Political Views Research Articles

Наступствы гуманітарнай катастрофы: украінскі погляд на перспектывы ўкраінска-беларускіх адносін (па матэрыялах вуснай гісторыі)

Before the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, all sociological surveys recorded that Ukrainians showed the warmest attitude towards Belarusians. After this invasion, the intercourse became negative. The main purpose of the article was to explore the dynamics and prospects for the restoration of good-neighborly relations between these two nations. After this invasion the attitude became somewhat or completely negative. Analyzing the testimonies of refugees from Ukraine who currently live in Poland, the author identifies the main factors that have both a positive and a negative impact on further mutual understanding. Those most often identified as contributors to the resumption of dialogue include: the attempt of the Belarusian „revolution of dignity” of 2020, the presence of volunteer battalions supporting Ukraine, partisan resistance in Belarus, and the active volunteer activities of Belarusians. Equally important for Ukrainians are the political views of representatives of Belarus, their stance on the Russian-Ukrainian war, and the legitimacy of Lukashenko’s power. Despite the considerable number of unresolved issues, the prospect of restoring good neighborly relations between Ukraine and Belarus is quite promising.

Eurocentrism and the constraints in alternative knowledge production: the case of Pakistani international relations

This article addresses the persistent Eurocentrism in the national IR academies within the Global South, notwithstanding continued appeals for pluralization of the global field of IR. Focusing on the discipline of IR in Pakistan, the study explores the implications of Western intellectual dominance through in-depth interviews with local IR academics. The findings demonstrate a marked dependence on realist ideas (the classical strand in particular), which emphasize state-centric and security-focused views of world politics. This restricted approach corresponds with realpolitik because of its pragmatic focus on state security and interests, while ignoring broader theoretical assumptions. These realist ideas are sustained through academic norms, establishing a pattern which perpetuates Eurocentric perspectives in the Pakistani IR community. The article recognizes Western intellectual gatekeeping practices, and the national higher education system of Pakistan, as notable hindrances to the advancement of the discipline in Pakistan. Additionally, lax academic standards in local knowledge production, tied to professional progression, confine Pakistani IR academics to domestic publishing platforms. This discursive environment incentivizes state and security-oriented research, leading to IR scholarship in Pakistan that lacks originality and quality, remains predominantly Eurocentric, and primarily supports state security policies. The study underscores the necessity for a more diverse and contextually relevant approach to IR in Pakistan, which would better capture the country’s unique realities and contribute to a richer global discourse.

Moral foundations and political ideology in the UK

Moral foundations theory is one of the most popularised and tested lenses of recent years, with its ability to account for differences in political ideology. For the first time using a nationally representative random probability sample, we assess how the newly refined moral foundation questionnaire may explain differences in political ideology and views on political issues in the UK. We confirm a six-factor model with robust estimates for the moral intuitions of care, equality, proportionality, authority, loyalty, and purity. We then use moral intuitions to predict (a) economic left-right and socially liberal-conservative ideology and (b) the relationship between political ideology and views on salient political issues. We find moral intuitions mostly play a unifying role across a series of issues, with the exception of feelings toward patriotism and Brexit.

The Church and Violence During Multiparty Elections in Kenya from 1992 to 2017

Violence fastened with the passion of religion predominantly continues cloaking the world at an alarming rate because violence does not only belong to everyone but it is also at the heart of the consecrated. It is no surprise therefore that violence in Kenya recurs virtually during every election resulting into polarization and tensions along religious and ethnic affiliations or both. The purpose of this paper was to examine the relationship between the Church and violence during multiparty politics in Kenya. This paper analyzed the role the church played in specific violent events during multiparty politics since 1992 up to 2017 in Kenya. In this regard the study responded to the question; what was the role of the church in the violent events during elections in multiparty politics since 1992 in Kenya? To answer this question the study investigated the role of the church in the specific violence which occurred during elections in 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007, 2013 and 2017 election years in Kenya inferring that their roles influenced the occurrence of violence from time to time. The study was conducted through qualitative research method using historical research designs. The study established that the churches in Kenya played various roles in the violence; some of the churches kept quiet as violence flourished in their areas of jurisdiction because they conceived it as punitive and ungodly and in that way, they were in coordinated efforts; while some other churches condoned and extenuated circumstances that led to violent acts because they had a passive attitude towards the government authority having been part and parcel of it in calling for social changes; whereas some churches were not only complicit but endorsed and exhorted violence particularly by blessing youth warriors before going to fight in ethnic violence, believing that it was their religious duty to extirpate injustices and subdue evil in the sinful world using strategic acts of violence as necessary means of deterring large acts of violence and that they had the divine authority to legitimize violence so as to uproot the political evils bedeviling Kenya. In view of all these, the study concluded that the churches were metaphysically, morally, politically and criminally culpable for the violence during multiparty politics in Kenya. Consequently the study maintains that the church in Kenya, like it is with religion in general, is intrinsically violent in the version of a raging cosmic battle between “order” and “disorder” akin to the cosmic war theory as advanced by Mark Juergensmeyer. Often it is the boundary between ‘this world’ and the ‘other world’ that is blurred by church during electioneering period so that the supposedly cosmic battle becomes a real war when people shed real blood and die. The study recommends that it is important to understand the dynamics of the roles played in violence by other religious organization in multi religious nations like Kenya. The degree to which other faiths influence political views in Kenya with regard to election violence is critical. The issue of how the church can mitigate against the cyclic political violence in Kenya kept on evocating in the study. It is important to understand the remedies that the church can put in place to alleviate violence during elections in Kenya.

Discrimination Based on Political or Other Opinions: Impact on the Labor Rights of Probationary Employees and Interns

Abstract The probation (trial) period employment contract and the internship are characterized by certain specificity in Georgian law. The issue of protecting the labor rights of probationary employees and interns, especially the termination of the contract, is even more specific. Moreover, the issue of political or other views, as one of the types of freedom of expression and the form of discrimination is interesting in the internship and trial period labor relationship. Based on the specificity of the Georgian case law, due to the simple termination of the probation period (trial period) employment contract, it is possible that the employer may abuse his right and thus violate the rights of the employee and/or intern. The following article mainly focuses on the research of these issues. The article also analyses the recent approaches of the Georgian courts’ practice and several cases of the International Court of Justice, which are the most well-known and often cited cases in foreign legal literature.

Seeking the first phylogenetic method–Edvard A. Vainio (1853–1929) and his troubled endeavour towards a natural lichen classification in the late nineteenth century Finland

Edvard August Vainio was a world-renowned Finnish lichenologist. In Finland, however, he was a controversial person due to his strong pro-Finnish political views. Equally disputed was his opinion that systematics should be based on evolutionary theory and phylogenetic thinking. Vainio was familiar with the ideas of the early German phylogeneticists—especially those of Carl Wilhelm von Nägeli – and, applying them, aimed to create an exact method for building a natural classification of lichens already at the end of the nineteenth century. In this respect, Vainio was a true pioneer, as no actual phylogenetic method had yet been developed. In the general spirit of the time, Vainio focused on finding the ancestors of species and other taxa by comparing primitive and derived features of homologous characters. However, Vainio already understood the concept of sister groups in 1880, the identification of which is the basis of all modern phylogenetic research. Nevertheless, the distinctive method developed by Vainio was not so much focused on the construction of a phylogenetic tree, but on revealing the origin of species through the differentiation and fixation of their polymorphic variation. Indeed, Vainio’s species concept is surprisingly similar to the phylogenetic species concepts presented a hundred years later. Although in many ways progressive, Vainio’s views did not influence the development of phylogenetics more widely, but his discussions are nevertheless a valuable source to understanding the early development of phylogenetic theory.

What’s the risk? It depends. Entrepreneurs’ and employees’ perceptions of domestic city-level institutional risk

With a focus on entrepreneurs' decisions related to domestic location choices, this study draws from the international business institutional risk literature to evaluate city-level risk perceptions while accounting for individual-level political views. Specifically, we surveyed entrepreneurs and prospective employees in an effort to evaluate how important 1) safety risk, 2) political risk, and 3) social risk are when considering where to live, work, and start businesses. This process also included a comparison to ease of doing business, a previously studied driver of investment decisions. To identify low (and high) risk domestic investment locations, we had participants rate 25 large U.S. cities on the risk factors. Our findings indicate that entrepreneurs and prospective employees care about the city-level institutional risk factors. However, the focus and perceptions of entrepreneurs and prospective employees are greatly influenced by political views, perceptions do not always mirror objective data, and the two groups weight risk differently. The key insight of our study is that, in order to access and maintain valuable human capital, entrepreneurs should begin considering employees' perceptions related to city-level institutional risk. Importantly, these perceptions are biased by factors such as one's political views. Likewise, to attract business investment, city leaders should consider these risk perceptions.

Resisting ideological echo chambers: if we are all critical pedagogues, how will we know we are doing LD well?

At the launch of How to be a Learning Developer in higher education (Syska and Buckley, 2024), a common thread emerged during contributor presentations: the need to develop a shared critical approach to position ourselves effectively within higher education. This approach would identify and implement strategies to resist the challenges of neoliberalism, working towards social justice for our students, using critical pedagogy. These themes are relatively common in the LD literature, and the ALDinHE value of ‘embracing […] critical pedagogy’ accompanies the manifesto statement that ‘neutrality is not an option’ (ALDinHE, 2023). These terms carry political connotations and implications for LD practice. Together, these factors suggest a move to develop a ‘signature’ critical LD pedagogy, underpinned by an explicitly ideological vision. Under these circumstances, we risk constructing ‘a bounded, enclosed media space that has the potential to both magnify the messages delivered within it and insulate them from rebuttal’ (Jamieson and Capella, 2008, p.76) — in short, an echo chamber. This raises some important questions: Given the explicitly political nature of critical pedagogy, in recruitment of new LD colleagues, should we test for and limit entry to our critical pedagogy club to those with ‘acceptable’ political views? Critical pedagogy is skeptical of dominant narratives. How will we prevent critical pedagogy from becoming the dominant narrative in our community? What if we are wrong? Even if our diagnosis of the challenges we face is correct, how will we test our solutions in the absence of robust challenges from alternative perspectives?

Italian Politics and Constitutional Views After the Elections in April 1996

Italian Politics and Constitutional Views After the Elections in April 1996

Vaccine conspiracy beliefs are the main determinant of adult vaccine hesitancy

Abstract Background Many factors influence the level of vaccine hesitancy. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that conspiracy beliefs are an important element of overwhelming misinformation. The main aim of the study was to assess the relationship between vaccine hesitancy (VH) and vaccine conspiracy beliefs (VCB) in Polish society. Methods The analysis was conducted using data from an online survey of 2189 Internet users conducted in November 2021. Uni- (ULRM) and multivariable linear regression (MLRM) models were developed for vaccine hesitancy as a dependent variable. The independent variables included VCB score (VCBS), health (HL) and e-health literacy (eHL), Internet (IU) and social media use (SMU), political views (PV), and sociodemographic variables. Results The VCBS, eHL, HL, age, income, vocational and marital status, place of residence, PV, IU, and SMU were significant predictors of VH in ULRMs. A significant relationship with VH was maintained in MLRM for all independent variables enlisted earlier, apart from age, income, and vocational status. Respondents with higher VCBS were more likely to have higher VH (B, 95%CI: 0.38, 0.37-0.40). Those with undetermined HL had higher VH than persons with sufficient HL (B, 95%CI: 0.13, 0.06-0.20). A higher level of eHL predicted a lower level of VH (B, 95%CI: -0.01, -0.012 - -0.03). Lower IU and higher SMU were associated with higher VH (B, 95%CI: 0.16, 0.02-0.30, and 0.10, 0.03-0.17, respectively). Supporters of far right-wing party showed higher HV than supporters of the governmental party (B, 95%CI: 0.16, 0.07-0.27). Finally, singles showed higher HV than married (B, 95%CI: 0.07, 0.01-0.13), and residents of small cities had higher HV than residents of rural areas (B, 95%CI: 0.08, 0.004-0.15). Conclusions The vaccine conspiracy beliefs play a major role in the development of VH. The interventions aimed at the change of antivaccination attitudes should address the problem of widespread conspiracy beliefs. Key messages • Conspiracy beliefs are an important determinant of attitudes toward vaccination. • The development of adequate digital health literacy may be a protective factor against vaccine hesitancy.

Cooperativism as pedagogy: Conversation with Gustavo Machado a lecturer and researcher from Facultad de Ciencias Sociales de la Universidad de la República

This conversation with Gustavo Machado discusses the role of cooperativism as a pedagogical process in Uruguay. Machado emphasizes how cooperatives serve as models for housing production and transformative social learning processes, embedding collective action and mutual aid into daily life. He distinguishes between housing, habitat, and inhabitation, advocating for a broader understanding of living that transcends physical structures and integrates social, cultural, and communal dimensions. Our conversation delves into the political significance of cooperatives in the face of neoliberalism, positioning them as alternatives to market-based housing models. Machado discusses the challenges cooperatives face, such as state regulation and the need for flexibility in adapting to changing life circumstances. He also reflects on his personal experiences growing up in a cooperative during Uruguay's dictatorship, which shaped his political and professional views. The article highlights the intersection of cooperativism with broader social movements, such as gender equality and mental health, and the importance of international dialogue in expanding cooperative housing models across Latin America.

Social listening applied to tailor communication on immunization in the Republic of Moldova.

Although the Republic of Moldova had good vaccination rates, anti-vax messages have recently begun to spread, eroding the population's confidence. Vaccination coverage against measles, mumps, and rubella at the target age of 12 months decreased from 95% in 2008 to 83% in 2021. The recent measles outbreak in Romania and three confirmed cases in Moldova, combined with the refugee crisis, have highlighted the importance of vaccination and sparked online conversations on this subject. A mixed-methods study was conducted, involving social listening activities on immunization using the Talkwalker software and qualitative analysis of the identified narratives. Out of 450 identified comments, 30 were selected for further analysis. Over 5 months, a total of 865 results were obtained, with an engagement rate of 6300. The peak in results occurred between 11 and 18 December, driven by the recent measles outbreak in Romania, which saw several confirmed cases and one death, as well as the first cases of measles in Moldova after 3 years. However, no significant increase in the engagement rate was recorded. Comments on immunization tended to reflect distrust in authorities and doctors, political and ideological views, and a lack of knowledge about the risks of vaccine-preventable diseases. The analysed conversations are assessed as having a low risk of spreading, though some employ techniques to influence or manipulate behaviours. The topic of vaccination is used to promote political ideologies through messages issued by the mass media. The information vacuum must be filled with messages designed to produce attitude change regarding vaccination.

Political View at the St. Petersburg EAEU Summit

In the world of the 21st century, international economic structures are increasingly increasing their influence on the world market, which directly affects the economic potential of the member countries of these organizations and the development and prosperity of the national economy. EAEU is considered one of such structures, which during its nearly 10 years of activity has had a great impact on the internal output of the member states, as well as on ensuring interstate economic cooperation and the economic integration process. The St. Petersburg meeting had a special role and significance within the framework of EAEU, during which a strategy regulating and coordinating the structure's further work was promoted and a document was signed that created visible prospects in the near future in order to clarify its actions and upcoming steps. The authors of the scientific work, taking into account the importance and strategic significance of this document, considered it necessary to present in the form of an article what prospective positive impact the document can have for the organization and its member countries and what its goals are.

The elephant in the room? Considerations of politics among older adult daters

AbstractA sharply polarized political climate may increase the importance single adults place on politics in partner selection. While the importance of politics in dating decisions is not surprising in light of homophily, less is known about how older adults consider political differences in partnering. We answer two questions about older daters and politics: (1) How do older adult daters consider potential partners' political views? and (2) How do perceptions of rising political polarization shape these preferences? We use interview data with 67 adults (aged 55–92) from the Romance and Dating in Later Life study, conducted in Phoenix, AZ, in 2022–2023. Findings show politics are highly salient in partner selection across gender, class, and ideology, suggesting older singles place substantial importance on political views when choosing partners. Many older singles prioritize shared beliefs, while others practice open‐mindedness. Extremist politics, particularly right‐leaning, are viewed as a significant barrier to dating. This study demonstrates how older daters consider political beliefs in dating decisions, particularly considering perceptions of rising polarization. This contributes to research highlighting the role of political ideology in shaping dating decisions by extending the research to include explicit study of mid‐ and late‐life adults, whose dating experiences differ from young adult singles.

Sensorial and Sonic Aspects in the Writings of the “English-American” Thomas Gage (c. 1603–1656) on Mexico and Guatemala

Objective/Context: This article examines dimensions of sensoriality within the writings of Thomas Gage (c. 1603–1656) regarding his experiences as a Dominican friar in Mexico and Guatemala between 1625 and 1637. His 1648 travelogue, The English-American His Travail by Sea and Land, is the first detailed eyewitness report of daily life in the Spanish colonies by an English writer. Yet this work and his other writings were published after he converted to Protestantism and formed an explicit part of anti-Catholic discourse in England. Methodology: Written from a historical-musicological perspective, this study is informed by the approaches of sensory history to identify and critique the sonic episodes and metaphors in Gage’s texts. It critically analyzes his travelogue and investigates how his accounts of musical, gastronomic, and religious experiences underpinned and influenced his political and theological views. To draw out his unique perspectives on music, it also considers soundscapes and the material and cultural dimensions in his descriptions. Originality: Recent scholarship has shown how Gage’s transnational and transconfessional identities did not fit traditional frameworks of analysis and limited scholarly attention to him. Lately, however, researchers have highlighted his mention of the senses. This article focuses specifically on hearing to show that his writings contain unique viewpoints and data on music and sound. Conclusions: Assessment of Thomas Gage within the frameworks of musicology and sensory history demonstrates that he invoked the senses in seemingly unique ways, especially by conflating their physical and metaphysical dimensions when critiquing Catholic practices in colonial contexts.

Xenophobia in Juror Decision-Making

Abstract With the upsurge of anti-globalizing ideologies and politics, the increasing institutionalization of xenophobia within the legal system has emerged as a pressing concern. Existing law and social science research has underexplored xenophobic bias in the US legal system. This article conceptualizes xenophobic bias as consisting of racism and nationalism. It investigates whether mock jurors reach different verdicts on defendant companies from foreign countries of origin (Japan, France, and China) compared to domestic (US) companies. Using a test simulating a patent lawsuit, the research finds no evidence of general xenophobic bias in juror liability verdict decisions, yet there is a specific bias against the Chinese company when granting damage awards. The similarity-leniency effect that has been established in the previous literature is corroborated in this article. Additionally, political views moderate the effects of the company’s country of origin on juror decisions. This research offers a more nuanced conceptual framework of xenophobic bias in juror decision-making for future law and social science research and informs judicial policies seeking to improve jury instructions and jury selection to reduce xenophobic bias.

Political identity and risk politics: Evidence from a pandemic.

The way political identity serves as a foundation for political polarization in the United States permits elites to extend conflict rapidly to new issue areas. Further, the types of cognitive mechanisms and shortcuts used in the politically polarized information environment are similar to some of those used in risk perception. Consequently, political elites may easily create partisan risk positions, largely through politically focused social amplification of risk. The COVID-19 pandemic provided a natural experiment for testing predictions about such risk politics. We asked questions about pandemic-related views, behaviors, and policies at the outset of the pandemic in April 2020 and again in September 2020 via public opinion surveys. Our data and analyses focus primarily on a single state, with some analysis extended to four states. We begin by demonstrating strong linkages between political partisan identification on the one hand and support for co-partisan elites, use of partisan information sources, and support for co-partisan policies on the other hand. We then find evidence that pandemic risk positions correspond with partisan information sources and find support for a mechanism involving partisan-tinted evaluation of elite cues. Partisan risk positions quickly became part of the larger polarized structure of political support and views. Finally, our evidence shows on the balance that partisan risk positions related to the pandemic coalesced and strengthened over time. Overall, while self-identified Democrats consistently viewed the coronavirus as the primary threat, self-identified Republicans quickly pivoted toward threats to their freedoms and to the economy.

A post-Brexit intergroup contact intervention reduces affective polarization between Leavers and Remainers short-term

With mounting evidence of the harmful societal consequences of affective polarization, it is crucial to find ways of addressing it. Employing a randomized controlled trial, this study tested the effectiveness of an intervention based on theories of intergroup contact and interpersonal communication in reducing affective polarization in the context of Brexit. Participants were 120 UK self-identified Leavers and Remainers. Sixty Leaver-Remainer dyads were randomized to engage in either a facilitated intergroup interaction or a control interaction, which was equivalent in structure and tone but was unrelated to Brexit identities. Different aspects of affective polarization were assessed one month prior, immediately after, and one month after the intervention. Results indicate that the intervention increased warmth toward the outgroup, reduced unfavourable attributions of the sources of outgroup positions, and increased willingness to compromise, but only short-term. There were no statistically significant longer-term effects of the intervention. Evidence of selective attrition further suggests that those with more extreme baseline opinions were more likely to drop out. Our findings highlight the challenges of designing effective interventions that engender enduring attitude change in polarized contexts and of engaging those with extreme political views. This study can provide a useful framework for future research.

Musical metapolitics and the Alt-Right

With some notable exceptions, research on the far-right and music has historically focused on rock-derived genres such as punk and metal. As the far-right have shifted political emphasis and sought to mainstream their political views, so, too, has research into the contemporary far-right demonstrated a distancing among political ideologues and parties as well as groups from both extreme lyrics and ‘harsher’ sounding elements. This has gone hand-in-hand with an embracing of a wider range of musical styles. Focusing on the music associated with the Alt-Right, a broad movement which sought to mainstream far-right politics, this article suggests that a cultural shift within the far-right went hand-in-hand with a mode of aesthetic appreciation among Alt-Right adherents, which has implications for the mainstreaming of far-right politics in relation to musical cultures and aesthetics. This form of musical metapolitics emphasized dissonant principles of irony and aesthetic pluralism as a form of strategic ambiguity, but still retained notions of racial superiority at its core despite an avowed openness to genre-based pluralism. Importantly, this process has implications for the mainstreaming of far-right messaging today using a wide variety of musical aesthetics.

Designing Political Brand Identity Through Architecture: A Case of Malatya City Hall

Corporate level awareness and understanding of political systems are widely spreading in politics through the application of marketing concepts by parties. This study explores how party ideology, hierarchical structures, and symbolism are embedded into the design of government buildings to enhance corporate communication with stakeholders. A design strategy that links architecture with politics views specific architectural features as semiotic resources for party identity and envisions them as design patterns in the future. This paper presents the Malatya City Hall as an example, which was designed using a similar architectural style to that of the Nationalist Movement Party Headquarters in Türkiye. Employing critical discourse analysis (CDA), we unveil the political structure underlying the Headquarters, which is subsequently transposed into the design of City Hall. The Ottoman-Seljuk architectural style, in its modern interpretation, serves as a reflection of political ideology in these buildings. The corporate organizational structure is emphasized through the president’s prominent position and the restricted accessibility to his spaces, evident in the layout design. Additionally, symbolism is incorporated by aligning the building’s architectural plan with the party’s logo, creating a direct visual representation of political brand identity.