Female Combatants and Wartime Rape: Reconsidering the Role of Women in Armed Conflict

Mehrl, Marius

doi:10.1177/0095327x20981696

Cited by 12 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Our theoretical argument particularly complements existing research showing that gender-based violence increases the probability of the UN becoming active (Benson and Gizelis, 2020; Hultman and Johansson, 2017). This is especially the case given that female combatants and sexual violence may not be present in the same conflicts (Mehrl, 2020). However, our results also raise questions about the extent to which the resolution’s point on women having an active, “important role [.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Female rebels and United Nations peacekeeping deployments

Mehrl¹,

Dworschak²

2021

Cooperation and Conflict

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How does the presence of female rebel combatants during conflict influence the likelihood of United Nations post-conflict peacekeeping deployment? While past literature on peacekeeping emphasizes the role of conflict attributes and security council interests, only few studies investigate the importance of belligerent characteristics. We argue that, because dominant gender stereotypes paint women as peaceful, female rebel combatants lead domestic and international audiences to perceive conflicts in which they fight as more severe. Given that recent UN resolutions and mission mandates align with these stereotypes, this in turn, causes the UN to intervene and deploy peacekeepers. Multivariate regression models drawing on a global sample of UN post-conflict missions provide empirical support for our hypothesis. Our findings add to the growing body of literature emphasizing the role of women in combat roles, and contribute to the discussion on the UN’s Women, Peace, and Security agenda.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Female rebels and United Nations peacekeeping deployments

Mehrl¹,

Dworschak²

2021

Cooperation and Conflict

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“…Mehrl (2020) found support for the notion that rebel groups that include women as fighters are less prone to commit acts of conflict-related sexual violence, a finding that differs from Loken (2017) who argued that “Organizational factors—primarily—culture drive violence in armed groups . .…”

Section: A Civilizing Force or Monsters?mentioning

confidence: 98%

Overturning the “Risk Rule” of 1988, Opting for New Risks: U.S. Women Servicemembers and the War in Afghanistan

Buscha¹

2022

Armed Forces & Society

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The evolution of the status of American women as warriors between Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm in 1990-1991 and the War in Afghanistan, beginning in 2001 [and simultaneously the Iraq War in 2003] is explored. This era of American civil-military history included rescinding the ‘Risk Rule’ of 1988, the formal ban on women serving in ground combat units. This generation of women’s legitimate military service as warriors began. The Afghanistan War period also exposed, however, the physical and emotional risks military women often face from their own colleagues on a global scale in the form of sexual violence. As a society, we purposefully must eliminate such risks inherent in the contemporary All-Volunteer Force (AVF) and clean up the resulting messes before we even consider taking the risk of conscription and mass mobilization of American women in our next war.

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“…Finally, future researcher could unpack the indirect governance chain by not only considering the relationship between the state sponsor and the rebels, but also the relationship between rebel leadership and their soldiers (see, e.g., Weinstein 2005; Hoover Green 2016) as well as interactions between the different links in this chain (see, e.g., Mehrl 2020, 2021). Future studies could also examine the impact of support modes on group cohesion (see also, Tamm 2016; K.…”

Section: Theoretical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indirect Governance at War: Delegation and Orchestration in Rebel Support

Heinkelmann-Wild¹,

Mehrl²

2021

Journal of Conflict Resolution

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Instead of attacking their adversaries directly, states often do so indirectly by supporting rebel groups. While these support relationships vary considerably, existing research lacks a comprehensive account thereof. To explain states’ choice of support, we suggest differentiating between two modes of support relationships according to the control opportunities they offer states over rebels: while delegation enables “hands-on” control, “hands-off” orchestration allows for plausible deniability and does not harm rebels’ local legitimacy. We argue that sponsors prefer orchestration when “hands-on” control can be substituted by goal alignment or competition; and they prefer delegation when the conflict is highly salient. Tests using global data for the period 1975-2009 support the first two expectations. Surprisingly, states’ capabilities also render “hands-off” orchestration more likely. The paper advances the understanding of external rebel support by transferring insights from indirect governance theory to the study of indirect wars and putting it to statistical test.

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Female Combatants and Wartime Rape: Reconsidering the Role of Women in Armed Conflict

Cited by 12 publications

References 27 publications

Female rebels and United Nations peacekeeping deployments

Female rebels and United Nations peacekeeping deployments

Overturning the “Risk Rule” of 1988, Opting for New Risks: U.S. Women Servicemembers and the War in Afghanistan

Indirect Governance at War: Delegation and Orchestration in Rebel Support

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