Sources of fear that inhibit the Kuwaiti youth's free expression about women serving in the military

Abstract

Recently, the announcement by the Kuwaiti military that it would begin accepting women into its ranks has been denounced by religious and cultural conservatives who have used their positions and authority to intimidate citizens and have attempted to stifle public support for this new policy. This study utilizes the Spiral of Silence (SOS) Theory to examine the influence of varying fear sources on individuals’ willingness to express opinions in congruent and incongruent offline and online opinion climates. The examined fear sources are fear of the law or retribution from government authority, fear of being ineffective in one’s political communication because opinion expression has no impact on the political system, fear of being persecuted for violating religious strictures, fear of social isolation, fear of being negatively labeled during a conversation, fear of being ridiculed for expressing an opinion during conversation, and communication apprehension. In all, 503 individuals responded to the survey. Results indicate that a greater number of fear sources influence individuals in offline contexts more than in online contexts. Fear of the law was a suppressor of opinion expression in all online contexts. The study discusses the influence of offline and online cultures on freedom of expression in Kuwait.