Revealing schemes: the politics of conspiracy in Russia and the post-Soviet region

What motivates governments and other political actors to promote conspiracy theories? And what impact do these theories have on society? Drawing on a new book covering Russia and the post-Soviet region, Scott Radnitz explores the causes, consequences, and contradictions of conspiracism in politics

Client perceptions of social skills development occupational therapy intervention groups in an acute psychiatry setting.

Master’s Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.Pre-amble: This document is written in the format of a “Masters by manuscript”, as per the requirements of the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s research office. The transition away from “Masters by dissertation” has been made in 2017, by the University of KwaZulu-Natal, in order to encourage students to publish their work, thereby, making more of the research conducted for degree purposes accessible to the public, to aid in the transfer of knowledge. The university’s formatting requirements can be found under attachment A. The research articles have been referenced according to the guidelines of the journals to which they will be submitted. The rest of the document, for consistency, has been referenced according to the guidelines of the second journal article; an adapted Harvard referencing system. These guidelines can be found in Appendix JAbstract available in the PDF

Verschwörungstheorien und Russlands Einmarsch in die Ukraine

Die russische Regierung fördert seit Jahren die Verbreitung von Verschwörungstheorien. Seit Beginn des russischen großangelegten Einmarsches in die Ukraine betreibt sie dies mit besonderer Intensität. Dieser Beitrag stellt die Rolle der Verschwörungspropaganda in diesem Krieg dar: Der Kreml zielt darauf ab, zu überzeugen, Signale zu senden oder Verwirrung zu stiften. Darüber zeigt die Analyse auf, wie der Kreml versucht, unterschiedliche Bevölkerungsgruppen innerhalb Russlands, im Ausland und in der Ukraine anzusprechen. Verschwörungstheorien mögen zwar für den Ausgang des Krieges weniger entscheidend sein, dafür bieten sie Einblicke in die Weltsicht des Kremls und liefern Hinweise, auf welche Weise dieser versucht, die öffentliche Meinung zu beeinflussen

It takes more than a village : mobilization, networks, and the state in Central Asia

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Political Science, February 2007.Includes bibliographical references (p. [234]-[252]).This dissertation develops and demonstrates a theory to account for the outbreak of mass mobilization in authoritarian settings. Two conditions make the expansion of protest across community boundaries more likely: (1) low levels of public goods, coupled with (2) economic opportunities that allow elites autonomous from the state to earn revenue. Under regimes where the rule of law is weak, non-state elites have an incentive to protect their assets from state predation by developing a social support base. They do this by making symbolic gestures and providing surrogate public goods to communities. If the regime threatens to harm this relationship, by restricting elites' freedoms or denying them access to resources, top-down mobilization is one of the few means available to advance or defend their position. Elites base their appeal on shared local identity and the material benefit that people derive from elite charity. The ultimate scale of mobilization is determined by the number and geographic dispersion of elites who mobilize locally and then unite their protests.(cont.) Three mechanisms may be activated to expand mobilization beyond the local level: demonstration, in which people receive information of an event through an impersonal medium and emulate other people's actions by analogy to their own situation; diffusion, or direct contact between actors connected by strong social ties; and brokerage, or mediation between groups by a small number of well-connected individuals. I argue that only if diffusion and brokerage are activated in concert can an incipient movement overcome gaps between (1) elites and masses and (2) different communities (or regions). I demonstrate my theory by comparing Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, then analyzing two cases of mass mobilization within Kyrgyzstan-one of regional scale and one national. In both cases, I illustrate the centrality of vertical networks in bringing about mobilization, and trace how both brokerage and diffusion were activated to expand mobilization from local to regional or national scale. I then test the theory on cases outside the region. The dissertation contributes to the comparative politics literature on contentious politics, the breakdown of authoritarian regimes, and the effect of Soviet legacies on state and society.by Scott Radnitz.Ph.D

Religiosity, materialism, consumer environmental predisposition. Some insights on vegan purchasing intentions in Italy

This paper explores the effects of environmental predisposition on purchasing intentions. The proposed model considers religiosity as a determinant of consumer environmental predisposition, adopting a multidimensional view entailing both intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity. Further, the effects of materialism are investigated, as it has been recognized as one of the most relevant hampering factors in determining consumer environmental predispositions and behaviors. Such factors appear intimately related, as materialism has been indicated as largely antithetical with respect to religion. Literature has suggested religiosity to be a key determinant of consumer environmental predispositions and behaviors. This might be even more important for specific, environmentally relevant consumer lifestyles. This work is hence set within vegan consumption. Veganism has been mostly related to specific religious beliefs (like Buddhism), according to which it represents a core component of larger worldviews. A structural equation model is proposed, based on a sample of 842 Italian consumers. Results show that religiosity exerts some effect on consumer environmental predisposition, and that, in turn, such predisposition determines vegan purchasing intentions. A split model is then proposed considering Christian and Buddhist consumers. Results of multigroup analysis show that religious influxes on consumer environmental predispositions might vary according to different religious faiths. Given the lack of previous empirical research, results of this study require further validation; still, they might provide some insights for managers, as markets related to environmentally relevant products and services are exhibiting a sustained growth

Mirroring Opposition Threats

Hugo Chávez and his Bolivarian Movement came to power in 1999 promising to refound the Venezuelan state and restructure the polity in ways that would build “popular power” through the promotion of grassroots participation, organization, and mobilization. Once in office, the Bolivarian forces launched a series of initiatives to sponsor organization and mobilization among supporters, which ranged widely in their functions and strategic purpose. State-mobilized organizations can be seen as operating in three different arenas of politics: the local governance arena; the electoral arena; and the protest arena. From an ideological standpoint, the Bolivarian Movement was oriented toward sponsoring organizations that could operate in the first of these arenas, helping realize Chávez’s vision of constructing a “protagonistic democracy” by establishing vehicles for citizen participation in local governance. In the terminology of this volume, these activities are best seen as a form of “infrastructural mobilization,” working to solidify political support and achieve the government’s longer-term aims

Justice, power and informal settlements: Understanding the juridical view of property rights in Central Asia

The article examines how judges and lawyers struggle to legitimise and normalise private property rights against attempts by poor and migrant groups to politicise housing and social needs in Central Asia. It will discuss the juridical understanding of justice and equality in relation to property rights violations on the outskirts of major cities in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. It will argue that the juridical system is central in construing property rights and obligations, and in so doing social inequalities are legitimised and naturalised in a neoliberalising post-Soviet space. The article uses the concepts of 'the moral economy' and 'the juridical field' to examine how judges and lawyers justify and normalise their ways of interpreting and ordering the social world