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Cfp: Religious Parties in Processes of Democratic Consolidation (Princeton, March 18-20, 2010) |
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Call for Papers
Religious Parties in Processes of Democratic Consolidation –
Revisiting the Inclusion-Moderation Thesis
Conference to be held at Princeton University, Princeton, N.J., USA
March 18-20, 2010
Deadline for abstracts: September 31, 2009
The salient appearance of religious parties after recent democratic
transition processes raises important questions: Under what conditions
do religious groups eschew radical stances and unconditionally abide
by the democratic rules of the game? Do the core features of liberal-
democracy ─ multiparty electoral contestation, respect for basic
freedoms, the rule of law ─ reinforce and mutually support one
another in democratic consolidation processes, or may the inclusion of
religious parties actually endanger liberal politics in the short,
medium and long term?
Comparison
While geographic comparison of party politics is well-established in
the field of Political Science, the benefits of diachronic comparisons
are still less often realized. Our conference seeks to combine
geographic and diachronic comparison by including case studies from
the second and third wave of democratization (post-1945 and post-1974)
as well as from recently democratized states.
Case Selection
To ensure that we consider political parties in democratic
consolidation processes, and not in electoral processes in liberalized
authoritarian regimes, only case studies of religious parties in
countries that at the time of the investigation score 6 or higher on
Polity IV index (and for the contemporary cases 6.0 or higher on the
Bertelsmann Democracy Status Index) will be included.
Combination of Qualitative and Quantitative Data
We particular welcome submissions from scholars who combine
ethnographic studies of religious political parties and deep
historical knowledge of the respective societies in which these
parties emanate, with quantitative analyses of public opinion and
electoral data.
Questions of Inquiry
Ideology and behavior of religious actors are conditioned by the
institutional setting under which they operate. Political competition
can create strong incentives for religious political parties to pursue
vote-maximization strategies. Under certain conditions, vote-
maximization strategies entail developing moderate platforms and
jettisoning the religious-motivated goal of restructuring society.
To take the already well-established literature on the inclusion-
moderation debate forward, four interrelated questions shall guide the
geographic and diachronic comparative inquiry at the conference:
1) how does the competition for votes with secular parties and other
religious parties affect the policy positions and strategies of
religious parties?
2) how does participation in electoral politics affect intra-factional
struggles within religious parties?
3) how does participation in electoral politics affect the internal
organization of the party, and vice versa, how does internal party
organization affect strategies and policies of religious parties?
4) What types of moderation of religious parties contribute to
democratic consolidation? In which policy realms is moderation more
consequential for democratic consolidation processes than in others?
We invite experts on specific political parties to elucidate one or
several of the questions raised above. While the evolution of
religious party politics in Israel, Western Europe, Indonesia and
Turkey provide particularly fruitful settings as these countries have
undergone and are undergoing democratic consolidation processes, we
call for abstracts on religious parties in all countries that meet the
case selection criteria outlined above.
Please send an abstract of 500 words by September 31, 2009 to the two
organizers. Abstracts should specifically mention the methodology the
paper will employ.
Professor Manfred Brocker
Professor Mirjam Künkler
Princeton University, N.J. Princeton
University, N.J.
Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies
Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies
329 Aaron Burr Hall 110 Jones
Hall
Princeton, N. J. 08544 Princeton, N. J. 08544
U.S.A
U.S.A
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Thanks to a grant by the German Science Foundation (DFG), we will be
able to cover all travel and lodging expenses of invited participants. |
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