Institutional Repository

U n i v e r s i t y of P e r a d e n i y a

The Institutional Repository of the University of Peradeniya is the University's digital gateway to scholarly knowledge and research excellence. Established as the next phase of the Digital Library initiative launched by the University Library in 2011, it preserves, showcases, and provides open access to the intellectual output of the University community.

Through a rich collection of research articles, conference proceedings, theses, dissertations, and other scholarly works, the repository enhances the visibility, accessibility, and long-term preservation of knowledge, extending the global reach and impact of the University of Peradeniya’s academic and research contributions.

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A sociological study of the use of vocational training skills of retired soldiers in the post-war development and reconstruction in Sri Lanka
(University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, 2023-09-20) Gnanaratne, A.K.A.S.; Abeyrathne, R.M.
The Security forces can be described as a workforce that goes beyond the role of ensuring national security and contributes to the development and reconstruction process of the country. They are equipped with a variety of vocational training courses to satisfy the needs of the army. The main purpose of this study was to examine how such professional knowledge and skills can contribute to the development of the country and the current application of the vocational training skills they have mastered in the army to develop and rebuild the country effectively. The conceptual framework was developed according to qualitative research methodology, and data obtained from case studies and interviews are analyzed by using thematic analysis. Factors influencing early retirement include a lack of understanding of benefits, delays in promotions and training opportunities and not having enough time to spend with family. They do not have a satisfactory attitude towards the retirement guidance they received from the army. In this sense the majority of people are employed in temporary jobs and some are successful in post-retirement life. It is also evident that the social status and prestige gained in society while serving as a war hero have deteriorated. Although the government implements programs, they are not aware of them. Barriers to the utilization of training include a lack of a system to identify the professional skills of retired soldiers, a lack of exploration of opportunities in the civil and private sectors and politicization of services. The findings of the study further show that entrepreneurship training for all retired soldiers, streamlining existing mechanisms, creating new mechanisms and setting up a separate unit for retirees and adapting them to civil society, private and non- governmental contributions, and training courses can be identified as potential means to improve the current situation.
Contribution of meaning and purpose in life to achieving psychological well-being
(University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, 2023-09-20) Hettiarachchi, M.
Psychological wellbeing is a crucial aspect that significantly impacts on the quality of life of an individual. When mental health is compromised, it affects thinking, behaviour and interactions. Sound mental health allows us to think critically, make informed decisions, cope with stress, act responsibly, and build meaningful relationships. An increasing number of organizations focus on mental wellbeing to minimize stress and enhance productivity in the workplace. Parents and educators often focus on emotional wellbeing of young people with a view to increasing resilience and resolve. Youth are at the apex of vulnerability as they are in the process of building an identity “who am I”, searching for role models, attempting to find meaning and purpose in life, keen to individuate from the influence of parents and educators. Youth tend to be impulsive, binary, seeking significance to be relevant, which increases their vulnerability, often falling prey to substance misuse, violent extremist groups and gangs, and mental health problems.
Economic crisis, poverty and social protection in Sri Lanka
(University of Peradeniya, 2023-09-20) Gunatilake, H.M.
The economic crisis has resulted in an erosion of most of the gains by Sri Lanka on the front of poverty reduction. Poverty incidence has increased from about 4% to 26% as per the World Bank Estimations. The most recent LIRNEasia estimate shows that poverty has further increased and that about 7 million people now live below the poverty line. Looking after the poor and helping the newly added poor to survive and become economically productive again is an enormous task that is ahead of Sri Lankan society. The huge need for resources in order to manage one-third of the population that is in poverty, especially in the middle of an unprecedented debt burden, underscores the gravity of the problem. The paper argues that putting the economy back to a higher trajectory of growth is the key to poverty alleviation. It highlights the importance of striking a proper balance between economic stabilization and structural reforms following a consultative process and ensuring economic justice in steering economic recovery.
Crisis, IMF and social cleavages
(University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, 2023-09-20) Kadirgamar, A.
Sri Lanka is going through a devastating crisis of economic, social and political proportions. While the solution to the crisis is supposedly grounded in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) program of March 2023, the consequences of this policy trajectory have raised new questions about both the path of economic recovery and new social cleavages. What becomes of past attempts to address the concerns of women, working people, minorities and oppressed caste communities, excluded and oppressed by economic, social and political structures consolidated from colonial times into our post-colonial future? How will new social cleavages manifest themselves amidst the current conjuncture of the IMF solution taken forward by an authoritarian regime? This paper addresses the dangers of further polarization with a push towards an authoritarian neoliberal fix undermining decade of progressive struggles and engagement towards democratizing society. The tremendous austerity to address the “debt crisis” will not only undermine social welfare but also reshape ideas of co-existence, devolution and power-sharing. This paper drawing on political economic analysis of the ongoing debt restructuring process addresses the risks of restructuring the state itself during an economic depression. It delves into the far-reaching consequences of such restructuring producing new forms of social cleavages, including the reconfiguration of gender, class, ethnic and caste relations. The paper analyses the economic changes in Sri Lanka amidst contestation between autocratic rule and democratic struggles and articulates ideas of equality and freedom during this time of crisis.
Resisting academic hegemonies in knowledge production and dissemination
(University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, 2023-09-20) Mendis, D.
Global knowledge production is similar to colonialism in that the voices of scholars from the periphery (i.e., the global South) are more often than not subjected to linguistic and epistemic exclusion. Linguistic exclusion results from the hegemony of English as the language of international scholarship which places anyone not publishing in English at an immediate disadvantage. Epistemic exclusion takes many forms. The positions of privilege and power held by institutions of the global North, the intense competition to publish one’s research in international spaces, and the transformation of knowledge into a commodity subject to quantification by abstract metrics, have placed peripheral scholars in positions of vulnerability, exploitation and subjugation. In addition, the control exercised by so-called high impact publishers through a network of “academic buddies” on the dissemination of knowledge has made scholarly imperialism a very real threat to knowledge production in the global South. As a peripheral scholar, I argue that we have a responsibility to recognize and resist forces of academic hegemony. We need to question who has the right to produce ‘new’ knowledge in local spaces; whose voices are heard in the dissemination of knowledge; and whether equitable access to knowledge is available. It is only when these questions receive satisfactory answers that the responsibility of ethics and care can be ensured in knowledge production, and peripheral cultures, people and scholars can be safeguarded from exploitation and misrepresentation.