| 1. |
- Abdelzadeh, Ali, 1981-
(författare)
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Transcending dichotomies : The many faces of youth dissatisfaction in democracy
- 2014
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In the recent scholarly debates over changing citizenship attitudes and norms in advanced democracies, especially when it comes to rising levels of political dissatisfaction, opinion about the political role of young people is divided. For some scholars, they represent a driving force behind the development of new kinds of citizenship values, and constitute an asset to the functioning of political systems. For others, they pose a potential threat to the health of representative democracy, because of their increasing levels of dissatisfaction and civic disengagement. By contrast with these two competing approaches, this dissertation advances the argument that a more balanced view of young people’s political activities is called for. Adopting a quantitative approach, it aims therefore to contribute to better theoretical and empirical understanding of young people’s political dissatisfaction, and to explain their role in a democratic society. Considering different aspects of dissatisfaction, the current dissertation contributes to previous research in significant ways. Among others things, it adds to our knowledge by showing empirically that, in terms of political dissatisfaction, young people constitute a heterogeneous group, with different political roles and profiles, ranging from the healthy to the more threatening. Moreover, it contributes to previous research by highlighting the crucial role played by fair teachers in providing linkages between young citizens and the wider political system. All in all, the findings in the current dissertation have implications for the ongoing debate over the role and significance of young people in the functioning of democratic systems, and also for political socialization research.
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| 2. |
- Bal, Zelal, 1978-
(författare)
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Pro-kurdiska politiska motståndsstrategier i Turkiet : en diskursiv analys
- 2014
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This thesis focuses on pro-kurdish activism in Turkey during 2005–2009. It is based on a large number of interviews conducted with activists within the Diyarbakır area. The form of activism that this study seeks to describe is civil and political activism conducted within the legal framework ofTurkey’s judicial system and international law.The purpose of this thesis is to examine what kind of resistance strategies are used by pro-Kurdish political activists in Turkey, focusing on how these strategies are reflected in the language used by the respondents. The main question posed in the thesis is: What resistance strategies are used within the pro-Kurdish movement in Turkey? Two additional questions were also posed in order to make it possible to answer the main question. The first of these is: What external conditions influence pro-Kurdish mobilization in Turkey during the study’s time frame? In order to answer this question a theoretical framework is used that includes theories about ethnopolitical mobilization and political opportunity structures. The second question is: What resistance strategies are reflected in the language used by the pro-Kurdish activists?An important resistance strategy used by the pro-Kurdish activists is to adapt the language used in public communication to the legal and political environment in which they find themselves. They make linguistic choices in order to convey political messages while minimizing the legal consequences of doing so. The resistance strategies reflected in the interviews with the activists also include efforts to build organizations and cooperations at different levels, ranging from the international to the local level. Resistance strategies also include choices regarding what medium and language to use in promoting pro-Kurdish politics.
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| 3. |
- Danielsson, Anna, 1980-
(författare)
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On the Power of Informal Economies and the Informal Economies of Power : Rethinking Informality, Resilience and Violence in Kosovo
- 2014
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Since the 1970s, the concept of “economic informality” has served as focal point for a comprehensive scholarly thinking and the development of policy initiatives enhanced by international organisations. Yet, informality displays a puzzling resilience. The problematique of this book concerns the lenses through which informality has been constituted, studied and acted upon as an empirical phenomenon. By developing a critical understanding of informality as object of study, the book uncovers the historical, scholarly and practitioner contexts in which contemporary conceptualisations of informality are constituted.The author argues that three dominant and conventional approaches to informality systematically fail to account for how the reasons behind people's participation in informal economic activities are constituted by an internal and hierarchically structured social order. To transcend the identified shortcomings of the established approaches, the book rethinks informality through a comprehensive power analysis and highlights the importance of hierarchy, covert violence and domination. A central assumption of this rethinking is that informality constitutes a social phenomenon that emerges and is expressed through social practices, which over time and across space have become institutionalised to the point that informality is considered commonsensical and unchangeable. By putting the reconceptualisation to use through the thinking of Pierre Bourdieu, the book performs an empirical analysis of the nexus between resilience, symbolic violence and informal economic practices in Kosovo from the late 1980s until 2011. Based on primary research material, the analysis offers a unique insight into informal dynamics and illuminates the workings of an intrinsic, circular, malleable and ambiguous system of domination that would otherwise remain hidden.By engaging the empirical, theoretical and meta-theoretical level at the same time, the book explores the twofold constitution of informality as a social phenomenon and brings to light a new understanding of the resilience of the informal. As such, the reconceptualisation forms a critical intervention into scholarly and practitioner discussions about informality. By revealing mechanisms of domination, the book offers an alternative and fruitful account of the socio-historical weave within which practices of informality in Kosovo crystallise.
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| 4. |
- Podolian, Olena, 1983-
(författare)
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The Challenge of ‘Stateness’ in Estonia and Ukraine
- 2020
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The aim of this dissertation is to examine the influence of the international actors i.e. the OSCE, Council of Europe, EU and Russia, on policy and legislative adaptation in two post-Soviet countries since 1991. These are Estonia and Ukraine. The central concept analysed in the dissertation is stateness. It is defined following Juan J. Linz and Alfred Stepan (1996) as congruence between the territorial definition and the right of citizenship in the state, which has the monopoly on the legitimate use of force in the territory, and an effective state bureaucracy. For the analysis, certain policy areas are chosen which operationalise the dimensions of stateness: monopoly on the use of force (borders, army and police), state identity (citizenship, national minorities and language), and basic administration (public administration, education and information). In the democratisation and state-building literature, stateness is a neglected concept, as is the international influence on it. Surprisingly so, as it is an important condition for state and regime stability, especially democracy. To address this gap, the dissertation clarifies the definition of the concept of stateness and analyses the international influence on it in the two countries. This dissertation centres on the impact of the international actors as the causal factor in consolidation of stateness. To investigate this, it analyses in a systematic manner the influence of their policy demands and expectations on adaptation (i.e. policy adoption and change) in the policy areas operationalising stateness in Estonia and Ukraine. As part of the analysis, it provides a detailed overview and comparison of the policy- and legislation-making in both countries after their independence in 1991. The method chosen is a cross-case comparison carried out according to a time-periodisation approach. The analysis illustrates the converging yet context-contingent impact of the international actors in the policy areas operationalising stateness. Therefore, the main finding confirms the emerging consensus in the literature that the international actors have an increasing yet differential impact in traditionally domestic policy areas. The dissertation’s contribution is twofold. First is the theoretical and conceptual contribution to state-building in comparative European politics by clarifying the definition of the concept of stateness. Second is the empirical contribution by providing an applicable operationalisation of the concept through policy areas, which permits its empirical analysis.
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| 5. |
- Babajan, Tigran, 1986-
(författare)
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Oligarchs, State Power and Mass Opinion : A Study of the Role of Oligarchs in Post-Soviet Pseudo-democracies
- 2018
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This thesis attempts to understand the role of oligarchs in post-Soviet pseudo-democratic regime trajectories. The two dominant, competing streams of prior work have emphasized either the importance of state power or that of mass opinion in these processes in order to explain why some regimes successfully maintain their grip on power, while others make gradual steps towards democratization. However, the role of oligarchs has been largely overlooked; a gap filled by this study. It employs both widely accepted, as well as unique data to approach the research problem. The work presented in this thesis involves large-N surveys, analyses of media reports and an in-depth case study. There are three key findings:First, for an overwhelming majority of citizens in post-Soviet pseudo-democracies, oligarchs’ actual, negative influence on the political system as well as popular perceptions of unfair wealth concentration are conducive to beliefs that a non-democratic regime is what is needed in order to set things right in their country.Second, the findings from Armenia, Georgia, Russia and Ukraine demonstrate that four politically motivated, rival oligarchs focused on enhancing their reputation and organizational capacity in their struggles for power. In all four countries, regimes used their state power to counter the rival oligarchs. Evidence from Armenia and Russia provides a nuanced understanding of these interactions. In particular, incumbents in these countries used their state power to manipulate public opinion in order to damage the reputation and credibility of the rival oligarchs. This thesis suggests that the main regime leaders do so in order to portray themselves as more trustworthy than their oligarch rivals.Third, a survey analysis of Kyiv university students shows that they view most oligarchs as corrupt and harmful to their political system. According to the survey results, oligarchs’ concentration of wealth appears to disqualify them from being legitimate political players. Yet, further evidence from this thesis suggests that people differentiate between oligarchs as a group and as individuals, which allows at least some oligarchs to enhance their reputation by using their vast material wealth. I conclude this thesis by discussing possible policy and societal implication of the results and by setting out some new venues of future research.
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| 6. |
- Ekman, Joakim
(författare)
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National identity in divided and unified Germany : continuity and change
- 2001
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This dissertation deals with the construction, maintenance and change of national identities in divided and unified Germany. Following World War II, Germany was divided in two parts. For a period of more than 40 years, two German states developed in separation from each other, and because of the horrors of the recent past, both states badly needed to develop new national self-images. Using a four-fold model of ‘national identity’, this study starts out by outlining these different processes of identity formation and nation-building. In the German Democratic Republic (GDR), the communist regime desperately tried to foster a distinct socialist GDR identity among the East Germans. In the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), the successful economic and political development led to the emergence of a new, post-war national identity. The Berlin Wall was opened on November 9, 1989, and Germany was formally reunified not even a year later, on October 3, 1990. The past decade has shown, however, that Germany has had difficulties in becoming ‘informally’ unified. Drawing on large scale public opinion surveys, this dissertation examines if differences between East Germans and West Germans today are primarily ascribable to the different historical experiences, or rather an outcome of the uneasy unification process. The findings of this study indicate that the East German nation-building project essentially was a failure, since it did not create support for the GDR as a political system. At the same time, the unique experience of living in the GDR shaped a certain ‘East German identity’ and political culture, different from the kind of German identity and political culture that emerged in the FRG. But the findings of this study also suggest that an East German identity in unified Germany should not be reduced to a lingering ‘legacy of the past’. It is, at the same time, an outcome of the unification process itself. A new East German self-awareness has developed as a result of the hardships and challenges posed by the uneasy transformation from a state socialist political system to a liberal democratic system. Consequently, when it comes to the German national identity issue, ‘inner unification’ remains to be seen.
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| 7. |
- Högström, John, 1969-
(författare)
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Quality of Democracy Around the Globe : A Comparative Study
- 2013
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This study deals with the quality of democracy, and its purpose is to examine which factors affect the varying levels of the quality of democracy in the stable democracies in the world. The research question posited in the study is: what explains the varying levels of the quality of democracy in the democratic countries in the world, and do political institutions matter? Theoretically, the quality of democracy is distinguished from other similar concepts employed in comparative politics, and what the quality of democracy stands for is clarified. The quality of democracy is defined in this study as: the level of legitimacy in a democratic system with respect to democratic norms such as political participation, political competition, political equality, and rule of law. In total, four dimensions of the quality of democracy are included that are considered to be very important dimensions of the quality of democracy. These dimensions are political participation, political competition, political equality, and the rule of law. To explain the variation in the quality of democracy, an explanatory model has been developed. The explanatory model consists of five different groups of independent variables: political institutional variables, socioeconomic variables, cultural variables, historical variables, and physical variables. Methodologically, a large-n, outcome-centric research design is employed and statistical analysis is used to examine what effect the five groups of independent variables have on the four dimensions of the quality of democracy. Empirically, the results show that cultural variables and political institutional variables outperform socioeconomic, historical, and physical variables in relation to their effect on the quality of democracy. Consequently, cultural and political institutional variables are the two most important groups of variables when explaining the variation in the quality of democracy in the democratic countries in the world. In relation to the other groups of variables, historical variables are slightly more important than socioeconomic variables when explaining the variation in the quality of democracy. The physical variables constitute the group of variables that has the least importance out of the five groups of variables when explaining the variation in the quality of democracy. In summary, the findings from the study show that the best way of increasing the level of the quality of democracy may be to choose political institutions such as parliamentarism as the executive power system and a proportional system as the electoral system. To put this clearly, to increase the possibility of democratic countries achieving a high level of the quality of democracy they should avoid majority electoral systems and presidential or semipresidential executive systems.
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| 8. |
- Sedelius, Thomas, 1976-
(författare)
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The tug-of-war between presidents and prime ministers : semi-presidentialism in Central and Eastern Europe
- 2006
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Presidential power and constitutional issues are at the very core of recent popular upheavals in the former Soviet republics, as demonstrated by the Orange Revolution in Ukraine in 2004, and similar protests in Georgia in 2003 and in Kyrgyzstan in 2005. After the demise of the Soviet Union, these countries opted for a particular form of semi-presidentialism, here referred to as president-parliamentary. This dissertation deals with president-parliamentary systems, as well as with the other form of semi-presidentialism, namely premier-presidentialism. The study examines a typical feature of semi-presidentialism, i.e. intra-executive conflicts between the president and the prime minister/cabinet, by analysing the pattern, institutional triggers, and implications of such conflicts in Central and Eastern Europe. In addition, the choice of semi-presidentialism and differences in transitional context and constitutional building are accounted for. The following countries are specifically dealt with: Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, and Romania, Russia and Ukraine. The study’s empirical base is a mixture of data derived from literature, reports, review of constitutional documents, as well as from an expert survey conducted among analysts with an expert knowledge on the countries under scrutiny. The results suggest that both actor-oriented and historical-institutional factors have to be considered in order to understand why so many post-communist countries ended up with semi-presidentialism, and why there is such a sharp divide between Central Europe and the (non-Baltic) former Soviet republics with regard to the choice of semi-presidential type. The pattern of intra-executive struggles reveals that conflicts were somewhat more recurrent in the early period following the transition, but persist as a frequently occurring phenomenon throughout the post-communist period. The most common type of conflict has revolved around division of powers within the executive branch. As for triggers of conflict, the study suggests that certain institutional factors, such as electoral concurrence and party system fragmentation, have been important. Regarding the management of conflict, and the options available to the conflicting parties, the analysis indicates that the constitutional courts have played an important role as conflict mediators, and that attempts of changing the constitution, and using public addresses are options preferred by the presidents. Finally, the analysis shows that intra-executive conflict is associated with cabinet instability. A case study example also illustrates how the president-parliamentary framework can be related to policy ineffectiveness. The study finally concludes that premier-presidential systems have great governance potential provided that the party systems develop and consolidate. The conclusions regarding the president-parliamentary system are less encouraging, and it is argued that the adoption of this system is an important factor in relation to the failed democratisation in many post-Soviet countries.
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