Is Organized Religion Killing Democracy? An Analysis of How The Presence of Religious Monopoly Within A Country Affects Individuals’ Opinions On Democracy
Format
Oral Presentation
Faculty Mentor Name
William Herrin
Faculty Mentor Department
School of International Studies
Abstract/Artist Statement
Since September 11th, 2001, Islamophobia in the United States, other “Western” countries, and their allies has been on the rise. More recently, it seems to become even more salient because of the current U.S. administration. Yuchtman-Ya’ar and Alkalay’s “Political Attitudes in the Muslim World” highlights one common premise for disparagement; that Islam is incompatible with democracy. This work studies and expands upon the same premise. It analyzes whether Islam or any other religion that holds a “religious monopoly” within a country affects individuals’ attitudes toward democracy in that country. I analyze data from the World Values Survey as well as economic indicators to help isolate the effects of religious monopolies on those attitudes. I divide countries into those with a religious majority and those without, and identify whether a majority is a religious monopoly. I also identify the dominant religion in each country with a majority. I expect to find that religious monopoly, no matter the religion, has a negative effect on individuals’ attitudes toward democracy, but I do not expect to find that majority Muslim countries have a significantly more negative effect on individuals’ attitudes compared to other religious monopolies.
Location
DeRosa University Center, Room 211
Start Date
27-4-2018 1:10 PM
End Date
27-4-2018 1:29 PM
Is Organized Religion Killing Democracy? An Analysis of How The Presence of Religious Monopoly Within A Country Affects Individuals’ Opinions On Democracy
DeRosa University Center, Room 211
Since September 11th, 2001, Islamophobia in the United States, other “Western” countries, and their allies has been on the rise. More recently, it seems to become even more salient because of the current U.S. administration. Yuchtman-Ya’ar and Alkalay’s “Political Attitudes in the Muslim World” highlights one common premise for disparagement; that Islam is incompatible with democracy. This work studies and expands upon the same premise. It analyzes whether Islam or any other religion that holds a “religious monopoly” within a country affects individuals’ attitudes toward democracy in that country. I analyze data from the World Values Survey as well as economic indicators to help isolate the effects of religious monopolies on those attitudes. I divide countries into those with a religious majority and those without, and identify whether a majority is a religious monopoly. I also identify the dominant religion in each country with a majority. I expect to find that religious monopoly, no matter the religion, has a negative effect on individuals’ attitudes toward democracy, but I do not expect to find that majority Muslim countries have a significantly more negative effect on individuals’ attitudes compared to other religious monopolies.