Now on FirstView ft. @cmparreira.bsky.social & @mweitzel.bsky.social! "…we lack a systematic overview of current fieldwork-related training and research practices among MENA political scientists." Check it out: doi.org/10.1017/S104... #polisky

A recent @foreignpolicy.com article uses survey research to argue just under half of Lebanese oppose disarmament. Some thoughts on why this study, and similar survey research, should be extremely explicit about methodology & cautious in interpretation:

WAR IN THE MIDDLE EAST: WHAT FUTURE FOR THE GLOBAL ORDER? At a lunch briefing, the Institute's professors to examine the legal, political, geopolitical, & nuclear implications of a rapidly evolving conflict. 📅 1 April, 12:30 Join in person or online: shorturl.at/8pAgP

“What we are seeing is the weakness of strong states. Regimes that rely on repression face a challenge: The more force they deploy, the more they risk exposing their own brutality to politically persuadable observers. Overreach doesn’t just project strength; it also undermines legitimacy.” Gift link

Opinion | We’re Seeing the Weakness of a Strong State

nytimes.com

New paper in @ajpseditor.bsky.social. Is descriptive representation good for substantive representation? Why do voters stay loyal to corrupt and poorly governing ethnic parties? I argue that we ought to focus less on patronage and more on dignity concerns. Defiant pride can come at a price. 1/🧵

I’m very excited to share that my paper “Cleavage theory meets civil society: A framework and research agenda” with @eborbath.bsky.social & Swen Hutter has now been published online in ‪@wepsocial.bsky.social‬ (w/ open access funding thanks to @wzb.bsky.social‬!) www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

New preprint with @cmparreira.bsky.social and Lindsay Walsh posted to @socarxiv.bsky.social: "From Protest to Parliament: Lebanon’s October Revolution and the Rise of Movement Parties." Link: osf.io/preprints/so...

Last month, Lebanon held its first local elections since 2016. Over the past nine years, the country has experienced a series of upheavals and crises - yet the most remarkable feature of these elections was (mostly) how much they resembled previous ones. Some key takeaways /1

In case you’re currently on the market: With a welcoming stance toward non-Swiss students (34.7% of the student body), Switzerland remains an attractive option. Also notable: a clear shift in interest among non-US students re PhD opportunities (shared via @marcelsalathe.bsky.social): polisky

Must-read special issue in Dædalus (open-access!) on research ethics in the Middle East & North Africa by an extraordinary group of scholars covering threats to academic freedom, the politics & economics of knowledge production, disinformation, AI & much more: direct.mit.edu/daed/article....

Do only poor voters respond to political freebies? This study suggests that rich voters do too, but only when it comes from their own party. @cmparreira.bsky.social @thejop.bsky.social #JOP #Clientelism #Elections #PoliticalBehavior #Lebanon #PoliticalScience

How does demand for clientelism vary by socioeconomic status? In our paper just out at @thejop.bsky.social, my co-authors Melani Cammett, Sami Atallah, and I use a survey experiment in Lebanon to question some assumptions about who demands clientelism. /1 www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/epdf/10....

For any Stanford folks - @stanfordcddrl.bsky.social is hosting a talk tomorrow at 2 pm on governance challenges in the Middle East and related emerging research. I’ll be participating, along with several other friends and colleagues - join if you can! cddrl.fsi.stanford.edu/events/round...

Roundtable | Governance in the Arab World: New Research Agendas

cddrl.fsi.stanford.edu

Kicking off today: the 3rd Joint EUI-IHEID PhD Workshop, convened by Prof. Guzzini and @cmparreira.bsky.social. Two days of in-depth discussion, cross-institutional exchange with @gvagrad.bsky.social, and cutting-edge research at the SPS Department. #EUI #IHEID #PhDWorkshop #AcademicExchange

ICYMI, watch the recording of last week's Lunch Briefing on "The Future of #Syria After the Fall of Assad". Professors Schayegh & @cmparreira.bsky.social discussed the history of Syrian politics, the rise of the regime and its impact on the country's political dynamics. 👉 shorturl.at/18YdA

‪Lunch Briefing on The Future of Syria After the Fall of Assad With Professor Cyrus Schayegh & Assistant Professor @cmparreira.bsky.social Moderator: @annyssabellal.bsky.social lal.bsky.social of @gpplatform.bsky.social rm.bsky.social 📅 19 Feb, Maison de la paix & Online shorturl.at/6iQGo

📚 Just released! "Decentralization, Local Governance, and Inequality in the Middle East and North Africa" explores critical governance reforms across MENA. Editors Kristen Kao & ellenlust.bsky.social, featuring 14 regional specialists. Open Access and more info here: mailchi.mp/gld.gu.se/ne...

The podcast mashup episode with MELG is out! Ezra Karmel, @cmparreira.bsky.social, and Intissar Kherigi joined @ellenlust.bsky.social in Gothenburg to discuss how decentralization has shaped the political landscapes of countries like Tunisia, Lebanon, and Jordan. Listen🎧https://bit.ly/3KtyeJ4

Squeezed into a podcast studio, we find @cmparreira.bsky.social, @IntissarKherigi, @EzraKarmel, & @ellenlust.bsky.social- recording an episode on decentralization and local governance in the #MENA. This episode is a mashup with MELG podcast and will be out on Monday. Listen here: bit.ly/456gLQj

@cmparreira.bsky.social & I are putting together an APSA panel on the relationship between protest & electoral behavior/outcomes in authoritarian regimes. If you have a paper that fits this theme, please email me at tavana@psu.edu. Thanks!

Just read @dmasterson.bsky.social's latest in the APSR. Wow! It's the rare instance of an RCT that assigns *network structure* then observes problem-solving behavior. www.cambridge.org/core/journal... We learn network density has upsides (⬆️ engagement) and downsides (⬇️ unique resources).

GLD's Research Seminar Series introduces the research process and covers 3 stages of research: Refining a research question Selecting methodology Presenting findings. All 15 videos are free to use and available on our website with English & Arabic subtitles: gld.gu.se/en/education...

@seanyom.bsky.social and I convened a roundtable on politics and ethics of researching conflict, featuring recent books on war and displacement in Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, and Yemen by @separkinson.bsky.social, @philbrickyadav.bsky.social, Anne Irfan, Kevin Mazur, and Jonah Schulhofer-Wohl. It's 🔥

APSA MENA Politics Section@apsamena.bsky.social · 3y ago

The APSA MENA Politics Section's Fall newsletter is out! Editors @seanyom.bsky.social Nermin Allam & Gamze Çavdar (Bluesky-less, is that what we're calling it?) & board put together a fantastic issue. See the full issue below, & follow along here for more on this packed issue! polisky menasky

A great piece from @separkinson.bsky.social on analogies between the ongoing war in Gaza and the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon - highlighting the folly of believing that disproportionate use of violence can constitute a meaningful "solution" to conflict: www.foreignaffairs.com/israel/ghost...

Have a workshop in mind that would bring together scholars and researchers from outside and within the MENA region? Last week to apply for the APSA MENA program's call for MENA workshop ideas/leaders! Deadline: Oct 8! polisky menasky

@cmparreira.bsky.social looks at (among many inters alia) the many layers of governance, contestation and coalition-building that shape the states of the MENA region www.thepolicyinitiative.org/article/deta...

The Policy Initiative - Do Elections in Lebanon Matter?

TPI fellow Christiana Parreira dissects the lead up to the May 2022 parliamentary elections

thepolicyinitiative.org