Leiden University Student Repository

Teeuwen, S.J. (2014)

Constructing the Taliban’s identity: A constructivist analysis of the Afghan Taliban’s corporate identity

Bachelor thesis | Politicologie (BSc)

This research concerns the identity of the Taliban as a non-state actor in the political environment of Afghanistan. Although much has been written on identity from a constructivist perspective, very few authors do so from the perspective of a ‘bad actor’ and none have been found that describe the Taliban’s identity based on its own discourse. This research will do so by analyzing statements of the Taliban made on its website on what they state about the Taliban’s relational comparisons. Using this analysis, the Taliban’s identity is described using Abdelal et al.’s four elements of identity: the actor’s cognitive model, its relational comparisons, its social purposes, and its constitutive norms.

Identity

Taliban

Discourse analysis

Terrorist actor

Author

Teeuwen, S.J.

Faculty

Faculty of Social & Behavioural Sciences

Specialisation

Politicologie

Supervisors

Vonno, C.M.C. van
Ragazzi, F.P.S.M.

ECTS Credits

15

Language

en