Middle East Politics and Women's Collective Action: Challenging the Status Quo

1999 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 273-291 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. BERKOVITCH ◽  
V. M. MOGHADAM
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Collective Action ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
The Status ◽  
Middle East Politics

Critical International Relations Theories and the Study of Arab Uprisings: A Critique

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-150
Author(s):  
Ahmed M. Abozaid
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Critical Theory ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Arab Spring ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
The Other ◽  
Arab Uprisings ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Arab Spring ◽  
Western Perspective

This study articulates that most of the critical theorists are still strikingly neglecting the study of the Arab Uprising(s) adequately. After almost a decade of the eruption of the so-called Arab Uprisings, the study claims that the volume of scholarly engaging of dominate Western International Relations (IR) theories with such unprecedented events is still substantially unpretentious. Likewise, and most importantly, the study also indicates that most of these theories, including the critical theory of IR (both Frankfurt and Habermasian versions), have discussed, engaged, analysed, and interpreted the Arab Spring (a term usually perceived to be orientalist, troubling, totally inappropriate and passive phenomenon) indicate a strong and durable egoistic Western perspective that emphasis on the preservation of the status quo and ensure the interests of Western and neoliberal elites, and the robustness of counter-revolutionary regimes. On the other hand, the writings and scholarships that reflexively engaged and represent the authentic Arab views, interests, and prospects were clearly demonstrating a strong and durable scarce, if not entirely missing. Keywords: International Relations, Critical Theory, Postcolonial, Arab Uprising(s), Middle East, Revolutions.

scholarly journals Missing in (Collective) Action

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
John T. Jost ◽  
Julia Becker ◽  
Danny Osborne ◽  
Vivienne Badaan
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
System Justification ◽  
Social Identification ◽  
Moral Outrage ◽  
Perceived Injustice ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Group Efficacy ◽  
The Status ◽  
Psychological Models

Social-psychological models of collective action emphasize three antecedents of protest: (a) anger at perceived injustice, (b) social identification, and (c) beliefs about group efficacy. These models are extremely useful but have rarely incorporated ideological factors—despite the fact that protests occur in societal contexts in which some people are motivated to defend and bolster the status quo whereas others are motivated to challenge and oppose it. We adopt a system-justification perspective to specify when individuals and groups will—and will not—experience moral outrage and whether such outrage will be directed at defenders versus critics of the status quo. We describe evidence that epistemic, existential, and relational needs for certainty, security, and affiliation undermine support for system-challenging protests by increasing system-defensive motivation. We also discuss system-based emotions and backlash against protestors and propose an integrated model of collective action that paves the way for more comprehensive research on the psychological antecedents of social change.

scholarly journals Christians and Jews in the Ottoman Arab World

2003 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-136
Author(s):  
Magnus T. Bernhardsson
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Arab World ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Jewish Communities ◽  
Arab Nationalism ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Important Study ◽  
The Status ◽  
Advantageous Position ◽  
Muslim Majority

1n this interesting and well-researched book, Bruce Masters analyses the historyof Chris tian and Jewish communities in the Ottoman Empire's Arabprovinces and how they fared within a Muslim majority and hierarchy. Byand large, this important study is a story of modernization, identity, and ecclesiasticalpolitics that focuses primarily on Christian communities in Aleppo,Syria. The book's main themes are somewhat familiar: How Christian andJewish communities were in an advantageous position to benefit fromincreasing European influence in the Middle East, and how a secular politicalidentity (Arab nationalism) emerged in the Levant. The book's value liesnot in its overarching thesis, but rather in the details of the story and theimpressive research upon which this well-crafted narrative is based.Masters chronicles how the identities of Christians and Jews evolveddue to their increasing contact with western influences, or, as Masters labelsit, "intrusion." The status quo was forever transformed because manyChristians began to distance themselves, economically and socially, fromtheir Muslim neighbors. Masters, a historian who teaches at Connecticut'sWesleyan University, contends that the western intrusion altered Muslimattitudes toward native Christians. In the nineteenth century, local Christianswould serve for some Muslims as "convenient surrogates for the anger thatcould only rarely be expressed directly against the Europeans."Although the Arab provinces experienced serious sectarian strife in thenineteenth century, these antagonisms were, by and large, absent in the ...

Upending the status quo: Power-sharing and community building in Schitt’s Creek

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 148-161
Author(s):  
Katharine Schaab
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Community Building ◽  
Wealth Inequality ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Power Sharing ◽  
Multiple Perspectives ◽  
Rural Town ◽  
The World ◽  
The Status ◽  
Unequal Access

In the CBC sitcom Schitt’s Creek, a family adjusts to living in a small, rural town after losing their fortune. While Schitt’s Creek embraces the ‘fish out of water’ trope, the series explores a community’s efforts to build equity and empathy across difference. This article argues characters undergo a philosophical shift – from understanding power as an all-or-nothing proposition to an approach that values multiple perspectives and just collective action. Noting the severity of wealth inequality and unequal access to resources around the world, the series shows possibilities for growth and recovery when the status quo has been upended.

Investigating Postmodern Politics in the Philippines Using Reflexivity Theory

2011 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-102
Author(s):  
Antonio P. Contreras
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
Social Networking Sites ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Nation State ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Political Communities

A usual reading of postmodern critiques of science, progress, and the nation-state, has casted postmodernism as pessimistic, if not apolitical. In fact, it is even read as conservative, as it unintentionally enables a continuation of the status quo by its privileging of local forms of resistance, even as it is critical of grand narratives of resistance. While the privileging of micro-politics in everyday forms of resistance may enable freedom of and subversive acts by individuals, the need for more collective forms of action remains a challenge. This article offers the theory of reflexivity as a template to imagine the possibility of collective action being enabled by postmodern politics. In contrast to the relatively random, unorganized, and individualized form of micro-politics which post-modern theorists argue for, reflexivity theory allows for more organized, coordinated collective action, albeit in domains that are outside of the traditional confines of statist politics, taking advantage of postmodern venues, such as cyberspace. This essay will inquire into the applicability and implications of the theory of reflexivity in the Philippines, particularly on the transformation of random, individualized interventions in social networking sites into becoming a foundation for “cyber-collective action”, thereby enabling the creation of new political communities and citizenship in cyberspace.

Collective Action with Uncertain Payoffs: Coordination, Public Signals, and Punishment Dilemmas

2011 ◽  
Vol 105 (4) ◽  
pp. 829-851 ◽  
Author(s):  
MEHDI SHADMEHR ◽  
DAN BERNHARDT
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Personal Information ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Conventional Wisdom ◽  
Accurate Information ◽  
Public Signals ◽  
The Status ◽  
Uncertain Payoffs ◽  
Payoff Uncertainty

How can one analyze collective action in protests or revolutions when individuals are uncertain about the relative payoffs of the status quo and revolution? We model a “calculus of protest” of individuals who must either submit to the status quo or support revolt based only on personal information about their payoffs. In deciding whether to revolt, the citizen must infer both the benefit of successful revolution and the likely actions of other citizens. We characterize conditions under which payoff uncertainty overturns conventional wisdom: (a) when a citizen is too willing to revolt, he reduces the incentives of others to revolt; (b) less accurate information about the value of revolution can make revolt more likely; (c) public signals from other citizens can reduce the likelihood of revolt; (d) harsher punishment can increase the incidence of punishment; and (e) the incidence of protest can be positively correlated with that of repression.

scholarly journals Access to Environmental Cognitive Alternatives Predicts Pro-Environmental Activist Behavior

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua D. Wright ◽  
Michael T. Schmitt ◽  
Caroline Mei Li Mackay
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Social Identity ◽  
Collective Action ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Environmental Identity ◽  
Environmental Status ◽  
The Status ◽  
Canadian Survey ◽  
Willingness To Engage

We extend social identity models of pro-environmental collective action by expanding on the plausible role of access to cognitive alternatives to the environmental status quo (i.e., the ability of people to imagine what a sustainable relationship with nature would look like). Using a representative Canadian survey on age, gender, and ethnicity (N = 1029) we evaluate the associations between access to environmental cognitive alternatives and politicized environmental identity and willingness to engage in pro-environmental activist behavior. Additionally, we extend research using exclusively self-reported outcomes by giving participants the opportunity to write and sign a pro-environmental letter to the Canadian Minister of the Environment and Climate Change. Our results suggest that envisioning specific ways in which the status quo can be changed is associated with stronger politicized environmental identity, greater willingness to engage in pro-environmental activist behavior, and increased likelihood of writing and signing a pro-environmental letter to the Canadian Minister of the Environment and Climate Change. All methods and analyses follow our preregistration (https://osf.io/b56ry) and all materials and data are openly available (https://osf.io/24yeq/).

scholarly journals On the specifics of corporate governance in Iran and the Middle East

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 49-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Udo C. Braendle ◽  
Alireza Omidvar ◽  
Ali Tehraninasr
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Transition Economies ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Independent Directors ◽  
Control Environment ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Institutional Infrastructure ◽  
The Status

Corporate Governance (CG) is not a new concept for the transition economies of the Middle East, but corporate governance is especially important since these economies do not have the long-established institutional infrastructure to deal with corporate governance issues. This article is presenting the results of our survey analyzing the status quo of Corporate Governance in Iranian companies. The survey questions cover aspects of Corporate Governance awareness, board of directors, control environment, transparency and shareholder- as well as stakeholder rights. We find several specifics that apply to other countries in the MENA region too. Empowering shareholders and stakeholder, offering Corporate Governance trainings and case studies in the region as well as establishing a culture of independent directors is the way forward.

A War of Ideas: The American Media on Israel and Palestine post Oslo

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Dawn Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
First Amendment ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
The Status ◽  
American Media

This chapter looks at several of the entities and tactics shepherding the opinions that Americans follow regarding Israel and Palestine; the experience journalists and others have in attempting to report on or expose this issue; and the oft-overlooked impact of Christian media on the perception, politics, and continuation of the status quo. Topics discussed include how most Americans perceive Oslo through the Israeli narrative; how a country that values its First Amendment cultivate a media that seems more interested in polarization, celebrities, and sensationalism than in reporting the news; the players who manage the narrative of Israel and Palestine; the media's employment of euphemisms and obfuscations rather than accurate terms in order to control the narrative; and reporting in the Middle East.

New Heroines in Old Skins: Fairy Tale Revisions in Young Adult Dystopian Literature

2020 ◽  
pp. 95-108
Author(s):  
Jill Coste
Keyword(s):  
Young Adult ◽  
Collective Action ◽  
Young Women ◽  
Fairy Tales ◽  
Fairy Tale ◽  
Social Activism ◽  
Sleeping Beauty ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Dystopian Literature ◽  
The Status

This chapter examines three Sleeping Beauty retellings to illustrate the way dystopian scenarios complicate traditional fairy tale tropes. Dystopian literature and fairy tale retellings often feature elements of embodiment, romance, and political activism, and this chapter uses these key notions to consider how the dystopian fairy tale deploys feminist empowerment. While YA dystopian fairy tales often highlight collective action and social activism to resist the status quo, others reproduce troubling representations of passive heroines. This chapter argues that the dystopian YA fairy tale is uniquely primed to address the potential and power of contemporary young women.

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