....
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TL;DR: This article used zero-inflated Poisson regression to model community victim counts as a function of potential explanatory factors in the context of the war in Afghanistan and found significant historic as well as concurrent factors are significant.
Abstract: Like other wars, recent Western military interventions have entailed loss of civilians in the affected countries. As a result of the ‘Revolution in Military Affairs’, Martin Shaw makes two claims likely to recur in debates on such wars. The first is that those losses were much smaller than the loss of life as a result of previous misrule and oppression. The second is that during these interventions civilians suffered only accidental ‘small massacres’. Using victim figures from 600 local communities exposed to hostilities during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, the authors test Shaw’s claims. They model community victim counts as a function of potential explanatory factors via zero-inflated Poisson regression. Several historic as well as concurrent factors are significant. Moreover, totals work out considerably higher than those offered by previous researchers. These findings are important to several aspects of the new way of war: as a reminder that harm comes not only from direct violence but fr...
44 citations
"Torture and terror post-9/11: The r..." refers background in this paper
...…the past decade, hundreds of thousands of civilians have subsequently lost their lives in retaliatory attacks (Bohannon, 2011; Burnham et al., 2006; Moulton, 2004), there have been assassinations and mass assaults (Soherwordi and Khattak, 2011; Wolverton, 2011), thousands of people have been…...
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe the structural problems in African social workers that are created through political processes and argue that to prevent or resolve them, social workers must participate in the political processes determining the life circumstances of their clients.
Abstract: EnglishAfrica faces many social, economic and political problems: unemployment, poverty, inequality, illiteracy, homelessness, diseases, human rights abuses, official corruption and civil conflicts. These are structural problems, created through political processes. To prevent or resolve them, African social workers must participate in the political processes determining the life circumstances of their clients. FrenchL'Afrique est aux prises avec d'innombrables problemes sociaux, economiques et politiques tels que le chomage, la pauvrete, les inegalites, l'analphabetisme, le manque de logements, la maladie, la corruption officielle et les conflits civils. Il s'agit de problemes structurels qui decoulent de processus politiques. Afin de prevenir, d'alleger ou de resoudre ce genre de problemes, les travailleurs sociaux africains doivent prendre part aux processus politiques qui determinent les conditions de vie de leurs clients. Spanish>Africa se encuentra ante una serie de conflictos: problemas sociales, e...
44 citations
"Torture and terror post-9/11: The r..." refers background in this paper
...This includes the need for social workers to engage in political action, which is key to addressing such an inherently politically driven and complex issue (Mmatli, 2008)....
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TL;DR: In this article, social work in Canada and the USA shares a common heritage in the commitment to advancing social and economic justice, and today the capitalist global market and increasing militarization affect social work.
Abstract: EnglishSocial work in Canada and the USA shares a common heritage in the commitment to advancing social and economic justice. Today the capitalist global market and increasing militarization affect...
44 citations
TL;DR: Understanding terrorist psychology is crucial to formulating effective counter‐terrorist strategy, and key elements include inhibiting potential terrorists from joining the group, creating tension within the Group, facilitating exit from theGroup, reducing support for the group and delegitimating its leader.
Abstract: Terrorists are not crazed fanatics. Indeed, terrorist groups screen out emotionally unstable individuals--they would be a security risk. Rather it is group, organizational, and social psychology, with particular emphasis on collective identity that motivates terrorist behavior. There is a diverse spectrum of terrorist psychologies and motivations. In terms of generational provenance, nationalist-separatist terrorists are carrying on the mission of their parents-they are loyal to families who have been damaged by the regime. In contrast, social-revolutionary terrorists are disloyal to families who are loyal to the regime. Religious fundamentalist terrorists are "killing in the name of God." Suicide, proscribed by the Koran, has been reframed as martyrdom, which is highly valued. The new media, especially the Internet, have played an increasingly prominent role in radicalizing individuals, creating a virtual community of hatred. Understanding terrorist psychology is crucial to formulating effective counter-terrorist strategy. Key elements include inhibiting potential terrorists from joining the group, creating tension within the group, facilitating exit from the group, reducing support for the group, and delegitimating its leader.
40 citations
"Torture and terror post-9/11: The r..." refers background in this paper
...…an active role in challenging the narrative around terrorism and torture, especially in the media (Ross, 2007), is a crucial step to overcoming political violence (Post, 2010), establishing a space where survivors of torture can heal (Herman, 2005), and creating a ‘rights respecting’ community....
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