« Previous |
1 - 10 of 16
|
Next »
Number of results to display per page
Search Results
2. Psychological Determinants of Individual Radicalisation
- Author:
- Elzbieta Posluszna
- Publication Date:
- 03-2022
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Polish Political Science Yearbook
- Institution:
- Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
- Abstract:
- The paper aims to define the psychological foundations of lone wolf activism. The analysis that facilitated attaining this goal was based on the Nietzschean concept of resentment theory of compensatory revaluating values that explain the relationships between inferiority and fundamentalism, fanaticism, and ideologically motivated violence. Based on a phenomenological examination of the phenomenon, the author demonstrates that lone wolf activism is founded on two psychologically and sociologically determined successive processes. The first one occurs when a sense of personal inferiority becomes the source of an envy-based hostile attitude toward the world. Later on, this feeling, due to personality defence mechanisms, which bring about the falsification of “primary desires” and the generation of “secondary desires”, transforms into fundamentalism. The second process takes place when, as the result of fundamentalist legitimisation that arise on the level of social rivalry, given fundamentalism is destituted, resulting in fanaticism. The author believes that the knowledge of both processes is necessary to recognise and combat the terrorist activity of lone ideologically motivated individuals.
- Topic:
- Terrorism, Radicalization, Psychology, Legitimacy, and Social Order
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
3. Developments in the Field of Transitional Justice
- Author:
- Valerie Arnould
- Publication Date:
- 06-2021
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
- Abstract:
- For a long time, transitional justice has been described as a ‘nascent’ or ‘emerging’ field. While it is true that transitional justice is a youngish concept and praxis (emerging in the late 1980s), today it has definitely grown out of its infancy and moved into an age of consolidation. It is undeniable that transitional justice has developed into a dynamic field of research and practice. At the same time, it remains a highly contested field that is subject to heated debates about the precise nature, scope, legitimacy and effectiveness of the ‘transitional justice project’. Here, I reflect on five notable developments that have marked the transitional justice field over the past decade.
- Topic:
- Transitional Justice, Legitimacy, Academia, and Transition
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
4. What Do Social Media Activity and Social Networks Mean for Politics
- Author:
- James Andrew Lewis
- Publication Date:
- 12-2021
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Turkish Policy Quarterly (TPQ)
- Institution:
- Transatlantic Policy Quarterly (TPQ)
- Abstract:
- Social media reshapes politics and national narratives in ways that make it more difficult to govern, if by govern we mean collective actions to preserve stability and order through voluntary adhesion to laws and norms, and when necessary, through coercion deemed legitimate by the institutions of the state. Social media’s impact on narrative and legitimacy is what’s most pronounced and, in many cases, what’s most damaging to the ability of governments to govern.
- Topic:
- Politics, Social Media, Legitimacy, and Social Networks
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
5. 30 Years of World Politics: What Has Changed?
- Author:
- Francis Fukuyama
- Publication Date:
- 01-2020
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Journal of Democracy
- Institution:
- National Endowment for Democracy
- Abstract:
- Since the publication of the Journal of Democracy began in 1990, the political climate has shifted from one of democratic gains and optimism to what Larry Diamond labels a “democratic recession.” Underlying these changes has been a reorientation of the major axis of political polarization, from a left-right divide defined largely in economic terms toward a politics based on identity. In a second major shift, technological development has had unexpected effects—including that of facilitating the rise of identity-based social fragmentation. The environment for democracy has been further transformed by other slow-moving changes, among them the shift toward neoliberal economic policies, the legacy of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and lowered expectations regarding democratic transitions. Sustaining democracy will require rebuilding the legitimate authority of the institutions of liberal democracy, while resisting those powers that aspire to make nondemocratic institutions central.
- Topic:
- Authoritarianism, Democracy, Legitimacy, and Democratic Decline
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
6. Buying Them Off or Scaring Them Straight: Explaining Warlord Democrats’ Electoral Rhetoric
- Author:
- Anders Themner and Roxanna Sjostedt
- Publication Date:
- 11-2019
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Security Studies
- Institution:
- Security Studies
- Abstract:
- Post–civil war democracies are characterized by intense electoral competition. To ensure continued political relevance, ex-military-turned-politicians, or “warlord democrats” (WDs), can either engage in a rhetoric of fear or ease societal tensions by employing a rhetoric of peace. WDs’ choice of rhetoric can have a profound impact on durable peace by altering societal discourses concerning the legitimacy of using violence. A key question is therefore: Why do some WDs employ a rhetoric of fear, and others a rhetoric of peace, when running for office? We argue that the choice of rhetoric is a function of the patrimonial endowments WDs possess; if WDs lack the resources and social networks needed to distribute patronage, they may instead use a rhetoric of fear to rally voters. To highlight the explanatory value of this proposition, we compare two Liberian WDs who ran for the Senate in 2005—Adolphus Dolo and Prince Johnson.
- Topic:
- Civil War, Authoritarianism, Democracy, State Violence, and Legitimacy
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
7. Managing Urban Flood Risk: A Framework for Evaluating Alternative Policy Instruments
- Author:
- Daniel Henstra and Jason Thistlethwaite
- Publication Date:
- 03-2019
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI)
- Abstract:
- To maximize the effectiveness of flood risk management, city governments should employ multiple policy instruments to balance the objectives of resilience (i.e., risk reduction), efficiency (i.e., benefits exceed costs) and legitimacy (i.e., political and public support). Flood risk management instruments differ to the extent that they emphasize some of these objectives over others, so informed trade-offs are required when selecting and combining them. Contextual factors, such as available resources, the level of flood risk and the degree of public risk awareness, are also salient when choosing among policy instruments for flood risk management.
- Topic:
- Natural Disasters, Legitimacy, Public Health, and Flood
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
8. FORCE VS. LEGITIMACY: UN PEACEKEEPING AND PROTECTING CIVILIAN LIVES
- Author:
- Anup Phayal
- Publication Date:
- 04-2019
- Content Type:
- Commentary and Analysis
- Institution:
- Political Violence @ A Glance
- Abstract:
- In recent years, protection of civilians has become a key mandate for UN peacekeeping missions. A number of studies show that deploying peacekeepers in a post-conflict country can sustain the peace and lower violence against civilians. For this reason, there is a growing consensus to increase the military capacity of peacekeepers, not only to deter potential perpetrators, but also to conduct counter-insurgency style operations against spoilers of peace (see here, here and here). Yet, the core principles of peacekeeping—such as neutrality, minimal use of force, and dialogue—are incompatible with the preference for a military-centric approach, even though interventions today warrant some degree of coercive capacity against armed violence by opportunist actors. Furthermore, participating troops in “peacekeeping” missions often have less incentive to take risk by fighting against local actors. In light of this complexity, it is difficult to assess how military peacekeepers can best achieve the goal of civilian protection.
- Topic:
- United Nations, Peacekeeping, Legitimacy, Civilians, and Protection
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
9. Local Self-Government as a Problem of Political Theory
- Author:
- Łukasz Swieciki
- Publication Date:
- 01-2019
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Polish Political Science Yearbook
- Institution:
- Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
- Abstract:
- The article aims at restoring local self-government as a research problem of political theory. In contemporary political science literature, local self-government is not treated as one of its normal, standard research problems. The main obstacle of its ambiguous position within political theory is, as I argue, the forced and imposed apolitical character of local self-government considered as a part of public administration. Despite some degree of organizational, especially institutional and legal, self-determination, the local self-government is not a political, i.e. sovereign entity. However, its non-sovereign status, which is legally established, does not exclude the existence of political potency in it.
- Topic:
- Sovereignty, Political Theory, Governance, Legitimacy, and Local
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
10. Killing Norms Softly: US Targeted Killing, Quasi-secrecy and the Assassination Ban
- Author:
- Andris Banka and Adam Quinn
- Publication Date:
- 07-2018
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Security Studies
- Institution:
- Security Studies
- Abstract:
- This article argues that when actors engage in controversial new security practices, it is misconceived to view secrecy as an opposed, counterproductive alternative to the pursuit of legitimation. Rather, we propose, deployment of “quasi-secrecy”—a combination of official secrecy with leaks, selective disclosure, and de facto public awareness—can be an effective strategy for achieving normalization and legitimation while containing the risks entailed by disclosure. We support this claim via a detailed case study of US targeted killing. First, we establish the existence of an American norm against targeted killing during the period 1976–2001. We then detail the process by which an innovation in practice was secretly approved, implemented, became known, and was gradually, partially officially acknowledged. We argue that even if quasi-secrecy was not in this instance a coherently-conceived and deliberately pursued strategy from start to finish, the case provides proof of concept for its potential to be deployed as such.
- Topic:
- Security, Legitimacy, Normalization, and Secrecy
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus