The Market for Force: The Consequences of Privatizing Security

ISBN-13: 9780521615358 / Angielski / Miękka / 2005 / 328 str.

Deborah D. Avant

Opis

The flourishing role of the private sector in security management over the last twenty years has challenged state control of the legitimate use of force. Deborah Avant examines the privatization of security and its impact on the control of force. She describes the growth of private security companies, explains how the industry works, and describes its range of customers--including states, non-government organizations and commercial transnational corporations. Avant also charts the inevitable trade-offs that the market for force imposes on the states, firms and people wishing to control it, and suggests a new way to think about the control of force.

Recenzje

'Avant has performed a great service. There is much hype and hyperbole regarding the growth of private security forces, with many suggesting that these are warriors running wild. By sifting through the evidence and deploying a range of organizational theories, Avant generates develops a nuanced understanding of this sector, identifying how these forces are controlled and alerting us to when and where there remain legitimate concerns. Avant tackles the interesting development of the privatization of security. Over the last several decades privatization has moved into the security theater with substantial force. This is fascinating for theoretical, political, and normative reasons. The monopolization of the means of violence is a defining feature of the state and distinguishes the modern sovereign state from organizational rivals. Yet we find that states are knowingly and gladly devolving control. Why they should do this, and with what consequences, is important and fascinating. Avant wants to examine the consequences by examining the impact on state control. Toward that end, she unpacks the functional areas in which security is being privatized and considers different areas of state control. To illustrate these claims, she examines three cases of state privatization and non-state actors hiring private security forces to provide different functions. The implications of these developments for how politics is now being played out, who controls the means of force, and democratic accountability, are tremendous.' Michael N. Barnett, University of Minnesota

Spis treści

1. Introduction; 2. Private security and the control of force; 3. State capacity and contracting for security; 4. Dilemmas in state regulation of private security exports; 5. Private financing for security and the control of force; 6. Market mechanisms and the diffusion of control over force; 7. Conclusion; Bibliography.