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Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited / Reissued 30 May 2017 with correction to department on title page. / Relations between China and Japan suffer under the "history issue", an inability to reconcile these nations' relative perspectives on past wartime events. With emphasis on China's construction of the history issue, this thesis analyzes when and why China calls particular attention to Japan's past aggression and the degree to which China's actions have impacted bilateral relations from 1972 to 2016. Using elements from collective memory, national identity, and balance of power theories, this thesis makes four main arguments. First, provocative Japanese behavior revives the collective memories of past trauma and provokes criticism of Japanese politics. Second, when China perceives threats from Japan, it highlights Japan's past atrocities and lack of contrition to contain Japan's ambitions or gain relative power. Third, when collective memory is the main driver in shaping relations, balance of power plays a more supporting role and vice versa. Last, the public's collective memory and the volatile activation of the public's genuine anti-Japanese sentiments were the strongest factors in explaining the downturn of relations. As the United States implements its security strategy in East Asia, understanding historical disputes and their implications on the security status of the region is crucial, as they will affect agreements with our allies. / Major, United States Marine Corps

Selynn Yan Ting Lim Abstract The thesis endeavours to use the concept of relative deprivation to explain and account for the reasons behind the various manifestations of political and religious tension in Indonesia. From the most recent series of bombings in Surabaya in 2018, to the conflicts in the Maluku Islands back in 1999, it is undeniable that Indonesia is not immune to extremist activities or religious- political conflicts. The involvement of Political Entrepreneurs (PEs), such as giving a frame to people's perceived grievances, drive sentiments of being deprived in relative to other groups. Such feelings are especially made salient with the influence of social media. At the same time, the Indonesian government's advocacy of the wasatiyyah concept, which means middle-path Islam, appears to be its most effective tool in countering the trend of extremism in the society. However, such an interpretation of Islam is potentially at odds with the "right" form of Islam as practiced by the Muslims in Saudi Arabia. Faced with increasing pressure from Islamic hardliners in the society, the Indonesian state ideology - Pancasila - is under much threat as people are gradually becoming disillusioned with it.

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This study carries forward the new institutional exploration of the legal environment of organizations by examining the dynamics of legalization in the Commonwealth of Virginia Grievance Program. It extends legalization research to the public administration and policy field by exploring and describing how the legal environment of complex, public organizations serve to transform--to legalize--social processes for resolving problems and disputes. This knowledge and insight will educate and empower public administrators to better manage the political, administrative, and institutional change normatively sanctioned by the downsizing, reinvention, and re-engineering government reform movement. A phenomenological or naturalistic inquiry perspective frames the research as a methodological philosophy or research mode that focuses on what people experience and how they interpret the world. Thirty-four key informants were interviewed Statewide from three primary groups: (1) Managers and supervisors, (2) Non-supervisory personnel and grievants, and (3) Administrative hearing officers appointed by the Virginia Supreme Court. As a means of triangulation multiple data-gathering techniques were used to investigate interview data. Other sources include direct observations, official documents, and archival records. The study employs Sitkin and Bies' (1994) new institutional conceptualization of legalization as an investigatory lens to examine and report the findings. Data analysis revealed that the legalization of internal dispute resolution (IDR) in the Commonwealth tends to result in the circumvention of immediate supervisors in the formal grievance process, thereby obviating their positional authority to resolve employee grievances in a nonadversarial way. In sum, data supports the legalization literature that indicates mimicking judicially legitimate procedure in the grievance process alters the way flexibility, trust, and shared meanings govern the essence of organizational relationships and results in economic and systemic costs (loss of organizational trust and legitimacy) while resulting in little substantive justice. This study suggests that public organizations that are better adapted to their legal environments are not necessarily more effective. Thus, public administration theorists and practitioners should strive to understand how organizational forms, structural components, and legal rules (the institutional environment) transform organizational relationships (social and technical environments) in complex, public organizations. / Ph. D.

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited / Reissued 30 May 2017 with correction to degree on title page. / The thesis argues that the Maoist-led government in post-insurgency Nepal has failed to deliver on the promises of reform that brought it to power. The long-enduring social and economic grievances based on the Nepali Hindu social structure persist. Starting in 1996, the Maoists successfully capitalized on such grievances, and with the promise of radical reforms, led a decade-long successful insurgency. A political negotiation incorporating major Maoist demands ended the insurgency in 2006. The electoral victory right after the end of the insurgency provided the Maoists with the mandate and opportunity to reform traditional socio-economic and political structure. Unfortunately, the post-2006 period is seeing an emergence of political instability akin to the post-1991 era. This thesis examines the state of reforms in post-insurgency Nepal to identify the gaps between the promises made and the reforms implemented that are causing ongoing grievances. The thesis also highlights the importance of the coalition culture in producing political stability to eliminate persistent grievances and implement reforms for the future stability of Nepal. / Lieutenant Colonel, Nepalese Army

This study surveys the issue of military coups in Nigerian politics. An attempt is made to explain the causes of coups d'etat. To this end, Thompson's thesis of military grievances has been rigorously employed to explain the occurrences of military coups in Nigeria. The Thompson thesis asserts that coups occur because the military is aggrieved. A study of the opinions of expert observers familiar with Nigerian politics confirmed that four out of the six military coups occurred due to problems emanating from the Nigerian military establishment. Although military grievances such as its political positions, resource bases, ethnicity, and factions within the military caused most coups, there is sufficient evidence that societal factors like economic crises, election decisions, and the need for reforms also encouraged the military to overthrow governments in Nigeria.

Studies of terrorism have explored a number of factors thought to drive the phenomenon. Authors often tie socioeconomic development to reducing terrorism. Among structural explanations of terrorism, however, authors generally neglect the effect of gender inequality, though studies show that gender inequality increases the risk of international and civil conflict. Therefore I explore the impact of gender inequality in important socioeconomic issues on terrorism for 143 countries from 1998-2009. I argue that socioeconomic gender inequality reflects poor state capacity, resulting in grievances that contribute to domestic non-suicide and suicide terrorism. I study gender inequality in the areas of education, labor participation, and life expectancy. Results indicate that education and life expectancy inequality increase the risk of terrorism, while labor inequality is unrelated. While the time frame and data used in this study limit generalizability, results indicate that states should provide socioeconomic gender parity to reduce the risk of domestic terrorism.

The unemployed workers movement in Argentina (also known as the piqueteros) emerged during the mid 1990s, as a response to the increasing poverty and unemployment produced by the economic reforms implemented by the national government. Its extraordinary growth and leading role in the protests of 2001-2002 led many scholars to believe that it would become an enduring aspect of Argentina’s politics. However, after 2002, the movement entered a period of decline, which was reflected in the loss of members, support, and public influence. In this paper, I study the trajectory of this movement in order to advance certain arguments regarding the relation between grievances and collective action. I will argue that a key factor behind the decline of the movement was the amelioration of the main grievance which gave it rise. The emergence and consolidation of the piqueteros coincided with a period of increasing unemployment. However, after 2002, Argentina’s economy entered a phase of intense growth which significantly improved labor market conditions. The new scenario deeply affected the movement’s influence. Therefore, the study of the piqueteros can provide significant insight about social movement theory. In particular, it suggests that the relation between grievances and collective action is more direct than what the resource mobilization and political process approaches predict. In other words, the case of the piqueteros shows that grievances matter: although several factors may mediate between them and collective action, their effect is never negligible. In addition, this paper addresses a more “empirical” gap. Although there is an increasing body of literature about the decline of the piquetero movement, most studies focus on political variables and neglect the potential role played by the reduction in unemployment. In other words, in exploring the causes of this downfall, authors usually center on the emergence of a new government in 2003, the divisions between different organizations, and the loss of legitimacy among other sectors of society. By focusing on an alternative explanation, I expect to contribute to the understanding of this movement. / text

The existing grievance literature has tended to focus on employee decisions concerning dispute action in light of Hirschman’s (1970) ‘loyalty voice exit’ (LVE) model. The present research sought to take an alternative approach by exploring the processes associated with grievances and disputes, through following a series of cases covering both employer and employee perspectives of the same dispute. The cases involved individual-level disputes where the parties were still in an ongoing employment relationship at the time that they accessed the mediation services of the government employment agency. The research process involved observing the mediation sessions and then conducting follow-up interviews with all the individuals associated with each case, including the employer and employee, along with union advocates, legal representatives, and mediators resulting in a total of 70 interviews. The findings covered a range of areas which combined to form a new model which reframed the dispute process as a series of choices, events and stages, rather than the single-choice perspective of much existing literature. The model centres upon three core constructs. The first of these is the Dispute Type, which refers to the nature or substance of the dispute, and identifies three distinct types each of which have their own dynamics and progression, with a significant predetermining effect on the course of employment disputes. The second construct, Power, concerns the relative power of the parties, with a party’s overall power comprising of individual, organisational, and external levels. The series of dispute actions were also found to be driven by power-related dynamics, and this produces a model that both builds upon and also extends, existing models of power in the negotiation literature (Lawler, 1992; Kim et al., 2005). Finally the third construct, Interaction Type, draws on Pruitt and Kim’s (2004) dual concern model, to explore the combined interaction of the strategies and tactics utilised by each side in a dispute sequence. Extending this model into employment dispute situations, the research identifies dynamics which can lead to major escalation of disputes, precluding opportunities for resolution. The research has significant implications for organisations in their management of individual-level employee disputes, as well as for parties such unions and other representatives who are reframed as agents with the potential to increase or reduce the power of parties.