Advances in Social Sciences and Management

Cultural Prescribing in Greek Hospitals and the Role of Modern Hospital Libraries

Eleni Semertzidou — 2026-07-23

Proportionality and Constitutional Governance in Malaysia: From Rights Protection to Institutional Balance

Noor Farihah Mohd Noor — 2026-08-28

This article examines the relationship between good governance, constitutional rights and judicial review in Malaysia through the development of the proportionality doctrine. It traces five waves of Malaysian proportionality jurisprudence: the emergence of proportionality in the first and second waves; judicial inconsistency and retreat in the third; its rehabilitation by the Federal Court in the fourth; and renewed efforts to strengthen meaningful rights review in the fifth. The article argues that this uneven development reflects a broader tension between protecting fundamental freedoms and preserving the legitimate institutional authority of elected government to pursue public-interest objectives. Through doctrinal analysis of the Federal Constitution, Malaysian case law and principles of constitutional and administrative law, the article evaluates whether proportionality can provide an appropriate framework for reconciling individual rights with effective governance, democratic accountability and institutional competence. It contends that good governance requires fundamental freedoms to be meaningfully protected without unduly restricting the State’s ability to pursue legitimate and pressing public objectives. Judicial intervention remains proportionate, while fundamental freedoms are protected subject only to restrictions that are justified by legitimate public objectives.

Scientific Method, the Neglected Reference in Peer Reviewing

D. A. Siqueiros Beltrones — 2026-08-26

Peer review of manuscripts submitted for eventual publication in scientific journals has been established for several centuries. It constitutes a mandatory requirement for the edition of scientific results. However, despite the plausible efforts by appointed reviewers/referees it is far from flawless. Disagreements between the parts may or may not be surmountable in terms of intersubjectivity. But besides this there is a neglected reference that, given the scientific nature of the material involved, should never be set aside, scientific method. Instead, the term scientific rigor is often used, which does play a part within the former, but it is not synonymous with it. Scientific method implies both logic and non-logical ways of thinking, amalgamating inferential techniques with creativity and ingenuity. Thus, an eductive process for raising an original question or scientific problem is further systematized by abduction of hypothesis that predicts a logical solution to it based on the supporting theory. Questioning methodology in a scientific report should abide by the pursued objective, i.e., answering the original question, and the soundness of the (logically) abducted hypothesis, both of which should be implied in the respective title. All these are structural elements of scientific method. However, reviewers frequently bypass these structural components which may validate a certain study, whilst focusing on flaws and imposing subjective (stablished) ideas that often tend to replace the original objective. This scenario is illustrated with actual interactive examples of peer reviewing cases that show a contrast between the author´s position resorting to scientific method vs. referee´s arguments that do not. Despite the specialized nature of said examples (ecology of diatoms) the central problem is discussed in terms of philosophical bases of science and scientific method that are extensive to most fields of knowledge.

Perfect Storm Impeding Strategic Leadership Decision-making at UC Berkeley

John Kraft — 2026-08-24

Exogenous events have disrupted higher education and impacted the decision-making skills of university presidents. While all university presidents are affected, the problem is most acute at the thirty-six AAU members of the power four conferences. The exogenous events were the precipitous cancellation of federal research grants, the on again and off again restrictions on both new and current foreign students studying at US universities, the proposed 15% limit on indirect costs, the tax on university endowments, the changes in student loan programs, the annual $20.5 million NIL revenue sharing settlement for Division I (DI) athletes, and their share of the $2.276 billion Name Image Likeness (NIL) settlement payable to athletes for prior years (2016 to July 1, 2025). These events will challenge the strategic leadership of the University of California -Berkeley.

Beyond Market Euphoria: Innovation, Social Progress, and the Search for Shared Development

Giovanni Antonio Cossiga — 2026-08-24

Market euphoria is usually interpreted as a speculative phenomenon: a bet on the potential of securities, on the strategies of economic elites, and on expectations of return. This reading, however, does not exhaust the meaning of stock-market movements, especially when they are observed over the medium and long term. Prices can in fact act as anticipatory sensors of the underlying economy, registering technological, productive, and social transformations before they become fully visible in the real economy. After the financial crisis of 2008–2010, the persistent growth of stock indices, not always justified by the immediate data of the real economy, may be interpreted as the reflection of deeper transformations. On the one hand, it accompanies the productive rebalancing brought about by industrial relocation toward Asia; on the other, it anticipates the new phase of investment and expectations linked to artificial intelligence. In this transition, finance, industrial reorganization, and technological innovation appear as distinct yet interconnected moments of the same historical transformation. The article therefore proposes moving beyond the immediate opposition between speculation and economic rationality. Financial euphoria should neither be celebrated nor taken as certain proof of the future but rather examined for its possible informational value: it may signal, imperfectly and at times confusingly, the collective perception of an ongoing change. From this perspective, artificial intelligence does not represent merely a new investment sector, but a possible lever of social transformation. If guided by cooperative and public objectives, it could reduce the costs of access not only to knowledge and services, but also to the material conditions that make a dignified life possible. The most concrete test of this possibility lies in the sphere of the production and distribution of goods necessary for life. In particular, increasing agricultural productivity, if accompanied by a more rational use of water, energy, and natural resources, may show whether technological innovation is capable of moving beyond the sole logic of profit and contributing to food security, the protection of ecosystems, and the survival of living beings. This gives rise to the concluding issue of the reflection: innovation, and artificial intelligence in particular, cannot be entrusted solely to competition among large corporations, states, and markets; rather, it must be oriented toward more cooperative management, capable of transforming technological progress into social progress and opening the way to genuinely shared development.

The Implications of ICT Solutions for the South African National Health Insurance: A Systematic Literature Review

Phathutshedzo Makovhololo — 2026-08-22

South Africa’s National Health Insurance (NHI) depends on the effective use of information and communication technology (ICT) to support universal health coverage through patient identification, provider accreditation, claims processing, service portability, monitoring, and accountability. However, evidence on the role of ICT in NHI implementation remains fragmented, particularly regarding governance, interoperability, workforce adoption, language inclusion, and public trust. This paper presents a systematic literature review of peer-reviewed and grey literature published between 2015 and 2025, guided by the PRISMA 2020 approach. The review synthesised evidence from South African and comparable low- and middle-income country contexts to examine the benefits, barriers, and implementation requirements of ICT for NHI. The findings show that ICT can improve service delivery, reduce duplicate patient records, strengthen claims administration, enable population health monitoring, and support fraud detection. At the same time, progress is constrained by fragmented electronic health record systems, limited infrastructure in primary healthcare facilities, skills shortages, clinician resistance, cybersecurity risks, regulatory uncertainty, and the exclusionary effects of English-dominant digital health systems in a multilingual society. In response, the paper develops a five-pillar ICT-NHI Implementation Framework consisting of adaptive governance and legal-technical coherence, resilient architecture and shared infrastructure, socio-technical workforce and workflow integration, multilingual semantic and pragmatic interoperability, and trust infrastructure and algorithmic accountability. The paper argues that these pillars must be implemented as an interdependent system rather than as separate components, with governance and trust prioritised because they create the conditions for infrastructure, workforce adoption, language inclusion, and algorithmic accountability to function effectively. The study concludes that ICT can enable a more equitable, efficient, and citizen-centred NHI only if digitalisation is treated as a socio-technical, multilingual, and governance-led reform rather than a narrow technology procurement exercise.

The Theory of Planned Behaviour in Quality Management: A Systematic Literature Review of Compliance, Adoption and Managerial Implementation

Trina Šarić — 2026-08-22

This study systematically reviews applications of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) to quality-management and quality-related organisational practices. A Scopus search covering 2016–2026 identified 42 records, of which 11 empirical studies met the eligibility criteria and were included in thematic synthesis. The evidence clusters around three forms of behaviour: compliance with quality requirements, adoption and participation in quality practices, and managerial implementation. Perceived behavioural control is especially salient because quality-related behaviour depends not only on individual capability but also on resources, authority and organisational support. The review further shows that manager-, supervisor- and owner-focused studies remain limited and that actual implementation is measured less frequently than behavioural intention. The findings support extending TPB research from individual compliance toward managerial implementation and the intention–implementation gap in quality management.

Managing Belonging through Language: Organizational Communication, Youth Engagement, and Congregational Vitality in African Diaspora Churches

Ransford Kwabena Awuku-Gyampoh — 2026-08-06

Purpose: This article develops an interdisciplinary account of how language functions as a management resource in African diaspora churches. It examines how organizational communication, multilingual practice, youth engagement and congregational vitality converge around the problem of belonging. Design/methodology/approach: The manuscript adopts an integrative conceptual review, bringing applied linguistics and language-policy scholarship into conversation with organizational communication, African diaspora studies, digital religion, youth ministry, practical theology and church-management research. It does not report human-participant data; therefore, no interview findings or statistical claims are presented. Findings: The review indicates that relevant scholarship remains divided into parallel conversations. Sociolinguistic studies illuminate heritage-language maintenance, language ideologies and diasporic identity, but often stop short of analyzing language as an administrative capability. Church-management and congregational-vitality research identifies governance, leadership, participation and adaptation as important, yet frequently treats communication as a neutral channel rather than a constitutive practice. Youth and digital-religion studies demonstrate that younger members negotiate faith through hybrid linguistic and media repertoires, but the organizational consequences of those repertoires remain under-theorized. Originality/value: The article advances the concept of language-mediated congregational belonging: the process through which language choices, translation arrangements, registers, communication channels and opportunities for voice shape whether members understand, recognize themselves in and participate meaningfully in congregational life. It develops a Language-Mediated Congregational Belonging (LMCB) Framework and six propositions for future empirical testing and administrative application. The paper contributes to linguistics by treating the congregation as a language-policy domain, to management by identifying communication as an organizational capability, and to practical theology by relating inclusive communication to participation, intergenerational continuity and ecclesial vitality.

Financing Autonomy: Financial Position, Revenue Diversification, and Performance Accountability in African Research Universities

Ann-Marie Waterman — 2026-08-01

This article argues that financing autonomy—the financial capacity, revenue flexibility, and institutional discipline required to act strategically—is the underexamined core of higher education reform in Africa. Although autonomy is often defined legally or administratively, its practical exercise depends on whether universities possess the financial architecture needed to make consequential decisions. Ethiopia’s University Autonomy Proclamation No. 1294/2023 and the designation of Addis Ababa University (AAU) as the country’s first autonomous public university provide a timely case for examining this issue. Drawing on prior research on financial vulnerability and tuition discounting among private Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), the article reframes autonomy as a financial design problem rather than a legal end state. Using Resource Dependence Theory and Complex Adaptive Systems Theory, it connects institutional behavior to patterns of funding dependence, revenue concentration, accountability pressures, and operating capacity. The article develops the concept of designed financial autonomy to explain how universities can exercise meaningful discretion while preserving public purpose, equity commitments, and performance accountability. It concludes that autonomy without financial architecture remains symbolic, while revenue diversification without mission safeguards risks inequity, mission drift, and uneven institutional quality.

When Does Physical Presence Matter? Relational Sufficiency Theory for Digital and Hybrid Leadership Mentoring

Ransford Kwabena Awuku-Gyampoh — 2026-07-30

Digital and hybrid mentoring are now routine components of leadership development, yet research and practice commonly treat delivery mode as though it were the developmental mechanism. This produces a blunt question: Is digital or hybrid mentoring better? We replace that comparison with relational sufficiency theory. The theory proposes that mentoring supports leader development when four functions reach contextually adequate levels: epistemic access, reciprocal attention, contextualized feedback, and accountable enactment. Physical presence can strengthen these functions, but it is neither necessary nor uniformly advantageous. Its marginal value depends on task embodiment and tacitness, relationship phase and rupture, power, cultural distance, and access conditions. By integrating mentoring, computer-mediated communication, psychological safety, and leader-development research, the article develops seven falsifiable propositions and a multilevel research agenda. The framework shifts evaluation from satisfaction and mode labels to observable behavior, fidelity, mechanisms, and transfer. For human resource development, the implication is practical and theoretical: design the relational architecture first, then select the least burdensome combination of media capable of meeting the required developmental threshold.

From Artificial Intelligence to Augmented Understanding: Applied Curiosity as a Social and Managerial Architecture for the NEXT? Generation

Colin G Benjamin — 2026-07-28

Artificial intelligence is usually framed as a progressively more capable system for prediction, classification, generation and automation. This article argues that capability and computational capacity alone is an inadequate criterion for the next generation of human–machine systems. In other words, Artificial Intelligence is the last frontier, and the NEXT? one. The more consequential transition is from artificial intelligence (AI) to augmented understanding (AU): from systems that produce plausible outputs to arrangements that enlarge the capacity of people and institutions to encounter uncertainty, test impossibility, construct meaning and act with others. The article develops applied curiosity as the governing architecture for that transition. Applied curiosity is defined not as a personality trait or episodic desire for information, but as a disciplined social practice that opens the possibility of a complete exploration of Chances, and discrimination of Choices and an authorisation of Changes (cCC*) across four transitional movements of Belonging, Becoming, Bridging and Building. The framework integrates dialogical inquiry, personal construct theory, living-systems analysis, global-workspace perspectives, Peircean inquiry, fast–slow judgement and an R1–R16 transitional register. It distinguishes an LLM-based decision-support system from an AU relationship in which stakeholders retain authorship, contestability and responsibility. Sixteen research propositions and a practical design protocol are offered for organisational strategy, public narrative, stakeholder engagement and reflective governance. The central claim is that the NEXT? generation should not be defined by a larger model, a more autonomous agent or a more persuasive simulation of intelligence as a truer articulation of applied knowledge. It should be defined by whether human and institutional participants can achieve MORE: Meaning, Options, Relationships and Expression.

The Prospect of a Third World War: Analysis of Trump Interventionism and the Emerging New World Order

J O Odama — 2026-07-13

This paper examines whether contemporary United States foreign policy under President Donald Trump increases the probability of a third world war, analysing the interventionist dimensions of the "America First" doctrine and its implications for the emerging global order. Drawing on primary documents including the 2025 National Security Strategy, scholarly analyses from international relations journals, and contemporaneous reporting on diplomatic and military actions, the study identifies four mechanisms through which Trump-era foreign policy potentially escalates systemic risk: the dismantling of multilateral constraints on the use of force, the substitution of transactional coercion for rules-based diplomacy, the redefinition of spheres of influence through threatened or actual military intervention and the erosion of alliance reliability that undermines deterrence. The analysis reveals a paradoxical condition: an administration that rhetorically prioritises peace and non-entanglement has simultaneously engaged in unilateral military actions (Venezuela, Nigeria), threatened force against NATO allies (Denmark/Greenland), pursued peace plans which critics characterise as capitulation to revisionist powers (Ukraine), and abandoned arms control frameworks. The paper concludes that while direct great-power war remains improbable, the systematic dismantling of institutional guardrails combined with miscalculation risks inherent in transactional foreign policy, elevates the probability of cascading conflicts that could draw major powers into confrontation. The emerging "new world order" is characterised not by balance or concert but by managed fragmentation, with the United States repositioning as a hemispheric power while delegating European security to European actors and competing with China primarily through economic instruments.

Design and Implementation of Project-Based PAD Teaching Activities for Enhancing Digital Career Awareness: A Case Study of Junior High School Information Technology Curriculum

Heyu Wu — 2026-08-15

In the digital age, enhancing junior high school students’ digital career awareness is of great significance for them to understand and prepare for future careers. Grounded in constructivism, humanism, and Super’s career development theory, this study integrates project-based learning with the PAD (Presentation–Assimilation–Discussion) class to construct a five-stage instructional activity framework: project introduction, compact lecture with deliberate blanks, internalization and assimilation, discussion and exchange, and feedback and adjustment. Using literature review, action research, questionnaires, interviews, and classroom observations, the study investigated the current state of students’ digital career awareness and conducted three rounds of teaching practice for iterative optimization. The findings indicate significant improvements in students’ general digital career awareness, relevant professional knowledge, awareness of the relationship between self and career, career planning ability, and interest in information technology. Although the awareness of social development trends in career contexts did not reach statistical significance, interviews and artifact analysis revealed positive cognitive changes in students’ areas of interest within digital careers. This study provides an actionable instructional framework and practical reference for digital career awareness education in primary and secondary schools.

The Philosophy of Global Artificial Intelligence Governance: A Deceptive Illusion?

Karaman Zerrin Toprak — 2026-07-24

Although the rights-based emphasis, which is included in countries’ sustainable development goals (Rio, 1992) and is a defining feature of the 21st century, has been taken into account at global summits, it must be redefined and reviewed due to the transformations brought about by technological developments. The administrative approach of the 1990s advocated for community-centered governance rather than administration-centered governance, envisioning a shift from a “command-and-control” mindset to an “incentive-based” one; however, to what extent does this slogan retain its validity in the face of today’s technological advancements? ‘Public safety,’ one of the state’s core functions and a fundamental reflex of its structure, is one of the key areas that must be renewed in conjunction with artificial intelligence applications. The themes of ‘Security for Artificial Intelligence’ and ‘Artificial Intelligence for Security’ require shared principles and practices, much like the still-maturing field of cybersecurity. When it comes to security, the extent to which solidarity based on a partnership between the public sector, the private sector, and civil society can be realized in practice becomes increasingly important. In this article examines the feasibility of the risk-based “Brussels Effect” within the EU framework, which has the potential to spread to other countries under its influence. A methodological analysis evaluates the extent to which algorithmic global governance can be achieved in this conflict-ridden world order. This includes contrasting China’s rules designed to safeguard its own information flow with the flexible, sector-specific, and self-interested framework explicitly adopted by the U.S. in its strategic documents, alongside the potential for AI exploitation. Furthermore, within the context of the AI system’s “black box” nature, namely its lack of transparency, the practical validity of compromise solutions that could be developed based on ethical guidelines and the predictability of sanctions will be academically examined. Finally, Türkiye’s situation will be addressed: setting aside its expectations for full EU membership, Türkiye’s systemic position, as a long-standing member of the Council of Europe (founded in 1949) since 1950 and as one of the 20 founding members of the 38-member OECD, will be evaluated in terms of legal regulations and at the theoretical level.

Latin Quarter Broken Down or on the Eve of these Torments

Salomon Bissohong — 2026-07-18

Kaélé, the administrative centre of the Mayo-Kani Department in Cameroon’s Far North Region, faces a striking shortfall in its future human resources. Upon objective examination of the potential factors behind this situation, local families—and, more broadly speaking, the wider community—are one of the causes. Reversing this fate—which stands in stark contrast to the former glory achieved by their forebears in areas such as education, the economy, industry and technocracy, amongst others—contrasts sharply with the attitudes expressed by young people today. The glorious achievements of their elders, when brought to light, remain the very factors behind the transformation of the name Kaélé into that of the ‘Latin Quarter ’. Indeed, families must obviously strive to uphold these gold standards in order to combat the underdevelopment that looms over the neighbourhood. Harold Garfinkel’s ethnomethodology lends this endeavour its scientific vitality. The study confirms that ‘families of yesterday and today’ contribute, through untransmitted variables, to a probable decline. That they no longer foster sufficient intellectual, technical and cognitive skills. Quite apart from the much-discussed marital trends, new parents no longer seek to enlighten their children. The new division of labour assigns to spouses in Kaélé – as much as to those in similarly structured African communities – a degree of underperformance.

The Disgrace of the Pseudo-black African Elite in the Context of a Unique Opportunity for Development Through Oil

Salomon Bissohong — 2026-07-18

Studies evaluating extractive projects often fail to examine the contribution of local communities and their elites to the goal of raising living standards. The result is generally a severe blow to the ideal of having even the slightest certainty that the predicted economic trajectory can be positively altered. The reasoning of these direct beneficiaries, which is quickly dismissed as platitudes – not merely to gloss over them – distorts our understanding of the countless failures observed. It appears that the elites in Dumpla, in the broadest sense, have not worked particularly effectively to fulfil the commitment outlined by the World Bank: that of reducing their poverty through the Chad-Cameroon oil project. Observation, interviews and documentary research, amongst other methods, were employed. Two objectives were achieved. The first highlights the capacity of development sociology to shed light on the actions of actors beyond reproach. The second enables the formulation of a collaborative approach that gives a voice to the exploited communities. Harold Garfinkel’s ethnomethodology provides the theoretical framework for this research. Three expected outcomes were identified, namely: manifestations of ill will, abuse of authority, and a lack of patriotism and civic-mindedness.

The Impact of the Management Control Systems Package on Organizational Performance: Evidence from the Banking Sector of Bangladesh

Proshanta Kumar Podder — 2026-07-20

The purpose of the study is to observe the effect of Integrated Management Control Systems (MCS) packages on organizational performance of banking sector in Bangladesh, where entrepreneurial competency is considered mediator and business strategy is considered moderator.

Design/methodology/approach: A mixed-method convergent design was employed, combining a quantitative cross-sectional survey (85-item questionnaire, N=40 mid-to-senior bank managers) with 20 semi-structured interviews of senior banking and Bangladesh Bank executives. Hypothesis testing involved using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) while qualitative data was analyzed by using thematic analysis with NVivo.

Findings: The 68% explanation of variance in entrepreneurial competency and the 61% in organizational performance from the MCS package. The most important drivers score the highest beta values, which are 0.41 for Cybernetic Control and 0.35 for Planning Control. The relationship between MCS and performance is mediated completely by entrepreneurial competency, and entrepreneurial competency accounts for 63-67% of the overall indirect effects. Differentiation strategy has a particularly strong effect on the relationship between competency and performance (β=0.25) with no significant moderation. Private commercial banks have outperformed state-owned banks by 0.80 points, as a result of their better cybernetic, planning, and reward controls.

Originality/value: This is one of the very first studies to validate the MCS-as-a-package framework within the banking context in Bangladesh and has extended the emerging-market MCS theory by simultaneously examining both mediation and moderation. It shows that the key performance factor in a financial environment is entrepreneurial competency and not compliance with regulations.

Educational Schizophrenia: Leadership for Today's School

Jose Manuel Salum Tome — 2026-07-15

Modern pedagogical leadership represents a profound transition from a traditionally administrative and authoritarian role into an articulating figure that serves as a facilitator of conditions . This contemporary approach demands a dynamic balance between technical rigor (curriculum mastery, data-driven decision-making, and regulatory compliance) and high human sensitivity (empathy, assertive communication, and conflict resolution) to mobilize the talent within school communities. To meet the demands of the 21st-century school system, leaders must fulfill specific legal, training, and socio-emotional competencies that enable them to build cultures of high trust and psychological safety . Among their critical functions, prominent highlights include fostering collaborative work through the establishment of Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) and, prioritized for immediate impact, optimizing advanced co-teaching models (such as parallel or team teaching) within heterogeneous classrooms. This relational and inclusive leadership aims to dismantle environmental barriers to guarantee the progress and learning of all students, effectively transforming bureaucracy into real opportunities for continuous professional development for the teaching staff.

The Educational and Cultural Events of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar and their Influence on the Personality of Senegalese Students Studying Russian Language

Ousseynou Tall — 2026-07-08

This article deals with the cultural and educational activities at the Faculty of Philology and Humanities that influence Senegalese students in Russian language and their personal qualities.

Why it's so Easy to Hypnotize, and why Hypnotizability has Persisted to this Day – An Experimental and Anthropological Answer

Edoardo Casiglia — 2026-07-03

The Other, Unexplored and Insidious Aspect of the ‘Oil Curse’ in Sub-Saharan Africa: A View from Doba in Chad

Salomon Bissohong — 2026-07-08

Whilst oil ranks among the most powerful resources for transforming economies and driving industrial, infrastructural and human development, its extraction via the Chad–Cameroon pipeline has led to unusual negative outcomes. In Doba, observation, life narratives, interviews and documentary research reveal the roots and tragic effects of the oil curse in sub-Saharan Africa. The article adopts an exploratory approach to examine the foundations of this dire situation, going beyond the usual observations. Drawing on Harold Garfinkel’s ethnomethodology, it identifies four key areas: the nature of the curses prevalent in Black Africa; their specific manifestations in Doba, Chad; the evolution of practices that have enabled their neutralisation; and an empirical approach aimed at normalising the management of oil revenues. The analysis shows that the curse is a social construct rooted in specific configurations of actors.

A Revenue Stream, Not a Refuge: The Universal Economics of Predation in Post-Gaddafi Libya

Shaul M. Gabbay — 2026-07-09

This paper argues that the absence of a functioning state in post-Gaddafi Libya has not produced indifference toward those who pass through or return to its territory but has instead produced a predatory economy that extracts value from anyone within reach, calibrated not to who a person is but to what that person has to offer. Drawing on United Nations, United States government, and investigative reporting from 2011 through early 2026, the paper identifies four currencies of extraction operating across Libya's fragmented territory: ransom, drawn from anyone with a reachable family member or asset abroad, whether a transiting migrant or a returning professional; forced labor and sexual exploitation, drawn from those with little else to offer; political leverage, drawn from anyone whose documented history of activism or dissent makes them useful to one armed faction or another; and communal liability, drawn from entire families, tribes, or towns associated with a marked individual. None of these currencies depends on the survival of any particular government, including Gaddafi's, because none of them is a function of state policy; each is a function of its absence. The paper concludes that no segment of Libya's population, and no Libyan returning from abroad regardless of class, profession, or political history, can be reliably certified safe under current conditions, since safety within this system would require the absence of anything an armed actor could plausibly extract, a condition that very few people meet.