Social Networks and Migration in Wartime Afghanistan. By Kristian Berg Harpviken.

Abstract

Over the last two or three decades, analyses that attempt to capture social relations as they unfold across multiple localities, have spread across the social sciences. Amongst these efforts, social network analysis (SNA) has acquired a prominent position, yet, as claimed by Harpviken (p. 17), its application to studies of forced migration is quite limited. This is the gap that the book intends to fill, and as such, it is a useful addition to the literature. The main thrust of the book is the application of SNA to the study of Afghan migration over the last thirty years, with a particular focus on the period 1978–1999. Its ‘basic assumption is that structural forces are mediated by people's social networks and that social networks have the potential to function both as key resources and as key obstacles when people are forming a response’ (p. 18). This analytical perspective is developed at the beginning of the text, where an explanation of the main contributions of SNA is set in relation to the general literature on wartime migration and displacement, disaster response, and political mobilization. In particular, Harpviken discusses how networks may be seen as conveyor belts for three types of ‘flows’: security, especially in situations of war when other protection sources break down; material resources, which may attract people to a particular location and are crucial with regard to the capacity to undertake a journey in the first place; and, finally, information about the threat scenario, both in one's current locality or in potential destinations. Crucially, and this is perhaps the most interesting aspect offered by such analysis, networks are not portrayed in a static and uniform manner.