Convención Interamericana contra el Terrorismo

The data from the CDN survey highlighted dynamics regarding both the constitution and conceptualisation of social relations by the respondents, as well as the way language related to these relationships. The findings can by separated into three categories. The first category contains the finding regarding the general appearance of CDNs; the second one contains the findings regarding language in general; and the third one those dealing with the way language is used in the different types of relationships that this survey differentiated.

CDNs in general

The first remarkable finding from the data set was the very large number of ties that the respondents reported for their CDNs. Compared to the data from the latest US GSS, networks were reported more than five times the size. Even compared to the data from the first CDN survey in 1985, or the similar survey done in 2003 in Japan (Boade & Ikeda, 2004), which both

42.5% 42.5% 2.5% 12.5% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

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reported slightly larger network sizes (Japan 2003: 2,64; USA 1985: 2,94), we find by far more confidants for each respondent. This difference was in parts the result of the way this survey was conducted, as the paper form used for the survey offered fifteen as the maximum number of confidants to be listed, thereby likely compelling some of the respondents to fill out the list completely. On the other hand, it might have restricted other respondents who were willing to list even more than fifteen people as part of their CDN. With half of the respondents listing exactly fifteen confidants, it can be assumed that this did have a significant effect on their way of answering this question and for a study focussing on this feature of CDNs, this issue needs to be accounted for. However, regardless of the methodical issue here, it is notable how easy it was for respondents to list people as part of their core networks.

The second notable result was that interethnic networks were not uncommon. More than a quarter of confidants listed in the participants’ networks were of a different ethnic identification than them. On the other hand, networks of friends tended to be relatively homogenous in terms of gender, which is the third observation to be made. Fourth, the participants were younger than the collective average age of their networks. One key reason for this trend of respondents having on average younger confidants was found within the family related ties. The younger respondents here usually included their elder generations like their father, mother, uncles, aunts and grandparents. On the other hand, the older participants included their children in their networks, leading to an average age among their confidants younger than they were. Fifth, most ties were classified as friendship and just slightly above a quarter of the network ties were of kin. On average, every respondent listed 3.7 friends as part of their core networks and classified 2.2 confidants as part of their family.48 _{In contrast to the survey from the USA and Japan} however, networks were also less likely to not include any family members. While thirty-eight percent of the reported networks from the GSS 2014 (USA) and twenty-five percent from the Japanese social survey features no family member, only fourteen percent of networks reported in this survey did not include any kin, as family connections appeared to be stronger than in the other surveyed regions. However, this survey did not inquire about the frequency of contact between respondents and their confidants, making it difficult to further explore this topic.

Languages in CDNs

The first finding regarding the general role of languages within these networks was the dominant role of Acholi and English. About eighty-six percent of all languages listed by the

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respondents were either one of those two. While the naming of Acholi as the most frequently listed language was to be expected in the biggest town of the Acholi region, the prominent role of English was somewhat surprising. Secondly, most participants connected just a single language to each of their ties. Only about a quarter listed multiple languages. However, only two of the participants listed just one language for all their confidants, showing that having multilingual relationships were not uncommon in these close networks. Thirdly, among languages listed in second or third position, English was most common with forty-three percent. It also was the second most common language among languages listed either alone or in first position with thirty-six percent. Kiswahili on the other hand, the second official language of Uganda, was only named three times overall. Of the two official languages, English was the only one having an important role within these networks, as the other languages listed were in general connected to the respondents and confidants ethnic background. Fourth, regarding the confidants age and their gender, the survey did not reveal significant tendencies. Due to the lack of participants from older generations and the underrepresentation of women in the survey, this observation should be taken with care. It was rather the case, that people without knowledge in English or a weaker educational background were less likely to participate in such a survey.

Languages in the different types of ties

Looking at the assignment of languages to the four types of ties, the first notable observation is that there was a clear pattern regarding the assignment of local or ethnic languages on one side and English on the other side. Whereas family or kin ties were usually associated with Acholi or another ethnic language, work-related ties were more likely to have English assigned as the language of interaction (fifty-eight percent opposed to seventeen percent in the family). With friendship and neighbourhood-related ties showing an almost even distribution percentage of listing English (forty-four percent and forty-two percent), these two cases certainly stood out. Secondly, among friends with different ethnic backgrounds, English was the language most likely to be listed, especially in relationships where the respondent was ethnic Acholi, but not the confidant. When both friends were ethnic Acholi, the tie was almost twice as likely assigned Acholi than English. The third observation is that multiplex ties were the most likely to have multiple languages assigned to them, meaning the more complex the social relationship between respondent and confidant, the more complex their mode of interaction was.

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