Comparative Politics Commons^™

The New Normal? Climate Variability And Ecoviolence In Sub-Saharan Africa, Alfonso Sanchez

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Climate change presents a wide range of concerns that can jeopardize international security. Among those concerns are neo-Malthusian worries of diminishing natural resources. Predictive models suggest that rainfall and temperature anomalies have the potential to reduce water basins, crop production, increase land degradation among other perils that threaten human security. This concern is particularly true in sub-Saharan Africa given the region’s strong dependence on rain-fed agriculture. Despite strong claims from various world leaders and scientists of a direct climate-conflict nexus, little empirical evidence has been devoted to find a systematic causal pathway of this kind. What is more, the literature …

The Electoral Success Of Communist-Successor Parties In The Czech Republic And Romania, Harley L. Roe

Master's Theses

Communist-successor parties are impacted by six social and political factors: party reimaging, coalition building, corruption and scandal, party leadership, EU accession, and social indicators. This project explores how the descendants of the totalitarian communist parties in the Czech Republic and Romania are influenced by each factor by analyzing election result data against these indicators. Party reimaging and coalition building are the most influential in determining voter turnout, while the other four work in conjunction to influence election results. This project contributes to the literature on electoral volatility, post-communist countries, voter behavior, and seeks to offer a model that can predict …

Curing Violence: Prescriptions For Justice And Peace In Colombia, Marissa Crawford

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

As the administration of President Juan Manuel Santos sits across the negotiating table from the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC), justice as a conduit for peace has dominated discourse on remediating the legacy of more than 50 years of internal conflict. Justice, however, like the conflict itself, is contested in both meaning and substance. This thesis will approach the topic of justice from both a human rights and transitional justice perspective, arguing the need for systematically disentangling the concept in its international, domestic, and grassroots iterations. It will contend that transitional justice policy will more effectively be designed if …

Power And Proximity: The Politics Of State Secession, Elizabeth A. Nelson

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

State secession is a rare occurrence in the international system. While a number of movements seek secession, the majority fail to achieve statehood. Of the exceptional successes, many have not had the strongest claims to statehood; some of these new states look far less like states than some that have failed. So what accounts for these secessions? I argue that the politics of regional actors drive the process. If a secessionist movement does not have the support of actors in the region, it will not achieve statehood. There are three mechanisms through which regional actors can determine outcomes: (1) they …

Assessing Social Protection Arrangements In Angola And Mozambique, Andre Cavaller Guzzi

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

I examine the extent to which the involvement of international development actors in poor and post-conflict countries can override the influence of the domestic political elites on the outcomes of social protection programs. I compare the outcomes of social protection arrangements in two post-conflict countries, Angola and Mozambique. They have different levels and kinds of international involvement, which I define based on the involvement of post-conflict UN peace operations and their dependency on foreign aid. While Mozambique had a UN operation and has been dependent on foreign aid, Angola did not have a UN operation after its civil war and …

The Transatlantic Oarsmen Cooperative: Doubling Down On A Transatlantic Financial Regulatory Regime, Joselyn Muhleisen

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This project argues that, in the wake of the 2007-09 financial crisis, the United States (US) and European Union (EU) are doubling down on finance-led domestic growth strategies and that this is their goal in constructing a transatlantic financial regulatory regime. The regime’s goal privileges the input of industry actors over other civil society actors. The construction of this regime is in response to pressure from emerging markets and to service domestic industry actors after the financial crisis. The regime is intended to allow the US and EU to maintain their dominance within the international financial regulatory regime and continue …

The Dynamic Effects Of Political Parties And Economic Hardship On Voter Turnout, Allan M. Wilford

Doctoral Dissertations

In the last 50 or so years, observers have noted with concern declining rates of voter turnout in many democracies. Explanations for these declines have often focused upon institutional factors that explain differences in turnout between countries but do little to explain declines within countries. However, the suspicion remains that more dynamic factors such as the make-up of party systems or economic effects - factors which vary within countries over time – have greater potential to better explain these declines. The first substantive chapter of this dissertation considers number of parties and polarization jointly to identify the conditions under which …

Personal Security And Immigration In The European Union, Anna Kristi Muzzy

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

What is the impact of migration patterns on perceptions of personal security in the European Union countries over the past half-decade? Although the numbers of migrants from outside the EU are undeniably massive, their impact upon domestic public opinion is understudied. Following recent work that explores themes of fear of migrants in EU native populations (Bustikova 2014, d' Appollonia and Reich 2008, Ivarsflaten 2008), I propose a multivariate model that explains variation across EU countries in citizens' views of personal security that includes migration rates, unemployment rates, crime rates, the presence of terrorism, and views of government performance. The results …

Managing The Agricultural Biotechnology Revolution: Responses To Transgenic Seeds In Developing Countries, Alper Yagci

Doctoral Dissertations

There has been heated debate over transgenic or genetically modified (GM) crops in agriculture. Advocates and critics argue over possible economic, environmental, public health implications of this technology. This study examines varying policy approaches to regulating GM crop cultivation in four developing countries where the technology has large potential application. Why have some countries banned GM crop cultivation in their territory while others encouraged it? In countries where GM crops were allowed, why have varying systems of intellectual property rights (IPR) protection been constructed? To investigate these questions I comparatively examine the policy experience (1995-2015) of Argentina, Brazil, Turkey relying …

Atlantic Drift: Supranational And American Think-Tanks In Comparison, Christopher James Rastrick

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

While there has been a significant amount of scholarship on think-tanks in the United States, attention to these same organizations in the European Union has been scant. In particular, there has been a dearth of scholastic treatment of think-tanks operating with an EU-level mandate within Brussels, which this study has termed supranational think-tanks. This study pursued an original comparative analysis between both of these diverse think-tank models. In particular, the principal research questions guiding this study concern the differences that exist between these think-tank models and, more importantly, why these divergences have manifested. In terms of their differences, it was …

Headhunting: Evaluating The Disruptive Capacity Of Leadership Decapitation On Terrorist Organizations, Ted Clemens Iv

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Leadership decapitation -- the practice of removing a leader from a position of authority through targeted killing (i.e. assassination) or arrest -- has long been a feature of counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency strategies the world over. Still, how effective is the practice of leadership decapitation in actually bringing a halt to, or even impeding, terrorist activity? Can removing top leaders of terrorist enclaves from power disrupt their groups to the point of organizational degradation or dissolution? And lastly, because no two terrorist groups are the same; when a terrorist group experiences leadership loss, how can the group be expected to react? …

Better Work And Global Governance, Paul Alois

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation is a case study of Better Work, a program run by the International Labor Organization and the International Finance Corporation. It aims to improve working conditions and productivity in the apparel industry. The purpose of this case study is to examine the role that international organizations can play in global governance. The research presented here comes from interviews, document analysis, and an examination of quantitative data on factories’ working conditions. In-person interviews were conducted in the United States, Switzerland, Vietnam, and Indonesia; many phone interviews took place with individuals in other countries. Both publicly available documents and internal …

Social Ties And State Formation In Post-Soviet Central Asia, David Siegel

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation examines state formation in newly or recently independent states. Why are state authorities able to exert control over provincial areas in some cases but not others? How do the national authorities of newly independent states build centralized bureaucracies, control state cadre, and ensure deference among their regional subordinates? Why do they sometimes fail? I answer these questions by focusing on the social ties of state officials in the periphery. Specifically, I argue that where the state’s regional officials are socially embedded in local communities, the process of administrative centralization will proceed unevenly and incompletely. It is only by …

Mobilizing For Capitalism: How Islamic Civil Society Makes A Market Economy Possible In Turkey, Dean G. Schafer

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis asks how international actors – in this case, the IMF and World Bank – advance their neoliberal projects. Specifically, it looks at the local context. How do economic reforms pass from IMF policy into national law? Who does the IMF cooperate with? What strategies are used, and what makes them effective for enacting and legitimizing policy? It starts by looking at the history of political mobilization in Turkey after WWII, when it took its first IMF loan. Turkish political parties have commonly sought electoral success through populist economic policies built on patron-client relationships. However, economic populism is a …

Struggling To Learn, Learning To Struggle: Strategy And Structure In The 2010-11 University Of Puerto Rico Student Strike, José A. Laguarta Ramírez

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

From April 2010 to March 2011, the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) underwent a two-phase strike sequence against neoliberal austerity measures. Altogether, that process resulted in the eventual concession of all of the students’ main demands, an unprecedented feat at the UPR, and a rare one in Puerto Rican history in general. In this dissertation I seek to cast light on this improbable event by examining, first, how neoliberalization patterned and contoured the choices facing the century-old UPR student movement. Second, I explore how interactions within the movement, including the framing contest among leadership teams and their interaction with the …

"They Have Sold The Clouds": Queering Indigenous Politics In Colombia, Taylor O. Ramsey

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In a study of Colombian politics, I use a queer theoretical lens to explore the relationship between the state and two specific indigenous groups from Northern Colombia to better understand the state and power relations embedded in it. I look for queer temporalities, spaces, and nonnormative practices that arise out of how the law interrogates and interacts with indigenous people using a queer theoretical lens as a critical methodology. I argue that the Colombian state's interactions with indigenous groups create queer spaces/conceptual borders, particularly with regard to law and the state's ability to biopolitically regulate its citizens. It is within …

The Current State Of Access To Basic Education For Syrian Refugee Children Living In The Za’Atari Camp, Theresa L. Frey

Capstone Collection

Using Rodman’s (2006) International Education Analytical Inquiry Matrix as a theoretical framework, the purpose of this study is to examine the current state of access to basic primary education for Syrian Refugee Children Living in the Za’atari camp. Within the scope of this study, access is examined in three parts, including:

(1) Who is accessing education within Za’atari and who is not?

(2) How are certain groups accessing education?

(3) What is the learning environment of Za’atari?

In addition to addressing existing issues of access to basic education in Za’atari, this study examines efforts made towards increasing access. By examining …

Confronting The Past: Corruption In Post-Communist Hungary And Romania, Michellie Hess

Honors Program Theses

Why are some states more corrupt than others? More specifically, why is post-communist Romania significantly more corrupt than post-communist Hungary even though both transitioned to democracy from USSR satellite states in 1989 and both went on to enter the European Union? This paper argues that though the implementation of communism in political institutions at the time of transition cannot serve as an explanatory factor, Romania’s patrimonial pre-communist history developed a foundation of corruption and the lack of turnover in political leadership during the transition from communism to democracy played a critical role in continuing this corrupt pre-communist foundation. Conversely, Hungary …

Hiv/Aids And The European Union, Victor Hammarin

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is an ailment like no other. Despite huge improvements in treatments for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), which causes AIDS, those living with the disease continue to suffer from treatment inequality and discrimination. This is especially true in the European Union (EU), which is a supranational entity that works to improve prosperity, equality, and wellbeing among member-states. Despite extensive EU efforts to improve the standard of living across the inter-governmental body, treatment inequality for those living with HIV/AIDS in the EU continues to be a major issue. This study hypothesized that a strong EU initiative, which …

India Is Hungary For Trump: Contextualizing The Rise Of Xenophobia In Right-Wing Parties, James Rider

International Affairs Senior Theses

In a climate of intensifying globalization, the rise of political parties and leaders that espouse xenophobic ideas challenges the ability of the nation-state to live up to multicultural ideals. Such parties and their leadership prey on the fears of those of those who are part of the national majority group by claiming that “outsiders” entering or within the country pose a threat to their well-being and the sanctity of their national identity. While many scholars have analyzed xenophobic parties within specific countries or regions, few have sought to find commonalities over regional and cultural boundaries. This paper analyzes three contemporary …

The Rising Tide Of Indigenous Mobilization: Identity And The Politics Of Refusal In Mexico And Ecuador, Kelsey J. Freeman

Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Nuclear Power Plant Policy Comparison Between The U.S. And Republic Of Korea, Vara Ha

Sustainability and Social Justice

Five years after the Fukushima accident, people and countries still argue about the opportunity costs of denuclearization. While nuclear power generation has safety and waste issues, it is carbon free. Climate change has created more pressure for greenhouse gas reduction, so a few countries have decided to maintain or even increase nuclear power generation. The United States ranks first for using nuclear power produced by electricity generation, while the Republic of Korea, the closest country in proximity to Japan, ranks fourth in countries that use nuclear power. In fact, Korea even rapidly increased nuclear business after the Fukushima accident. Despite …

Exchange Patterns And Relations In Collaborative Governance., Charles Wharton Kaye-Essien

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Collaborative governance has received considerable attention in recent years. From environmental resource management to public safety, collaborative governance continues to play a vital role in regional problem solving. In spite of this increasing popularity previous attempts to model the political, economic, and demographic determinants of collaboration have in most cases produced inconsistent results, thereby undermining the ability to generalize from such findings. Additionally, our understanding of the relational patterns that emanate from collaborative agreements remains fairly rudimentary. The main objective of this research is to address some of the gaps in the literature and improve our understanding of collaborative governance …

Global Paths To Enlightenment: A Foundation Scholar Study Abroad To The Dominican Republic, Tacy Allan

Honors Theses

There are many different ways for students to gain a multicultural awareness and a global focus, which are important tools for their lives. Study abroad opportunities are seen as one of the widest-reaching and best hands-on learning paths that can be taken to broaden the horizons of students. This proposal combines service learning, a social justice issue (clean water), and global impact; giving students the chance to learn what is here in Kalamazoo and what is in Dominican Republic, how those issues compare and contrast as well as how each location is dealing with these issues. This proposed class will …

L’Impatto Dell’Isis Sulle Politiche Interne Italiane, Michael Richard Battista Jr.

Senior Theses and Projects

I have researched how Italian domestic policies has been impacted by ISIS in recent years, in particular through the lenses of the threat of terrorism, and the refugee crisis. Recent examples include the terrorist attacks in neighboring France and Belgium, and the multilateral agreement to relocate refugees to Turkey. My two hypotheses based on my research are that the threat of terrorism has caused Italian domestic policies to become more conservative, such as attempted bans on religious iconography like the hijab, while the refugee crisis has actually caused resultant policies to become more liberal, such as the ambitious humanitarian program …

Understanding The Intersectionalities Of Sexual Violence Reporting: A Comparative Analysis Of Police Capacity, Sexual Violence, And Alternative Reporting Methods In The Eastern And Northern Capes Of South Africa, Claire Huber

Politics & Government Undergraduate Theses

Why is sexual violence more pervasive in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa than in the Northern Cape Province? Most research surrounding sexual violence in South Africa attempts to answer why rape happens, but doesn’t attempt to understand why individuals choose to report sexual violence crimes to police. This paper looks at three variables—chieftaincy and regional identity, physical space, and medical clinics—to explain why people do or do not turn towards the police to report rape. The tradition of chieftaincy in the Eastern Cape was constitutionalized with the rise of the African National Congress. Customary law is still used …

Honors Senior Capstone Portfolio, Brooke M. Doss

KSU Journey Honors College Capstones and Theses

This Honors Senior Capstone Thesis seeks to present an analyze the current war between Ukraine and Russia by comparing an contrasting three countries' responses to this international crisis--Poland, France, and Germany.

Empowerment From Within: Supporting Palestinian Women’S Struggle Against Violence, Ortal Bensky

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Recent reports by the United Nations and local non-governmental organizations present a troubling increase in incidents of violence against Palestinian women in Palestine. These are cases of domestic violence, where the attackers are Palestinians, and political violence, where the attackers are Israeli settlers and soldiers. These violent incidents include attacks on body and property. Most incidents are neither dealt with by the Palestinian authorities nor by the Israeli government and judicial system. There is not sufficient international pressure to enforce justice. The purpose of this study is to offer alternative ways to prevent violent crimes, enforce relevant laws, and provide …

The Politics Of Middle Class Decline And Growth In Industrialized Democracies, 1980 To 2010, Young-Hwan Byun

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This research explains why some industrialized democracies have experienced middle class decline while others have experienced middle class growth since the 1980s. The prevailing political science literature based on the median voter theory predicts that middle class decline should not occur in democracies, whereas economic theories fail to explain national variation of middle class decline by attributing the decline to common developments such as globalization or technological change. I analyze data from the Luxembourg Income Study Database, the Comparative Welfare States Dataset, and the Comparative Welfare Entitlement Dataset, and demonstrate a significant partisan effect on middle class decline. I argue …

The Hermeneutics Of International Trade Conflicts: U.S. Punitive Trade Policy Towards China And Japan, Barry F. Murdaco

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation analyzes punitive trade conflicts between the U.S. and two trading partners: China and Japan. Punitive trade conflicts can be defined as trade wars between two states, retaliatory tariffs, or other forms of conflict, e.g. preventing the acquisition of foreign assets or sanctions for an undervalued exchange rate. I will examine several trade conflicts between the U.S. and Japan in the 1980s and several trade conflicts between the U.S. and China from 2001 to the present. This study is situated within a larger debate concerning the resolution of four theoretical "puzzles" in political science. The first concerns the dispute …