Voting is the cornerstone of democratic participation, allowing citizens to choose their leadership and shape government policy. However, since the 1990s, voter turnout has been declining, leading...Show moreVoting is the cornerstone of democratic participation, allowing citizens to choose their leadership and shape government policy. However, since the 1990s, voter turnout has been declining, leading to the question of why some people vote and others do not. While existing research has explored various factors influencing voter turnout, the impact of essential human needs has been underexplored. To address this gap, I investigate how food insecurity influences voter turnout, focusing on the mediating role of education. The theorised idea is that food insecurity creates economic stress and limits opportunities, which, in turn, negatively impacts education levels. Disparities in education can reduce political interest and knowledge, arguably leading to lower voter turnout. I employ theory testing process tracing to identify evidence for the constructed causal mechanism. Comparative case studies of Mali and Ghana, states with similar food security levels but varying education levels and voter turnout, will be conducted to explain this complex relationship. The results show the impact of food insecurity on education and voter turnout, revealing variations in school enrolment despite similar economic hardships. The research highlights the complex relationship between food security, education, and electoral participation, emphasising the need for a broader approach to socioeconomic factors to explain electoral participation.Show less
The banning of religious dress, such as the burqa, has sparked much debate over the last two decades. While secularism is a concept most countries committed to liberal values engage with, at least...Show moreThe banning of religious dress, such as the burqa, has sparked much debate over the last two decades. While secularism is a concept most countries committed to liberal values engage with, at least on the perspective of religious freedom, only some countries have formally applied it. France has been legally bound to secularism since 1905 and strongly maintains this stance, issuing the broadest restrictions on religiosity in public under its laïcité model. Although secularism has historically been associated with the Christian tradition, having come out of Enlightenment thought, its modern use seems to affect other religious communities to a greater extent, which has come with much criticism from the affected communities. This paper examines how the application of secularism interplays with the theory of religious decolonisation, in the context of a single-case study analysis of France. Through the use of qualitative content analysis the French government’s exposition of their secularism, laïcité, this paper has found a negative or non-consequential interplay between both concepts.Show less
Though numerous studies have explored the plausible relationship between welfare regimes’ socioeconomic characteristics and citizens’ attitudes toward the welfare state (Svallfors, 1997; Arts &...Show moreThough numerous studies have explored the plausible relationship between welfare regimes’ socioeconomic characteristics and citizens’ attitudes toward the welfare state (Svallfors, 1997; Arts & Gelissen, 2001; Ervasti et al., 2012), there is limited research on attitudes toward the impact of the welfare state on the economy (Kumlin et al., 2021). This thesis, therefore, aims to contribute to this growing literature by exploring the conditioning (through a socialization mechanism) of welfare regimes’ socioeconomic characteristics into citizens’ normative attitudes. Moreover, the thesis aims to answer an interesting paradox depicted in preliminary observations of the data from the European Social Surveys (ESS): Citizens from European countries under a more generous welfare state perceived the welfare state as imposing less strain on the economy than citizens from European countries under a less generous welfare state. Facilitated by multilevel regressions, the results highlight that the welfare regime’s socioeconomic characteristics, measured as total social expenditure and mediated by citizens’ level of welfare support, condition citizens’ attitudes towards welfare economic costs. As such, the paradox is explained by identifying significantly higher citizen support of the welfare state in more generous countries, which allows for the normalization (through a socialization mechanism) of higher welfare costs into (relatively) lower perceived levels over time and into an accepted and supported status quo in society. Furthermore, significant differences in citizens’ perceptions of welfare economic costs among welfare regimes are identified, in line with welfare regime typology (Esping-Andersen, 1990; Ferrera, 1996). Lastly, further research is recommended to investigate plausible explanators for intergenerational differences concerning citizens’ perceptions of welfare economic costs.Show less
Right-wing populist parties have been known for their illiberal positions on gender issues, and their recent critique of the rising “gender ideology”. What is puzzling, however, is an unexpected...Show moreRight-wing populist parties have been known for their illiberal positions on gender issues, and their recent critique of the rising “gender ideology”. What is puzzling, however, is an unexpected emphasis on issues related to gender typically ignored by these right-wing populist parties in their discourses and agendas. To explore the reasons behind these contradicting trends, this thesis aims to examine how right-wing populist parties are integrating gender into their discourse. The typical right-wing populist Dutch Freedom Party (PVV) will be the main research objective and a content analysis has been used to analyse their Tweets. The main finding in this thesis is that the adoption of liberal stances by the PVV demonstrated through a positive commitment to gender equality, looks like a strategic tool for promoting an anti-Islam and anti-migration agenda. Moreover, the conservative stances of the PVV towards the broader concept of gender, including diverse gender identities, the integration of gender in institutions and gender studies, can be explained by the “gender ideology”. The anti-elite element of the right-wing populist ideology is evident in the data, as the PVV consistently attributes the perceived problems with diversity and multicultural policies to elitist actors.Show less
The increasing impacts of climate change particularly affect vulnerable countries, such as many conflict-affected states. This is visible in the increase of conflict-outbreak over natural resources...Show moreThe increasing impacts of climate change particularly affect vulnerable countries, such as many conflict-affected states. This is visible in the increase of conflict-outbreak over natural resources. Environmental peacebuilding approaches, which aim to integrate natural resource management as a peacebuilding strategy, are increasingly used to tackle these new dynamics. However, the effects of environmental peacebuilding approaches, such as on social cohesion, are generally unknown. This is a critical limitation, considering frequent conflict escalation over ethnic identities. Through a mixed methods approach, analyzing an environmental peacebuilding project in the Nigerian states of Nasarawa, Taraba, and Benue, and conducting expert interviews with practitioners, this research explores the effect of environmental peacebuilding on social cohesion. It looks specifically at social cohesion as trust, shared identity, and equality, as these align with the main dimensions environmental peacebuilding approaches aim to address. This research found a significant effect of environmental peacebuilding on inter-group trust and equality, highlighting the necessity for an integrated approachShow less
Right-wing extremism in much of the Western world looks far different than it did even a decade ago. Extremists are getting younger, and radicalization is an increasingly online process. According...Show moreRight-wing extremism in much of the Western world looks far different than it did even a decade ago. Extremists are getting younger, and radicalization is an increasingly online process. According to most contemporary theories of radicalization, personal and political grievances are critical foundations for this process. Despite this, research into the forms these grievances take, especially in this new cohort of younger, more online extremists is rare. This study seeks to address this research gap by asking the question: What kinds of personal and political grievances are most likely to push young people to get involved with right-wing extremist groups online? It answers by performing a process of content analysis on messages sent between users of six large right-wing extremist group chats on the popular instant messaging platform Discord between early 2017 and early 2020 with the goal of identifying individual grievances and larger common themes in this cohort of extremists. Out of an initial dataset of 308,207 messages, over three hundred discrete examples were identified and further classified into 35 different thematic subcategories. Two clusters of especially prevalent interrelated grievances were also identified which tended to appear together, signaling the possibility that more similar clusters exist and reaffirming existing theories about the role of grievances in right-wing extremist radicalization pathways.Show less
This thesis explores the cultural and political biases inherent in generative AI models such as language and image-generation systems. It investigates how these biases manifest and their...Show moreThis thesis explores the cultural and political biases inherent in generative AI models such as language and image-generation systems. It investigates how these biases manifest and their implications for society, specifically focusing on models trained on vast internet datasets. The study uses Antonio Gramsci’s theory of cultural hegemony as an analytical framework to understand how generative AI, trained on socially produced information, reflects, and potentially reinforces societal values and ideologies. It provides empirical analysis through testing various generative AI platforms, examining their response to different prompts, and assessing their portrayal of culture, historical, and political subjects. The thesis aims to contribute to the broader discussion of generative AI’s role in shaping sociopolitical landscapes, offering insights into the extent and nature of biases present in these technologies, and their broader implications.Show less
This thesis explores how the populist radical right seeks to control non-majoritarian liberal institutions through democratic means. Specifically, I test this theory within presidential systems,...Show moreThis thesis explores how the populist radical right seeks to control non-majoritarian liberal institutions through democratic means. Specifically, I test this theory within presidential systems, examining whether a radical right government leads to an increase in legislative proposals that target the disempowerment of constitutional courts. Therefore, my hypothesis is that the number of legislative bills aiming to overcome the autonomy of constitutional courts is higher under populist radical right governments than under non-radical ones. I employ a mixed-method approach, starting with four longitudinal quantitative research and then applying in-depth analyses conducted in Brazil, El Salvador, the Philippines, and the United States to compare instances of radical right governance with those of previous non-radical coalitions in each country. The results generally support the hypothesis, except for a notable deviant case observed in the United States.Show less
This paper aims to explore the research question: ‘To what extent do economic elites’ preferences affect UK policy in complying with international law of refugee rights?’. In doing so, the...Show moreThis paper aims to explore the research question: ‘To what extent do economic elites’ preferences affect UK policy in complying with international law of refugee rights?’. In doing so, the conceptual framework of neo-feudalism, focusing on economic elites, attempts to build on previous literature providing an alternative explanation for UK policy being non-compliant with international laws on refugee rights. The methodology engages process tracing to investigate the mechanism behind the phenomena. Data found posits that economic elites influence policy in the UK due to the landscape of neo-liberal, market-orientated governance. Furthermore, due to this type of governance, and culture of securitisation, the immigration industry profits immensely from harsher border and asylum regulation. Economic elites thus have motivations in wanting to perpetuate and further policies that are noncompliant with international law to increase profits. Furthermore, data suggests that there are potential political motivations towards a more anti-immigrant stance due to increasingly close ties between economic elites and political parties. Overall, this potentially leads to profound and far-reaching consequences for, global governance, human rights, and democracy. Not only do economic elites wielding disproportionate power in government undermine democracy, but they could also contribute to the erosion of international legal norms, governmental effectiveness, and credibility. The implied possible exacerbation of global inequality and injustice requires further exploration.Show less
Due to their limited relative power and material capabilities, neorealism posits that weaker states can either pursue a balancing or bandwagoning strategy against the revisionist power threat....Show moreDue to their limited relative power and material capabilities, neorealism posits that weaker states can either pursue a balancing or bandwagoning strategy against the revisionist power threat. However, Southeast Asian states are not behaving as the neorealist expectations suggest. Instead, hedging explains why these smaller states opt for middle-ground strategies, but this framework fails to account for sudden shifts in foreign policy. Consequently, there is still no clear consensus on what explains varying foreign policy behaviour in weaker Southeast Asian states under similar systemic pressures from US-China competition. To fill this gap, this thesis seeks to answer the research question: ‘How do domestic political factors contribute to a change in a weaker state’s foreign policy strategy toward competing great powers?’ The thesis approaches this question by using Schweller’s (2006) neoclassical realist theory of underbalancing behaviour which provides a model of four intervening domestic-level factors to explain strategic changes. The four domestic-level factors: elite consensus, elite cohesion, societal cohesion, and government vulnerability are applied to a single case study of the Philippines under President Duterte and analysed through archival analysis and process tracing. The analysis demonstrates that the four domestic political factors had influenced the Philippines’ decision to restrengthen their US alliance and distance themselves from further alignment with China to an extent. It further found government vulnerability and social cohesion to be the most significant explanatory factors. These findings contribute to a better understanding of weaker state foreign policy behaviour amid great power rivalry and underlines the importance of a domestic-level analysis.Show less
Ever since the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997, China has been amassing foreign exchange reserves. Since 2007 it has been strategically deploying these reserves internationally to buy foreign assets...Show moreEver since the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997, China has been amassing foreign exchange reserves. Since 2007 it has been strategically deploying these reserves internationally to buy foreign assets using so-called Sovereign Leveraged Funds. Some scholars claim most of these investments were not part of a well-defined grand strategy, but a crisis-induced necessity. Others claim it was part of a grand strategy. There is, however, a consensus on both sides that the Silk Road Fund indeed has a strategic goal, but theoretical justification for this consensus is lacking. Using the case of the investment in the Port of Rotterdam, which is part of the Silk Road Fund, I research whether the leveraging of foreign exchange reserves can be explained by combining the theories of economic statecraft and geoeconomics in order to address implications that can be drawn from this. The findings indicate that the Chinese state is hiding behind commercial actors, and simultaneously aligning the commercial and strategic interests to gain strategic power internationally, aided using the leveraging of foreign exchange reserves.Show less
The effects of climate change are becoming visible throughout the world and with it the call for more environmental policies inspired by ecocentrism, a philosophy that attributes intrinsic moral...Show moreThe effects of climate change are becoming visible throughout the world and with it the call for more environmental policies inspired by ecocentrism, a philosophy that attributes intrinsic moral value to nature. One such policy is the Rights of Nature (RoN), which has already been implemented in several countries like Ecuador, Bolivia, and New Zealand. The popularity of the RoN movement is growing but critical evaluations of the policy and implementation are scarce. This thesis aims to close that gap by evaluating the RoN from an ecofeminist perspective. I argue that the RoN’s use of gendered language perpetuates stereotypes of both women and nature and that the way the RoN is implemented now is just a continuation of the liberal Western system instead of the radical change it aims to be. I then apply the three ecofeminist philosophical principles of Phillips (2020) to the RoN and argue that though they help make the RoN more inclusive, they cannot induce radical change as long as they are implemented into a system that is built on the exploitation of both nature and women. Ecofeminism urges us to dismantle this system and base our policies on principles like empathy, care, and love.Show less
As the need to repatriate Islamic State foreign fighters (FFs) becomes increasingly pressing following the collapse of the organisation in 2019, European states largely remain reluctant despite...Show moreAs the need to repatriate Islamic State foreign fighters (FFs) becomes increasingly pressing following the collapse of the organisation in 2019, European states largely remain reluctant despite recommendations from academics, NGOs, and international bodies. None more so than the UK, which has enforced entry bans and citizenship deprivations for their FFs, a concerning development from one of the top three European countries that produced FFs (van Ginkel & Entenmann, 2016). Through the lens of securitisation theory, this study aims to shed light on how FFs have been securitised by analysing British parliamentary discourse on Shamima Begum, whose citizenship deprivation case remains a major topic in public debate due to her consequent statelessness. Two competing frames emerge: 1) the securitising ‘National Security’ frame; and 2) the counter-securitising ‘British Democracy’ frame. Although actors compete over what the real threat to Britain is, Begum or the government’s policy approach, I argue that they both ultimately invoke the same Orientalist identities of the savage Muslim ‘Other’ against civilised British society, building on narratives of the ‘enemy within’ that historically subjected the Muslim community to increased scrutiny and stigmatisation.Show less
