Kathleen M. Jennings
Kathleen M. Jennings
Postdoctoral Fellow and Deputy Head of Organization and Development, ISS
kathleen.m.jennings@ntnu.no
About
My academic work has focused primarily on the institutional, operational, conceptual, gendered, and political-economic aspects of UN peace operations in conflict-affected countries. It is characterized by a focus on how organizational rules, regulations, policy, and practice intersect with and impact the everyday, lived realities of people in and affected by conflict. My work is cross-disciplinary, encompassing political science and International Relations, gender studies, critical peace and security studies, and political economy, and uses empirical qualitative methods including interviews, focus groups, discourse and documentary analysis, and process tracing. I have fieldwork experience from Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and Haiti.
In addition to conducting research, I have also worked in an administrative leadership capacity as head of the section for Research and Development at the Faculty of Social Sciences, OsloMet -- Oslo Metropolitan University. I hold a PhD (political science) from the University of Oslo, an M.Phil (politics) from Oxford University, and a BA (political science, honors) from Stanford University.
In the period 2022-2023, I served as elected representative for temporary staff to the Faculty Board, the Faculty Research Committee, and the Faculty Hiring Committee.
In January 2023, I joined the leadership group at ISS as Deputy Head of Organization and Development.
Current research
My current research project has the working title, "Citizenship, diversity, equality, and inclusion in the Norwegian military." It examines the discourses related to equality and diversity within the Norwegian military, focusing primarily on discourses used to argue for increasing women’s participation and status but attentive to how these encompass (or not) other underrepresented groups. I am particularly interested in the interplay between these discourses and evolving notions of equality, citizenship, masculinity, and the national interest; as well as how these discourses play out in light of Norway's dual role as both a major donor to, and subject of, the transnational Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda.
Previous research projects and themes
Previous research projects have focused on gendered peacekeeping economies, primarily in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo; sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) in peacekeeping operations; disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) of ex-combatants; and women's participation in peacekeeping operations. I have also written on the ethical, practical, and methodological dimensions of conducting fieldwork among vulnerable populations in conflict-affected countries. My PhD project, entitled "Blue Helmet Havens: Gendered Peacekeeping Economies in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo", was funded by the Research Council of Norway. I have also led or co-led projects with funding from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the US Institute of Peace, the Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution, and the Atlas Alliance.
Research Interests:
- international security
- gender
- militaries
- international interventions, peacekeeping, peacebuilding
- qualitative methods
- political economies/ peacekeeping economies
- West and Central Africa
Professional experience (select):
- Head of Section for Research and Development, Faculty of Social Sciences, OsloMet -- Oslo Metropolitan University (2018-2022)
- Senior Researcher, Fafo Research Foundation (2009-2017)
- Acting Deputy Director, Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Centre (NOREF) (2008-2009)
- Junior Researcher, Fafo Research Foundation (2005-2009)
Research
My academic work has focused primarily on the institutional, operational, conceptual, gendered, and political-economic aspects of UN peace operations in conflict-affected countries. It is characterized by a focus on how organizational rules, regulations, policy, and practice intersect with and impact the everyday, lived realities of people in and affected by conflict. My work is cross-disciplinary, encompassing political science and International Relations, gender studies, critical peace and security studies, and political economy, and uses empirical qualitative methods including interviews, focus groups, discourse and documentary analysis, and process tracing. I have fieldwork experience from Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and Haiti.
Citizenship, diversity, equality, and inclusion in the Norwegian military
My current project examines the discourses related to equality and diversity within the Norwegian military, in particular the interplay between these discourses and evolving notions of equality, citizenship, masculinity, and the national interest.
Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in UN Peacekeeping
In Nov 2023, I gave evidence at the high-level Prevention and Response to Sexual Misconduct Stakeholder Review Conference organized by WHO--based on over a decade of research into sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) by UN peacekeepers (pub forthcoming).
Publications
2024
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2024)
Power, Consent and Peacekeeping Economies.
Bristol University Press
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
2023
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2023)
Peacekeeping Economies.
Oxford Research Encyclopedia of International Studies
Article in business/trade/industry journal
2022
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2022)
Seksuell utnyttelse i Sør-Sudan – et kjent mønster i det norske forsvaret.
Forsvarets forum
Feature article
2021
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2021)
Gendered Challenges to Fieldwork in Confict-Affected Areas.
Palgrave Macmillan
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
2020
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2020)
Sex workers and sugar babies: empathetic engagement with vulnerable sources.
Bristol University Press
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
2019
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2019)
Conditional Protection? Sex, Gender, and Discourse in UN Peacekeeping.
International Studies Quarterly
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2019)
WPS and Peacekeeping Economies.
Oxford University Press
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2019)
Peacekeeping as Enterprise: Transaction, Consumption, and the Political Economy of Peace and Peacekeeping.
Routledge
Chapter
2018
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2018)
Peacekeeping as Enterprise: Transaction, Consumption, and the Political Economy of Peace and Peacekeeping.
Civil Wars
Academic article
2017
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2017)
The Immunity Dilemma: Peacekeepers' Crimes and the UN's Response.
e-International relations
Popular scientific article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2017)
Intro to SEA.
Digital learning tools
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2017)
Tracking Inclusion in Norwegian Development Support to Global Education.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
2016
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2016)
Blue Helmet Havens: Peacekeeping as Bypassing in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2016)
Blue Helmet Havens: Gendered Peacekeeping Economies in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Universitetet i Oslo
Universitetet i Oslo
Doctoral dissertation
2015
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2015)
United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).
Oxford University Press
Chapter
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2015)
United Nations Observer Mission in Liberia (UNOMIL).
Oxford University Press
Chapter
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2015)
Life in a ‘peace-kept’ city: encounters with the peacekeeping economy.
Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Bøås, Morten.
(2015)
Transactions and Interactions: Everyday Life in the Peacekeeping Economy.
Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding
Academic article
2014
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2014)
Service, sex, and security: Gendered peacekeeping economies in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Security Dialogue
Academic article
2012
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2012)
Governing Disorder: UN Peace Operations, International Security, and Democratization in the Post-Cold War Era.
International Peacekeeping
Book review
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2012)
Privatizing Peace.
International Peacekeeping
Book review
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2012)
Women’s participation in UN Peace Operations.
Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
2011
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2011)
Luttes armees, rebelles et seigneurs de la guerre: le spectre du patrimonialisme.
Les Presses de l'Université d'Ottawa
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2011)
Rebellion and warlordism: the spectre of neopatrimonalisme.
Routledge
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2011)
Women’s participation in UN peacekeeping operations: agents of change or stranded symbols?.
NOREF
Report
2010
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2010)
Unintended Consequences of Intimacy: Political Economies of Peacekeeping and Sex Tourism.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Bjørkhaug, Ingunn;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Bøås, Morten.
(2010)
Mapping and assessment of national, bilateral and multilateral actors’ support to work against sexual based violence in the Great Lakes region in Africa.
NORAD
Report
2009
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Nikolić-Ristanović, Vesna.
(2009)
UN peacekeeping economies and local sex industries: connections and implications.
University of Sussex
Report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2009)
The political economy of DDR in Liberia: a gendered critique.
Conflict, Security and Development
Academic article
2008
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
Securitizing the Economy of Reintegration in Liberia.
Palgrave Macmillan
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
Unclear ends, unclear means: Reintegration in postwar societies – The Case of Liberia.
Global Governance: A Review of Multilateralism and International Organizations
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Kaspersen, Anja.
(2008)
Conclusion: Integration Going Forward.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
War in the Great Lakes Region and Ugandan Conflict Zones: Micro-regionalisms and Meta-narratives.
Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Kaspersen, Anja.
(2008)
Introduction: Integration Revisited.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
Seeing DDR from below: Challenges and dilemmas raised by the experiences of ex-combatants in Liberia.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
Protecting Whom?: Approaches to sexual exploitation and abuse in UN peacekeeping operations.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
2007
-
Bjørkhaug, Ingunn;
Bøås, Morten;
Hatløy, Anne;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2007)
Returning to uncertainty? Addressing vulnerabilities in Northern Uganda.
United Nations Develoment Program
Report
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2007)
'Failed States' and 'State Failure': Threats or Opportunities?.
Globalizations
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2007)
The Struggle to Satisfy: DDR Through the Eyes of Ex-Combatants in Liberia.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2007)
The War Zone as Social Space: Social Research in Conflict Zones.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
2006
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Shaw, Timothy M..
(2006)
Dealing with Conflicts and Emergency Situations.
Sage Publications
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2006)
Armed Services: Regulating the Private Military Industry.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
2005
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2005)
Insecurity and Development: The rhetoric of the ‘failed’ state.
European Journal of Development Research
Academic article
-
Taylor, Mark Beaumont;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2005)
In Search of Strategy: An Agenda for Applied Research on Transitions from Conflict.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
Journal publications
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2023)
Peacekeeping Economies.
Oxford Research Encyclopedia of International Studies
Article in business/trade/industry journal
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2022)
Seksuell utnyttelse i Sør-Sudan – et kjent mønster i det norske forsvaret.
Forsvarets forum
Feature article
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2019)
Conditional Protection? Sex, Gender, and Discourse in UN Peacekeeping.
International Studies Quarterly
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2018)
Peacekeeping as Enterprise: Transaction, Consumption, and the Political Economy of Peace and Peacekeeping.
Civil Wars
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2017)
The Immunity Dilemma: Peacekeepers' Crimes and the UN's Response.
e-International relations
Popular scientific article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2016)
Blue Helmet Havens: Peacekeeping as Bypassing in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2015)
Life in a ‘peace-kept’ city: encounters with the peacekeeping economy.
Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Bøås, Morten.
(2015)
Transactions and Interactions: Everyday Life in the Peacekeeping Economy.
Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2014)
Service, sex, and security: Gendered peacekeeping economies in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Security Dialogue
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2012)
Governing Disorder: UN Peace Operations, International Security, and Democratization in the Post-Cold War Era.
International Peacekeeping
Book review
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2012)
Privatizing Peace.
International Peacekeeping
Book review
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2010)
Unintended Consequences of Intimacy: Political Economies of Peacekeeping and Sex Tourism.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2009)
The political economy of DDR in Liberia: a gendered critique.
Conflict, Security and Development
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
Unclear ends, unclear means: Reintegration in postwar societies – The Case of Liberia.
Global Governance: A Review of Multilateralism and International Organizations
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Kaspersen, Anja.
(2008)
Conclusion: Integration Going Forward.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Kaspersen, Anja.
(2008)
Introduction: Integration Revisited.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2007)
'Failed States' and 'State Failure': Threats or Opportunities?.
Globalizations
Academic article
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2007)
The Struggle to Satisfy: DDR Through the Eyes of Ex-Combatants in Liberia.
International Peacekeeping
Academic article
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2005)
Insecurity and Development: The rhetoric of the ‘failed’ state.
European Journal of Development Research
Academic article
Part of book/report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2024)
Power, Consent and Peacekeeping Economies.
Bristol University Press
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2021)
Gendered Challenges to Fieldwork in Confict-Affected Areas.
Palgrave Macmillan
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2020)
Sex workers and sugar babies: empathetic engagement with vulnerable sources.
Bristol University Press
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2019)
WPS and Peacekeeping Economies.
Oxford University Press
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen.
(2019)
Peacekeeping as Enterprise: Transaction, Consumption, and the Political Economy of Peace and Peacekeeping.
Routledge
Chapter
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2015)
United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).
Oxford University Press
Chapter
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2015)
United Nations Observer Mission in Liberia (UNOMIL).
Oxford University Press
Chapter
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2012)
Women’s participation in UN Peace Operations.
Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2011)
Luttes armees, rebelles et seigneurs de la guerre: le spectre du patrimonialisme.
Les Presses de l'Université d'Ottawa
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2011)
Rebellion and warlordism: the spectre of neopatrimonalisme.
Routledge
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
Securitizing the Economy of Reintegration in Liberia.
Palgrave Macmillan
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
War in the Great Lakes Region and Ugandan Conflict Zones: Micro-regionalisms and Meta-narratives.
Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
-
Bøås, Morten;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Shaw, Timothy M..
(2006)
Dealing with Conflicts and Emergency Situations.
Sage Publications
Academic chapter/article/Conference paper
Report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2017)
Tracking Inclusion in Norwegian Development Support to Global Education.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2016)
Blue Helmet Havens: Gendered Peacekeeping Economies in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Universitetet i Oslo
Universitetet i Oslo
Doctoral dissertation
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2011)
Women’s participation in UN peacekeeping operations: agents of change or stranded symbols?.
NOREF
Report
-
Bjørkhaug, Ingunn;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Bøås, Morten.
(2010)
Mapping and assessment of national, bilateral and multilateral actors’ support to work against sexual based violence in the Great Lakes region in Africa.
NORAD
Report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie;
Nikolić-Ristanović, Vesna.
(2009)
UN peacekeeping economies and local sex industries: connections and implications.
University of Sussex
Report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
Seeing DDR from below: Challenges and dilemmas raised by the experiences of ex-combatants in Liberia.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2008)
Protecting Whom?: Approaches to sexual exploitation and abuse in UN peacekeeping operations.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
-
Bjørkhaug, Ingunn;
Bøås, Morten;
Hatløy, Anne;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2007)
Returning to uncertainty? Addressing vulnerabilities in Northern Uganda.
United Nations Develoment Program
Report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2007)
The War Zone as Social Space: Social Research in Conflict Zones.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2006)
Armed Services: Regulating the Private Military Industry.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
-
Taylor, Mark Beaumont;
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2005)
In Search of Strategy: An Agenda for Applied Research on Transitions from Conflict.
Fafo
Fafo
Report
PRODUKT
-
Jennings, Kathleen Marie.
(2017)
Intro to SEA.
Digital learning tools
Teaching
Courses
Knowledge Transfer
2024
-
Academic lectureJennings, Kathleen Marie. (2024) We defend ourselves against all threats: Toxic gendered cultures of exceptionality and mundanity in the Norwegian armed forces. International Studies Association International Studies Association annual conference , San Francisco 2024-04-03 - 2024-04-06
2023
-
LectureKjelsberg, Ronny; Talmo, Tord Mjøsund; Jennings, Kathleen Marie; Masood, Anum. (2023) Temporary Work in Academia: Toward a labor theory of pedagogy . NTNU/Dept. of Sociology and Political Science Open panel discussion: Temporary Work in Akademia , NTNU Dragvoll 2023-01-13 - 2023-01-13
-
Academic lectureJennings, Kathleen Marie. (2023) 'We defend ourselves against all threats’: The Norwegian Armed Forces as an arena of inclusion and exclusion. NEON NEON Annual Conference , Trondheim 2023-11-23 - 2023-11-24
2019
-
LectureJennings, Kathleen. (2019) Peacekeeping Economies and Women, Peace and Security. PRIO Book lauch for the Oxford Handbook of Women, Peace and Security , Oslo 2019-06-05 - 2019-06-05
2017
-
Academic lectureJennings, Kathleen Marie. (2017) A kinder, gentler military? Norwegian politicians’ discursive representations of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda. Universitetet i Oslo Kjønnsforskning NÅ , Oslo 2017-06-08 - 2017-06-09
2015
-
Academic lectureJennings, Kathleen Marie. (2015) Bypassing the local in the peacekeeping economies of Liberia and the DRC. UiO Nasjonal fagkonferanse i statsvitenskap , Oslo 2015-01-05 - 2015-01-07
-
Academic lectureJennings, Kathleen Marie. (2015) The peacekeeping economy as a site of local-international interaction. UiT The Arctic University of Norway Local Peace Processes in the Context of Global Governance , Tromsø 2015-01-22 - 2015-01-23