The Rising Tide of Conservatism in Turkey : Islam, Nationalism, and Democracy

This book analyzes the development and impact of conservatism on Turkish politics in the post-Cold War era. Exploring the impact of international system change on Turkey over the course of recent events, this book covers the emerging tension and stress in Turkey's political culture, economy, and democratic institutions. This book provides a study of the socio-political and cultural climate in Turkey in the aftermath of the Cold War, which resulted in a major voter re-alignment in the Turkish political system in the mid - 1990s. Except for a brief period of coalition governments, the country came under the rule of the Justice and Development Party (AKP), a conservative political party, which has been a coalition of pious Sunnis, liberals, Kurdish nationalists, former socialists, led by leaders from immaculate political Islamist backgrounds. Concomitantly, Turkish society has begun to experience increasing religiosity, authoritarianism, spreading lack of interpersonal trust and tolerance, increasing xenophobia, and anomie. The book delves into the sources of such a surge of conservatism, traditionalism, and parochialism in Turkey of the 1990s and 2000s. Data collected through nationally representative survey conducted in 2006 are analyzed to decipher the core driving forces of current Turkish society and politics in this book Front Matter....Pages i-xiv Introduction Going Back to the Future....Pages 1-6 Shock, Awe, and Suspense....Pages 7-16 Change, Reform, and Fear....Pages 17-26 Socioeconomic Change and Accommodation....Pages 27-63 Coping with Uncertainty....Pages 65-74 Explaining the Character of Turkish Conservatism....Pages 75-96 Consequences of Conservatism for Turkey’s Domestic Politics....Pages 97-120 Consequences of Conservatism for Turkey’s Foreign Relations: Turkey, the EU, and the United States....Pages 121-139 Conclusion....Pages 141-149 Back Matter....Pages 151-173