Assessments of Turkish foreign policy in the Middle East during the Arab uprisings

Using original public-opinion polls and elite interviews conducted in 2012, this article analyzes the perceptions of Turkish foreign policy regarding the Arab Uprisings and the Syrian conflict in three Middle Eastern countries, Egypt, Iraq and Iran. It finds that ethnic, sectarian and religious groups in these three countries vary significantly in their views on Turkish foreign policy regarding both the Arab Uprisings and the Syrian conflict, although the same identity-related factors have a less salient effect at the elite level. The findings also suggest that the intersection of ethnicity and sect shapes people's attitudes toward Turkish foreign policy in Iran and Iraq. Sunnis, except for Kurds in Iran and Iraq, tend to have a positive view of Turkish foreign policy, while Shia Turkomans in Iraq tend to have a negative one

Emigration and the diffusion of political Salafism:religious remittances and support for Salafi parties in Egypt during the Arab Spring

This study investigates the impact of emigration on the political behavior of citizens in Egypt. In particular, it argues that emigrants’ family members are more likely to vote for Salafi parties for several reasons, including the transfer of religious remittances by Egyptian emigrants to the Gulf and the influence of transnational Salafi networks. In order to test our argument, we conducted an original public opinion survey with around 1100 individuals between January 12, 2012 and January 25, 2012, just after the Egyptian parliamentary election. We find that individuals with family members who had emigrated to the Gulf voted heavily for Islamist parties, particularly the Freedom and Justice Party and the Nour Party. Further analysis shows that there is no statistical difference between individuals with and without emigrant family members in voting for the Muslim Brotherhood, while the Nour’s popularity among voters with emigrant family members is substantial and statistically significant. In particular, we find that the strongest support for the Nour came from individuals whose family members had immigrated to Saudi Arabia, whereas those whose family members had immigrated to other countries, including other Gulf countries, do not differ significantly from non-emigrant family members in their party preferences

Civilizing vs destructive globalization? A multi-level analysis of anti-immigrant prejudice

This study investigates the impact of the latest wave of globalization on anti-immigrant prejudice. We discern and test two contradictory accounts of the impact of globalization on anti-immigrant prejudice from the prejudice and globalization literatures. On the one hand, there is the 'civilizing/integrative globalization' thesis, which implies that globalization should help to decrease prejudice by creating sustained and equal contact between previously alien cultures and peoples, and by spreading economic gains to everybody. On the other hand, there is the 'destructive globalization/globalization as a threat' thesis, which argues that globalization should increase anti-immigrant prejudice by intensifying competition over resources and by increasing perceived threat by native populations as a result of increasing immigrant populations. We test these two accounts using a multi-level analysis of 64 countries and nearly 150,000 individuals, derived from the World Values Surveys (waves 3-5). Our analyses reveal support for 'destructive globalization/globalization as a threat' thesis, but emphasize the multi-dimensional character of globalization. We find that citizens of countries with higher levels of trade openness have significantly more anti-immigrant sentiments. There is also some evidence that in countries where unemployment is accompanied by high levels of trade openness or the existence of large immigrant populations, citizens hold high anti-immigrant prejudice. By contrast, foreign direct investment (FDI) has a weak effect

Explaining variation in public support to Turkey's EU accession: Turco-scepticism in Europe

This paper tries to parse out the determinants of the European public’s attitudes to Turkey’s accession. Our factor analyses suggest that the attitudes of European individuals towards Turkey’s accession are grouped under two main dimensions: utilitarian and normative. Furthermore, we posit and test the possibility that individuals’ attitudes towards Turkey may also be shaped by the national political context they are immersed in. Our findings indicate that individuals who believe that Turkey belongs to Europe culturally and who believe that its EU membership will provide more benefits to the EU tend to be more pro-accession. An inverse relationship exists between individuals’ belief that Turkey will benefit from EU membership and their support for Turkey’s accession. The most important country-level factor affecting the level of turco-skepticism in a member state seems to be the level of Turkish migrants in its population. Finally, the ideological stance of the government amplifies the effect political ideology of individuals has on their belief about Turkey’s accession

Rights and responsibilities: citizenship norms and protest activity in a cross‐country analysis

This study investigates the effect of citizenship norms on protest activity across established and new democracies. It disentangles citizenship norms based on motivations to act, informed by citizenship theories. Along the spectrum of liberal and republican citizenship theories, rights-based, cosmopolitan, active and dutiful citizenship norms are examined. The study utilizes the International Social Survey Program’s (ISSP) Citizenship modules, conducted in 2004 and 2014. It is a repeated cross-sectional survey across 22 countries, using a multi-level regression analysis. Rights based, cosmopolitan and active citizenship norms exert positive, dutiful citizenship norms exert negative effect on protest activity in both settings. The effect of norms changes over time and across democratic context. While the effects of rights-based norms and cosmopolitan norms are stronger across established democracies, norms that relate to republican theories of citizenship are the main drivers of protest across new democraciesNo sponso