Strategic Culture and Violent Non-State Actors: Weapons of Mass Destruction and Asymmetrical Operations Concepts and Cases
Abstract
This Occasional Paper combines three separate threads of analysis on culture and violent nonstate actors as a launching pad to spur further research into this critical arena of culture and security. In the first contribution, "Strategic Culture and Violent NonState Actors: Concepts and Templates for Analysis," James M. Smith lays out a conceptual basis and a series of templates for guiding the analysis of culture and violent nonstate actors. These templates focus on the analysis of WMD acquisition and use, and on culturally driven operational campaigns. In the second contribution, "Strategic Culture, Al Qaida, and Weapons of Mass Destruction," Jerry M. Long applies a cultural analysis of radical Islam and al Qaida in discussing the many factors and influences involved in the core al Qaida group's WMD decisions. His work graphically demonstrates the complexity of such decisions for that core group, and suggests that what many may find as counter-intuitive caution plays a major role here. In the final contribution, "The Taliban Insurgency and Its Tribal Dynamics: An Analysis of 'Shabnamah' (Night Letters)," Thomas H. Johnson, in examining a tribal insurgent psychological campaign in Afghanistan, demonstrates that traditional beliefs, myths and stories, and behavioral influences can be manipulated for significant effect in countering U.S. efforts to gain stability and legitimacy for the Afghan government. Together these papers underscore the central role of culture in analyzing and understanding nonstate adversaries.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 2008
- Accession Number
- ADA482685
Entities
People
- James M. Smith
- Jerry M. Long
- Thomas H. Johnson
Organizations
- United States Air Force Academy