A conceptual unpacking of ‘hybridity’: Accounting for notions of power, politics & progress in analyses of aid driven interfaces

The concept of hybridity is increasingly employed as an analytical tool to explore the varieties and outcomes of externally led interventions, and in some cases is portrayed as a desirable political project that could stimulate alternative and counter hegemonic programming. This article critically explores this trend in peace and development studies by examining some of the tenets and critiques of the concept of hybridity with the aim of furthering its development as a useful conceptual tool. It also explores the underlying normative implications and rhetoric that underpin some of the work on hybridity in these fields. In doing so, it offers a set of queries that could be used to explore practices, impacts and potential alternatives in peace and development programming.