84 research outputs found
The Link between Muslim Religiosity and Negative Attitudes toward the West: An Arab Study
No full textIslam is the fastest growing religion in the world, with Muslims being the
majority in 50 countries. The substantial numbers of Muslim immigrants
moving to the West and the fact that Muslim values are quite different
from the secular system adopted by Europeans and Americans are more
reasons why it is imperative to understand their attitudes toward Westerners.
The present study examined and analyzed the relationship between two
types of Muslim religiosity and prejudice toward the West in an Arab-Muslim
context, a region that is dominated by Muslim believers. Further, the study
also examined other associated constructs to prejudice on anti-Western
attitudes. Religious Fundamentalism (RF) and the intrinsic component of
the Intrinsic/Extrinsic (I/E-R) scale were both used to measure Muslim religiosity in an Arab-Muslim sample of 608 participants that were collected from
17 Arab countries. Also, Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) and Dogmatism
(DOG) were included to test their mediated effects on the relationship
between Islamic religiosity and anti-Western attitudes. The results indicated
that Islamic fundamentalism was the dominant predictor of unfavorable
attitudes toward the West, followed by intrinsic Muslim religiosity and dogmatism. The findings also showed that RWA and DOG partially mediated the
relationship between intrinsic Muslim religiosity and anti-Western attitudes.
The paper concludes by discussing the implications of these findings in an
Islamic context
Does a Fundamentalist Mindset Predict a State or Trait Anxiety? The Covariate Role of Dogmatism
No full textRecent neuropsychological studies reported that fundamentalism beliefs and its cognitive mindset provoke sense of coherency and protection against the ambiguity as well as a rapid doubt resolution and thus offer relief from distress and uncertainty. In this study, we examined whether the need for closure dimensions predicted religious fundamentalism. Further, we tested if pronounced religious beliefs (also controlled for dogmatism) would be associated with a state or trait anxiety, in a sample of 388 Roman Catholics (females = 53.9%). Path analysis (SEM), with observed variables, was used to determine the pathways by which religious fundamentalism, need for closure dimensions, and dogmatism interacted to influence anxiety. The results revealed that religious fundamentalism was predicted by intolerance to ambiguity, preference for order, and closed-mindedness; in turn, high fundamentalism scores predicted state anxiety exclusively. Additionally, when controlling for dogmatism, the fundamentalism–anxiety path became nonsignificant. Although it seemed that fundamentalism beliefs “per se” have played no direct anxiolytic effect, they partially perform a function of avoiding chaos and disorder in order to maintain cognitive integrity
Religiosity and prejudice in a Western and Islamic context
No full textThis thesis examines the relationship between religiosity and prejudice in both a Western and Islamic context. The first part of the thesis examines the relationship between Christian religiosity and anti-Islamic attitudes (attitudes towards Islam and Muslims). The Muslim groups included Muslims from the Arabian Gulf, Asia, Middle-East, and native-born Muslims living in the West. Religious measurements focused on Christians were explored with measures of Fundamentalism, Intrinsic/Extrinsic religious orientations and the Post-Critical Belief scale. Two Studies were conducted in the UK (Study 1; N=339 and Study 2; N=299) and the results revealed that fundamentalism predicted negative attitudes toward Islam and Muslims. Further, the Factor Analyses (FA) and Structural models (SEM) supported a single underlying dimension for anti-Islamic attitudes (outcome variables).
Next, two additional studies were carried out in the US, with Study 3 (N=228) conducted immediately prior to the 2016 US presidential elections including similar measures of Islamophobia and multiple measures of religiosity. The same sample was followed up several months after the elections (Study 4; N=111). The results in the American context were in line with the previous studies in the UK. Following these studies in a Western context, the final study was conducted (in Arabic) in an Islamic context (Study 5; N=270). Most of the sample participants were from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Egypt, and followed by other Arab countries. The sample also included Sunni, Shia, and ex-Muslims.
Since there has been less research on these issues in the Islamic context, new measures were developed to look at general Muslim religiosity, Islamic Fundamentalism, attitudes toward Christians, Jewish, and toward the West. The new scales were analysed using factor analysis, and the overall data examined with SEM to explore models analogous to those explored in the UK and US contexts. The findings in this study reveal that Muslim religiosity and Islamic fundamentalism are significant predictors of prejudiced attitudes toward Christians, Jewish, and the West. The conclusion highlights the importance of these findings, specifically to clarify the role of religion on these particular prejudices that are so central to current world conflicts. Limitations and avenues for future research are also discussed
Adapting authoritarianism: institutions and co-optation in Egypt and Syria
No full textThis PhD thesis compares Egypt and Syria’s authoritarian political systems. While the tendency in social science political research treats Egypt and Syria as similarly authoritarian, this research emphasizes differences between the two systems with special reference to institutions and co-optation. Rather than reducibly understanding Egypt and Syria as sharing similar histories, institutional arrangements, or ascribing to the oft-repeated convention that “Syria is Egypt but 10 years behind,” this thesis focuses on how events and individual histories shaped each states current institutional strengthens and weaknesses. Specifically, it explains the how varying institutional politicization or de-politicization affects each state’s capabilities for co-opting elite and non-elite individuals.
Beginning with a theoretical framework that considers the limited utility of democratization and transition theoretical approaches, the work underscores the persistence and durability of authoritarianism. Chapter two details the politicized institutional divergence between Egypt and Syria that began in the 1970s. Chapter three and four examines how institutional politicization or de-politicization affects elite and non-elite individual co-optation in Egypt and Syria. Chapter five discusses the study’s general conclusions and theoretical implications.
This thesis’s argument is that Egypt and Syria co-opt elites and non-elites differently because of the varying degrees of institutional politicization in each governance system. Rather than view one country as more politically developed than the other, this work argues that Syria’s political institutions are more politicized than their Egyptian counterparts. Syria’s political arena is, thus, described as politicized-patrimonialism. Syria’s politicized-patrimonial arena produces uneven co-optation of elites and non-elites as they are diffused through competing institutions. Conversely, the Egyptian political arena remains highly personalized as weak institutions and individuals are manipulated and molded according to the president’s ruling clique. This is referred to as personalized-patrimonialism. As a consequence, Egypt’s political establishment demonstrates more flexibility in ad hoc altering and adapting its arena depending on the emergence of crises.
This study’s theoretical implications suggest that, contrary to modernization and democratization theory’s adage that institutions lead to a political development, politicized institutions within a patrimonial order actually hinder regime adaptation because consensus is harder to achieve and maintain. It is within this context that Egypt’s de-politicized institutional framework advantages its top political elite. In this reading of Egyptian and Syrian politics, Egypt’s personalized political arena is more adaptable than Syria’s. These conclusions do not indicate that political reform is a process underway in either state
Jordan’s Accession to the WTO: Retrospective and Prospective
No full textJordan acceded to the WTO in 1999. In its accession Jordan agreed, for example, to reduce tariffs on imported products and open its services market; it also modified its intellectual property regime. Jordan enjoyed special and differential treatment in few areas and was not able to designate olive oil as a good eligible for special safeguards. The WTO agreements required fundamental changes in the domestic laws and regulations of Jordan. The article concludes by arguing that Jordan's accession to the WTO was a lengthy and costly process. Jordan agreed to an arduous package of legal and economic reforms. Given that Jordan agreed to greater commitments compared to the obligations of the original WTO members, the multilateral trading system witnessed an accession saga.accession, free trade, intellectual property, Jordan, market access, WTO, Financial Economics, International Relations/Trade, Political Economy,
War propaganda : Analytical study of Bashar Al-Assad's propaganda during the Syrian uprising.
No full textThe ongoing Syrian conflict is one of the most violent, bloody and complex conflicts that broke out in modern time. The Syrian people were inspired by the Arab spring, where popular demonstrations and peaceful protests demanded freedom and democracy. The Syrian regime declared that Syria is in a serious war against terrorism. This essay will try to analyze the Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad’s propaganda during the revolution against his government in March 2011. The analysis will go through a few of Al-Assad’s speeches and interviews during the Syrian uprising between 2011 and 2012. The study will be based on several fundamental researches that explain the relationship between the Syrian regime and the jihadi Islam in many dimensions before and after 2011. The study will answer the following question: How has the Syrian regime used fight terrorism as propaganda to serve its own political interest during the Syrian uprising 2011? In my study, I use argumentation analysis as a method, this method is used to assess the credibility and sustainability of text or politics in context. In an argued text, the author aims to convince the reader of something in a critical and reasonable manner of argument. The method used is both descriptive and appreciative of Bashar Al-Assad’s arguments. The study concluded that Al-Assad from the beginning of his presidency has played a major role of producing Islamists to achieve his own political objectives in the region and was able to take advantage of them while trying to crackdown the Syrian revolution in 2011 through many political acts.Denna uppsats analyserar den syriska presidenten Bashar Al-Assads propaganda under upproret mot sin regering i mars 2011. Analysen kommer att gå igenom några av Al-Assads tal och intervjuer under det syriska upproret mellan 2011 och 2012. Studien baseras även på olika politiska hållpunkter som förklarar förhållandet mellan den syriska regimen och islamister före och efter 2011. Studien kommer att svara på följande fråga: Hur har den syriska regimen använts sig av kampen mot terrorism som propaganda för att tjäna sina egna politiska intresse under syriska upproret 2011? I min studie använder jag argumentationsanalys som metod. Denna metod används för att bedöma text eller politikens trovärdighet och hållbarhet i sammanhang. I en argumenterande text syftar författaren till att övertyga läsaren om någonting på ett kritiskt och rimligt sätt. Metoden som används är både beskrivande och värderande av Bashar Al-Assads argument. Studien drar slutsatsen att Bashar Al-Assad har använts sig av terrorism-propaganda för att kunna överleva situationen. Analysen av Al-Assads argument visar att Al-Assads teser strider emot det som äger rum i Syrien och har även låg beviskraft. Uppsatsen kommer fram till att sedan början av Al-Assads presidentskap har han spelat en viktig roll för att producera islamister i syfte att uppnå sina politiska mål i regionen och kunde dra nytta av dem för att förtycka det syriska upproret 2011 genom att frisläppa islamister från Saydnaya-militärt fängelse genom en presidentsamnesti som utfärdat i maj 2011
DINAMIKA KONFLIK SURIAH PADA MASA PEMERINTAHAN BASHAR AL-ASSAD
No full textThis paper departs from the conflict that occurred in Syrian City, so it makes the author interested in trying to understand the basic problems that are the cause of the conflict. In addition, the author also tries to see who the actors who played a role in the conflict are, as well as the impact that the Syrian conflict has on the international world. The Syrian conflict has been going on for forty years to date, and the conflict has not yet seen its end. Since March 2011 the conflict in Syria has claimed so many lives, thousands of people have been displaced, and thousands of children orphaned. Many houses collapsed, infrastructure and public facilities were destroyed due to the conflict. Data on the Syrian conflict is collected from books, journals, and the web. These data are then categorized, systematized, and analyzed according to the purpose of writing. This paper concludes that the cause of the conflict in Syria is not due to differences in religious sects but rather the political and economic interests of the opposition opponents of Assad and opposition-supporting countries. There are three actors who play a role in the Syrian conflict: President Bashar al-Assad and his supporters, the Syrian opposition, and the Jihadist group. The resulting impact of the Syrian conflict is the large number of casualties that have fallen and the problem of refugees. From the time of the conflict in March 2011 to April 2013, The death toll was 150,000. Meanwhile, the displaced population is 2.4 million people, which is dominated by women and children. Meanwhile, 4 million Syrians are homeless. For the international community, the Syrian conflict has an impact on the handling of refugees
Iranian military support to the regime of Bashar al-Assad - Syrian civil war context analysis (2011-2021)
No full textStarptautiskās attiecības - Eiropas studijasSocioloģija, politoloģija un antropoloģijaInternational Relations - European StudiesSociology, Politics and AnthropologyBakalaura darba nosaukums ir “Irānas militārais atbalsts Bašāra al-Asada režīmam Sīrijas pilsoņu kara kontekstā (2011.-2021.gads)”, darba mērķis ir izpētīt Irānas sniegto militāro atbalstu Bašāra al-Asada režīmam Sīrijas pilsoņu kara kontekstā, laika posmā no 2011. līdz 2021.gadam. Savukārt darbā izvirzītā hipotēze nosaka, ka Irānas militārais atbalsts Bašāra al-Asada režīmam Sīrijā veicina tās reģionālās ietekmes palielināšanos.
Pirmā darba daļa ir balstīta uz teorētiskās bāzes izklāstu, kas šī darba ietvaros koncentrējas uz neoreālisma tradīciju pamatuzstādījumiem starptautiskajās attiecībās. Sīkāk tiek iezīmēts ofensīvā reālisma teorijas izklāsts, no kā tālāk izriet arī empīriskā materiāla par Irānas militārā atbalsta sniegšanu Bašāra al-Asada režīmam analīze. Otrā darba nodaļa sastāv no Irānas pozīciju un tās ārpolitisko interešu ieskicēšanas reģiona līmenī, tostarp iezīmējot Irānas un Sīrijas attiecību veidošanās dinamiku, kā arī Sīrijas pilsoņu kara konteksta izklāstu, lai trešajā darba nodaļā jau analizētu Irānas militāro atbalstu Bašāra al-Asada režīmam Sīrijas pilsoņu kara kontekstā, laika periodā no 2011. līdz 2021. gadam. Līdz ar Irānas militārā atbalsta analīzi tiek pētītas arī Irānas intereses un tās potenciālie ieguvumi, ko šī atbalsta rezultātā tā iegūst.
Darba gaitā izvirzītais mērķis tika īstenots un attiecīgi nonākts pie secinājumiem, kas daļēji apstiprina darba hipotēzi, nosakot, ka Irānas militārais atbalsts Bašāra al-Asada režīmam Sīrijas pilsoņu kara kontekstā ir ļāvis palielināt Irānas reģionālo ietekmi. Galvenie secinājumi, kas to apstiprina ir Sīrijas teritoriālais izvietojums, kas Irānas ietekmes paplašināšanai sniedz atvieglotu piekļuvi Levantas reģiona valstīm, īpaši tās sabiedrotajiem Libānā. Irānas ir izvietojusi savu militāro spēku citas valsts teritorijā, turklāt šāda militāro spēku klātesamība nerada drosības riskus Irānas teritoriālajai drošībai. Irānas kā reģionāla aktora lomas pieaugumu norāda tās konstantais militāro spēku nodrošinājums Bašāra al-Asada režīmam, neskatoties un citu ārēju notikumu vai citu reģionālu konfliktu rašanos – norādot, ka Irānai ir pietiekams spēku līmenis, lai novirzītu attiecīgus resursus dažādām interesēm. Tomēr analīzes dati par konkrētiem militārā atbalsta apjomiem ir ierobežoti, turklāt militārais atbalsts nav vienīgais faktors, kas veicina reģionālo ietekmes pieaugumu.The title of the Bachelor’s thesis is Iran’s military support to the regime of Bashar al-Assad – Syrian civil war context analysis (2011-2021). The aim of the work is to analyze military support provided by Iran to the regime of Bashar al-Assad in the context of the Syrian civil war, in the period from 2011 to 2021. With this in mind the hypothesis that follows states that Iran's military support to the regime of Bashar al-Assad in the context of the ongoing war in Syria has increased Iran's regional influence.
The first part of the work is based on a theoretical framework, which in this work focuses on the assumptions of the neo-realist tradition in international relations. The theory of offensive realism is further elaborated, from which the analysis of the issue of providing Iranian military support to the regime of Bashar al-Assad follows. The second chapter outlines Iran's position and foreign policy interests at the regional level, including the dynamics of Iran-Syria relations and the context of the Syrian civil war, in order to analyze Iran's military support to the regime of Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian civil war and its course for the period from 2011 to 2021. Along with the analysis of Iran's military support, the author also examines Iran's interests and the potential benefits it brings to its foreign interests of becoming a regional hegemon.
The aim of the work has been achieved, partly confirming the hypothesis of the work stating that Iran's military support to the regime of Bashar al-Assad in the context of the ongoing war in Syria has increased Iran's regional influence. Syria's territorial location provides facilitated support for the expansion of Iran's influence in the Levant region, especially its allie in Lebanon. Iran has deployed its military forces on the territory of another country, and the presence of such military forces does not pose a security risk to Iran's territorial security. Finally, Iran shows its regional actor role as it has provided militar support fot the Bashar al-Assad regime in long-term, even considering that throuh this time period Iran itself has faced various challenges. However, analytical data on specific amounts of military support are limited, and military support is not the only factor contributing to the increase in regional influence
St Andrews Research Culture Survey Report 2021
No full textThe report outlines the findings from the University of St Andrews Research Culture Survey conducted in March 2021. The findings provide a detailed picture of perceptions and experiences shared by the University of St Andrews staff and postgraduate students. The survey was conducted during the Covid-19 lockdown of 2021 and considered themes and issues relating to the draft Research Culture Vision, developed by the University Research Culture Group in 2020. This survey and its findings are strengthened by its robust design and broad inclusion from across our diverse community. These features also underpin its distinct contribution
Lower body gait analysis through real time gait parameter measurements using KINECT
No full textGait analysis is one of the important areas of research, with applications including diagnosis, monitoring, and rehabilitation. Current gait analysis systems, such as those used in a laboratory or a clinic, are intrusive, expensive or require carefully tuned settings. This thesis presents an accurate low body gait analysis method that is low-cost, non-intrusive, and requiring no battery-powered sensors or markers. Instead, it conducts gait analysis using a Kinect sensor, which has been used in various research areas for its capabilities of obtaining full body gait information. Our study uses the change in joint positions provided by the Kinect’s virtual skeleton frames to extract lower body gait parameters. We propose a simple but efficient technique to measure stride and its two component intervals: stance and swing, using only the ankle joint of each leg. To measure the ground truth, we also build a wearable sensor that can obtain accurate stride information. We evaluate our system using two subjects and report their stride duration, stance and swing intervals. Our results show that our system has a mean difference less than 10ms from the ground truth, with an error of less than 1%. Our results show that looking at the ankle joint alone is sufficient to calculate lower-body gait parameters.M.S.Includes bibliographical referencesby Bashar Abdulaziz Mahmoo
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