UCLA

This essay grows out of the author’s ongoing research examining issues of affect and agency as these relate to archives and recordkeeping during the post-conflict recovery and political and economic transitions occurring in countries that emerged since 1991 out of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY). Specifically, since archivists in the countries play a key role in securing and providing access to records that are essential to individual, community and national recovery and transition, it contemplates possible relationships between affect and individual agency relevant to understanding their personal and professional situations. The essay also provides a synopsis of selective disciplinary literature addressing aspects of affect associated with individual experiences, memory and actions in war and post-conflict contexts. In so doing, it identifies several potentially relevant strands for further qualitative investigation of affect and its relationship to agency in the context of the individual archivist: the role of narrative, the need to integrate the social and the cultural, listening for meaningful silences, the importance of social support, the affect of place, coping mechanisms, and disenchantment with the state. The essay concludes with a brief commentary on how identifying the dimensions of affect and its relationship to agency through research such as this is an important component of understanding what professional actions, ethics and practices might be most appropriate and effective in post-conflict recovery and reconciliation, not only in these countries but also in other regions that have experienced similar extensive or recurring conflicts, especially when coupled with major political and economic transitions.