After the Arab Revolutions: Decentring Democratic Transition Theory

by Abdelwahab El-Affendi (Editor), Khalil Al Anani (Editor)

Overview

This book brings together experienced scholars from the region and beyond to cast new light on the challenges facing democratic transitions and democratic stability. Rather than taking refuge in 'context' and 'regional specificity' to excuse failures to unpack Arab politics, the book argues that sound political science should - and could - prove relevant across regions and cultures. This radical critique reclaims and recasts the 'Transition Paradigm', countering the habit of using advanced and successful democratic transitions as a template to be followed in other regions. It argues that the Arab (and broader Middle Eastern) experience has important lessons to offer, even in its failures. For example, it could help to explain the West's recent populist upsurge and other democratic reversals.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781474483223
Publisher:	Edinburgh University Press
Publication date:	05/22/2023
Pages:	312
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x (d)

About the Author

Abdelwahab El-Affendi is Professor of Politics and Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, Doha, Qatar. He was previously founder and coordinator of the Democracy and Islam Programme at the Centre for the Study of Democracy, University of Westminster (1998-2015).

Khalil Al Anani is an Associate Professor and Head of the Politics and IR Programme, Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, Doha, Qatar. He has published several books (in English and Arabic)

Table of Contents

Preface

1. Introduction: Rethinking Transition Theory after the ‘Arab Moment’
2. Democratic Transition Studies: Lessons from another Region
3. The Moderation of Insecurity: Standing the Eurocentric Democratic Transition Paradigm on its Head
4. After the Arab Spring
5. Revolutions and the Colonial Question
6. Authoritarian Regime Types as an Alternative to the Transition Paradigm: A Critical Assessment
7. Visible and Invisible Political Actors and their Strategies during the Arab Spring Transitions
8. Elite Women and Democratisation in Morocco: 1998–2016
9. Rethinking Religion and Democratic Transition: Lessons from the Arab World
10. Democratic Transition in Rivalry Contexts
11. The ‘Arab Spring’ and the Challenges of Security Sector Reform
12. Concluding Remarks: On Viruses, Phantom Actors and Other Colonial Ghosts