Political Groups Research Articles

POLITICAL INTERESTS AND POLITICAL DECISIONS: THE POSSIBILITIES OF FORMING A DEMOCRATIC AGENDA

The article is devoted to the study of political interest as a hidden determinant of the activity of associated and non-associated pressure groups (informal lobbying) within the bureaucratic power vertical. Applying modern interdisciplinary methodological tools, the author offers a rationale for the expediency of public articulation of political interests, elimination of hidden lobbying, as well as non-public agreements between the main political players, which slow down the modernization of the institutional environment of the democratic political system. The article reveals and describes the optimal efforts of the Ukrainian political class, which will be aimed at implementing the specified strategic changes. The author reveals an explanation of the functioning of the mechanisms by which interest groups operate and their influence on the formation of the agenda. The crucial importance of interest groups for understanding the dynamics of political decision-making is noted. It is emphasized that group actors are working to bring their issues to the top of the political agenda. The text examines the functionality of providing well-grounded and reasoned information by interested groups that reinforces the importance of their demands. The paper addresses demonstrations, petitions, and social media campaigns as common tactics used to mobilize public opinion and pressure political institutions into action. The article analyzes the pooling of resources and efforts by associated interest groups that purposefully increase the likelihood that their issues will be high on the political agenda. It is noted that publicizing demands and problems can lead to a change in the course and strategy of the current leadership or power team. It has been established that by consistently advocating their cause in public, group actors can ensure consideration of agenda items by politicians and attract media attention. Attention is paid to the cooperation of political forces and interested groups to obtain detailed information and recommendations during the development of draft laws or regulatory acts. Emphasis is placed on the priorities of elected officials who seek to conform to the “mainstream” of public opinion and public sentiment. In the final part of the article, the author emphasizes that the full representation of political interests and the interests of minority groups that are not in the mainstream of public attention. It was concluded that the institutional structure of European democracy is more open to the development of public interests. Therefore, for modern Ukraine, an important element is the formation of structures of political arbitration regarding the conflict of political interests or the provision of this functionality to already existing institutions

The Unhappy Marriage of Care and the Global Market: ‘Soft Backsliding’ in the Narratives of Two Romanian Badanti

This paper encompasses an analysis of the novels written by two Romanian badanti who emigrated from Eastern Europe to Italy at the beginning of the 21st century, namely Liliana Nechita (Romania) and Lilia-Bicec Zanardelli (the Republic of Moldova). The reading grid of these narratives is a Marxist feminist one, as it continues the analytical framework of Lise Vogel and links it to the last decades’ “new gender arrangement” (Lutz) that emphasises the outsourcing of reproductive labour towards migrant and gendered labour-power. The work of these badanti partakes in the global care chain of our world-system, which privileges families in the West and affects poor households in the East. The novels written by the two workers show how agents directly involved in this global division of labour explain their own history, as it is shaped by their new working experience. However, their literary inquiry will circumscribe a contradictory rhetoric, also called “soft backsliding”, that combines emancipatory insights with reactionary ideologies related to the nation-state, family and Christianity. This study aims to explain them as both methods of subjective subsistence in capitalism and a virtual path to political radicalization.

Profile of human rights defenders in the Maghreb: the case of the Tunisian human rights league

ABSTRACT Since the 1980s, human rights activists have constituted political agenda-setting groups in the Maghreb countries, mainly following the international turn towards human rights in the post-Cold War decades. Despite this fact, only scarce attention has been paid to their social and professional background. The article explores this topic and provides hitherto unpublished data about the first generation of human rights activists in Tunisia, in particular the members of the Tunisian Human Rights League (LTDH). Its members were a product of post-colonial Tunisia’s investment in (higher) education, teachers and professors, white-collar public servants, lawyers, doctors and journalists. They formed a committed, intellectual elite concerned with relationship between the state and citizens, seeking to influence public policies, carve out public, independent political spaces and get a share in the management of state affairs. Factual evidence surrounding human rights activists in Morocco and Algeria suggests they shared the same characteristics as LTDH members. Given the human rights situation in the Maghreb countries, the article suggests more research should be done about how human rights activists could more effectively link-up up with moral activism of social–professional groups that are absent from the human rights organisations.

Bringing Radical Assessment into Radical Political Economy: An Ungrading Experience

Bringing Radical Assessment into Radical Political Economy: An Ungrading Experience

Radical Politics, Radical Procedures

Radical Politics, Radical Procedures

Can Democrats and Republicans like each other? Depends on how you define “American”

Democrats and Republicans increasingly demonstrate negative intergroup attitudes, posing a threat to bipartisan progress. Based on the Common Ingroup Identity Model, people from different political groups can simultaneously identify with a superordinate group, such as a national identity. This has the potential to ameliorate negative intergroup attitudes, though high levels of national identity are also associated with authoritarianism and intolerance. How can a common national identity improve relations between Democrats and Republicans? In this observational study (N = 1,272), Democrats and Republicans differed in how they defined what it means to be American, and higher American identity was related to more positive attitudes toward members of the other party. Most importantly, this relationship was moderated by participants' definition of what it means to be “American,” regardless of party or political orientation. Those who defined what it means to be American in more restrictive terms (i.e., U.S.-born, English-speaking, and Christian) reported less positive attitudes toward members of the other political party as their identification as an American became stronger. Taken together, our results suggest that strengthening national identity might be key to improving attitudes between Democrats and Republicans, as long as this identity is inclusive.

Wives’ Discrimination by Spouse’s Culpability in the Globalised Fisheries Industry: Insights From Public Political Hearing on Mafia Island, Tanzania

Globalisation has been lauded for transforming African women’s financial and cultural lives. However, current discourses fail to demonstrate the new hurdles women have to survive in the fishery globalised world. This article uses public political hearing insights, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions to show how Mafia Cooperative women employees in the Mafia region were discriminated against in unprecedented ways. The data were examined thematically. The results show that women’s right to work was based on their marital status and husbands’ behaviour, and not their skills or experience. Such behaviour violates human and workplace rights and should be strongly chastised.

The doctor vote: Interactions between political ideological preferences and healthcare reform strategies among U.S. physicians

IntroImproving the American healthcare system has consistently predominated the domestic policy agenda in the United States for decades. However, physicians have traditionally played a small role in the U.S. legislative process despite their direct observations of the obstacles that cost, access, and quality can have on their patients and their care. The goal of this study was to examine the relationship between physician political ideological preferences and health policy reform options. MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional survey of 3,001 currently practicing U.S. physicians to predict how self-identification as liberal, moderate, or conservative impacted a physician’s policy preferences under the domains of cost, access, and quality. ResultsA total of 536 (18.8%) out of 3,001 physicians responded to the survey. Overall, 32% of physicians identified as liberal, 43% as moderate, and 22% as conservative. ConclusionLiberal-identifying physicians favored traditionally liberal reform ideas (a national health plan or public option), while conservative physicians preferred conservative policies (free market optimization). However, variation within political groups and domains of healthcare suggest that no single reform policy will be unanimously supported by every physician within a political group. Nonetheless, physicians are unanimously dissatisfied with the state of our current system, and physician-supported healthcare reform should be a national priority.

From streets to parliament: understanding the mechanisms of protest impact on the policy-making process in the European Parliament’s TTIP debate

ABSTRACT Following years of intense protest, the negotiations for the TTIP agreement were declared ‘dead in the water’ by the end of 2016. Although there has been ample scholarly attention on how Civil Society Organisations were able to politicise the issue, there is little evidence on how this politicisation ultimately impacted the policy-making process for the trade agreement. Building on an analysis of over 500 parliamentary questions in conjunction with in-depth interviews with eight MEPs from five different political groups, I show that the anti-TTIP campaigns reframed the problem definition of the agreement which led to a lasting shift of its policy image and changed the stance of some policymakers. Further, the anti-TTIP protests contributed to the salience of TTIP among the public and subsequently changed policymakers’ perceptions of the attitudes of the public towards the proposed agreement. Finally, the protests created partisan as well as inter-institutional conflict on the issue.

A Study of Moral Development of Children and Good Habit Formation on Indian Child Rearing Practices Context

Different religious, political, and cultural groups in India hold different opinions on how children should be raised. Given the wide variety of Indian cultures and traditions, it would be unfair to generalise about Indian parenting practices. Each family's unique set of circumstances, including their financial situation, level of education, and life experiences, shape their approach to childrearing. This study has surveyed the existing literature and synthesised theoretical frameworks, drawing attention to the applicability of theories such as Piaget's phases of moral development, Kohlberg's theory of moral development, and Gilligan's ethics of caring in a variety of cultural contexts. With an emphasis on Indian child-rearing techniques, this study investigates how family dynamics, cultural values, and socio-economic factors impact children's ethical thinking and behaviour. Important topics covered include how moral principles are passed down through families and communities, how religious teachings are included into the process of ethical development, and how digital media influences the way moral decisions are made. Aiming to promote moral reasoning and positive habit formation in children, the article also evaluated empirical studies and meta-analyses that highlight beneficial educational interventions and parenting techniques. The findings from this review states that children are fed with cultural learnings; however, this method does seems to be always positive and moral development of children and good habit formation among them is very important.

How the manner in which data is visualized affects and corrects (mis)perceptions of political polarization.

While the mechanisms underlying polarization are complex, scholars have consistently found a pervasive overestimation of perceptions of polarization to be a contributing factor. We argue that one mitigation strategy that can work at scale to address such misperceptions might be relatively straightforward: better data visualizations of cross-party attitudes on key issues. In a large-scale (N = 6603), international replication, we find that mode of presentation-or the manner in which data are visually presented-plays a significant role in moderating perceptions of polarization, even for longstanding, divisive issues for which partisans would likely hold strong prior beliefs. Additionally, we find the effects that different modes of presentation have on issue-specific polarization also extend to participant beliefs about overall interparty polarization, with certain modes proving capable of not only promoting less polarized views but also enabling more accurate estimates of the extent to which political groups agree. Finally, our findings also suggest that the manner in which intergroup data are visualized may also exert influence over the degree to which political groups are essentialized-a finding with implications for not only political perception but also for apolitical social psychological phenomena such as dehumanization.

Twisted knowledge construction on X/Twitter: an analysis of constructivist sensemaking on social media leading to political radicalization

PurposeThis study aims to identify how Brazilian followers of an X/Twitter profile engage in theory-building processes leading up to the January 8, 2023 riots in Brasília, the Brazilian capital. This paper seeks to understand how cognitive and sociocultural processes weave together to weaponize collective knowledge construction that, in isolation, could be seen as virtuous but, in specific contexts, might lead to radicalization.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses qualitative content analysis of comments on ambiguous X/Twitter posts published by a conspiratorial profile associated with former President Jair Bolsonaro. Content was published in the three weeks that preceded the coup d’état attempt by Bolsonaro supporters on January 8, 2023.FindingsFindings point to users’ resorting to intuitive knowledge to support sensemaking processes in their search for subliminal meanings in tweets. That includes, for example, attempts to crack binary code-encrypted messages. This study also identified practices of cross-media sourcing, where users collect evidence from alternative social media channels to interpret messages containing verbal and visual information. Finally, this study found that religious symbols are often instrumentalized and become a lens through which followers organize information to integrate with their existing knowledge and assumptions.Research limitations/implicationsWith this work, the authors build on existing scholarship on epistemologies used by conspiratorial and radicalized groups as they engage in systematic sensemaking and often refer to religion to interpret messages that motivate extreme political position-taking. This study addresses a similar phenomenon as it unfolds in an understudied geographical context (Brazil) and seeks to demonstrate how individuals engage in collective sensemaking practices. The authors hope that their findings inform educators as they explore the affordances of social media to foster positive collective learning experiences in reasoning supported by social media.Originality/valueThe originality of this study is twofold. First, this study uses an analytical lens that draws on the learning sciences and cognitive science for inquiry of radicalization happening around social media. The authors understand that social media lend themselves particularly interesting to the analysis, as they are settings where notions of mastery blur, and individuals engage in conversations on complex, controversial topics. With that engagement, they demonstrate willingness to reason collectively. Second, this study investigates how those phenomena unfold in an understudied context, responding to calls for more diversity in research in the learning sciences as well as in media studies.

LINGUISTIC MARKERS OF EXTREMISM IN ISLAMIST TEXTS OF THE RELIGIOUS GENRE “SERMON”: METHODOLOGICAL ASPECT

Linguistic examination of texts with allegedly extremist content is carried out using special methods. The most popular today are lexical-semantic, semantic-syntactic methods, as well as the method of discourse anal-ysis, which allow an expert linguist to make an objective expert opinion on the issues raised. An expert linguist conduc ting an examination of texts with allegedly extremist content has to identify linguistic markers of extrem-ism that are implemented at all language levels. The linguistic examination of Islamist discourse texts involves taking into account genre features of a religious text, having an impact on linguistic markers. Islamist discourse is understood as texts related to political radical trends of Islamism. The article presents fundamental diff erenc-es between the terms “Islam” as a world religion and “Islamism” as a political trend. We propose an algorithm for the me thodology of analyzing texts of allegedly extremist content based on the material of an Islamist text of the “sermon” genre, the main function of which is to instruct believers. Linguistic markers of extremism in the sermon genre are identifi ed during the analysis and are classifi ed according to their main functions: motivation and appeal, negation, demonstration of the superiority of one person or group of persons over other people based on nationality, origin and attitude to religion. These linguistic markers are implemented using the following lin-guistic means: morphological (verbs of obligation, verbs of the 2nd person singular or plural in the imperative mood, the form of the imperative of the 1st person plural); syntactic (particles in imperative sentences, complex sentences with subordinate clauses, addresses in combination with verbs in the imperative mood of the 2nd per-son plural); rhetorical means (rhetorical questions, antithesis); lexical and semantic means (nouns, verbs and oth-er parts of speech with negative connotations); morphemic and word-formation means (comparative, superlative forms). The identifi ed linguistic markers realize the function of demonstrating superiority, appeal, negativity in relation to “strangers”, “others”.

Open Legal Primaries in Chile: Reflections Ten (Turbulent and Convulsive) Years after Their Formal Enactment

Objective/context: This paper examines the open legal primary rule in Chile for the selection of the presidential candidate, established in 2012 through Law 20640. This rule contains elements shared with similar legislation in the region as well as specific characteristics. Methodology: Through a case study, we will investigate the results and consequences of the application of primaries on the three occasions they were implemented (2013, 2017, and 2021). We will review the formal changes adopted and the political events that occurred in the interim, considering the main variables that typically intervene in electoral events of this nature, drawn from the existing debate and literature. Conclusions: The case of Chile shows that the combination of an open legal primary system with voluntary internal voting, incomplete simultaneity, and the absence of stable political groupings produces effects that do not align with either the general aspirations for the implementation of primaries or the theoretical purposes outlined by the ideologists of Chilean legislation. Originality: This study contributes to the emerging literature addressing open legal primaries in their dual aspect, both as a nomination mechanism and as an electoral rule.

The (De‐)Europeanization of the Political Class in the European Parliament: A Longitudinal Analysis of Members of the European Parliament's Career Patterns (1979–2019)

AbstractThis article presents a systematic empirical analysis of the career patterns of all 3634 members of the European Parliament (MEPs) who served in the European Parliament (EP) over the last 40 years (1979–2019). It explains how changes in the EP's structure of opportunities have shaped the development of MEPs' career patterns. First, we show that the development of a European political class is not a recent trend but that this process took place in the early days of the EP (as soon as in the 1984–1989 term), albeit with variance across political groups of the European Parliament (EPGs) and Member States. Second, we observe that the transformation of party systems and electoral volatility have been questioning the existence of the European political class. Overall, we conclude that legislative institutions are only as strong as the individuals who are called to serve them. Recent rises in the EP's turnover could ultimately undermine the EP's formal policy‐making capacity in the middle and long terms.

A Political Radicalization Framework Based on Moral Foundations Theory

Moral foundations theory proposes that individuals with conflicting political views base their behavior on different principles chosen from a small group of universal moral foundations. This study proposes using a set of widely accepted moral foundations (fairness, in-group loyalty, authority, and purity) as proxies to determine the degree of radicalization of online communities. A fifth principle, care, is generally surpassed by others that are higher in the radicalized groups’ moral hierarchy. Moreover, the presented data-driven methodological framework proposes an alternative way to measure whether a community complies with a certain moral principle or foundation: not evaluating its speech, but its behavior through the interactions of its individuals, establishing a bridge between the structural features of the interaction network and the intensity of communities’ radicalization regarding the considered moral foundations. Two foundations were assessed using the network’s structural characteristics: in-group loyalty measured by group-level modularity, and authority evaluated using group domination, for detecting potential hierarchical substructures within the network. By analyzing a set of Pareto-optimal groups regarding a multidimensional moral relevance scale, the most radicalized communities were identified among those considered extreme in some of their attitudes or views. An application of the proposed framework is illustrated using real-world datasets. The radicalized communities’ behavior exhibited increasing isolation, and their authorities and leaders showed growing domination over their audience. Differences were also detected between users’ behavior and speech, showing that individuals tended to share more “extreme” in-group content than they publish: extreme views get more likes on social media.

Is the Muslim Brotherhood a Sect?

This article proposes the novel understanding of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood as a sect, going against the grain of the existing literature, which posits it as a political group, a social movement, or a religious movement (or some combination of all of the above). The sectarianisation occurs within the group via ideological build-up, organisational tactics, and internal socialisation of behaviour. The group is also a sect by constituting its unique identity in opposition to external actors. To make the argument, the analysis draws on the statements of key figures within the movement’s history, such as its founder Hasan al-Banna, as well as a range of interviews with current and ex-members. My argument has two main consequences for our understanding of sectarianism in general and the Brotherhood in particular. First, sectarianism is a process of sectarianisation that operates beyond the state and at lower levels, such as groups and individuals. Second, the Brotherhood is not a mere victim of the sectarianising practices of the state. Its sectarianisation is partly of its own making.

Support for Partisan Violence among the Political Fringe: The Case of Antifa and QAnon Supporters

ABSTRACT Recent surveys have shown that significant numbers of partisans in the United States harbor violent attitudes towards out-party politicians and out-party members. This finding has corresponded with the increased visibility of political fringe groups, such as Antifa on the political left and QAnon on the political right. Fringe groups such as these take ideologically extreme political positions and defy political norms, including prohibitions on political violence. Are partisan supporters of these fringe groups more likely to hold violent political attitudes? Using survey data from the Understanding America Study (UAS), we test whether Antifa supporters and QAnon supporters are more likely to report violent attitudes compared to non-fringe group supporters. We find supporters of both groups are more likely to wish harm towards out-party members, support violent protest, and support various forms of interpersonal violence towards out-party members. The results hold even when controlling for ideological extremity, personality, and affective partisanship.

Islamic Radicalisation in Bangladesh: An Analysis of Political Islamism in Bangladesh

Islamism in the modern world is clearly portrayed as a notion of religious extremism. Bangladesh on the other hand as a young developing nation finds its root into two different branches of ideology: Bengali cultural and Muslim ideology. The militant groups in Bangladesh have been found active recently specially after 2015 when international media spotted Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and the Islamic State’s (IS) presence in the country. This study, however, aims at understanding the Islamic radicalisation in Bangladesh through the analysis of Islamist political and non-political groups’ functions and propaganda. In this article the ideas of Islamic radicalisation, mutations and role and function of Islamist militant as well as political group have been discussed. The role of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing in the radicalisation have been discussed. The disputed relationship of Jamaat and the radical extremists as well as ban on their politics have created a complex scenario in Bangladesh. The political polarisation and politicising of counter terrorism effort have weakened the government’s effort to tackle radical organisation. Honest and tolerant political intervention by welcoming different views regarding the solution of the radicalisation problem can help address it effectively.

Эволюция репрессивной политики большевиков в 1920–1924 гг. на примере Кубано–Черноморской области

The change of power in October 1917 in Russia led to an increase in confrontation in society, ex-pressed both in an open military conflict - the Civil War, and in the growth of political radicalism. Any government in relation to its opponents - in this case, counter-revolutionaries, conspirators, rebels - reserves the right to use legal violence, which reflects one of the main functions of the state. The problem of red terror, like white terror, in turn, is at the intersection of the concepts of law and lawlessness, since they were carried out by the state in the form of lynchings and repris-als, which included innocent citizens. The V All-Russian Congress of Soviets ensured the legaliza-tion of the legal policy of the Bolsheviks. The regime of power established in October 1917 passed into the status of legitimate, and the formed state bodies received the right to legally implement all functions available to the state, including receiving a monopoly on violence. The problems of the transition period from war communism to NEP, accompanied by extra-legal methods, mani-fested themselves most clearly in the Cossack south of Soviet Russia, which differed in class, na-tional composition and special land use conditions.