Mariya Y. Omelicheva

Teaching with Lecture or Debate? Testing the Effectiveness of Traditional versus Active Learning Methods of Instruction

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Natural Disasters: Triggers of Political Instability?

This study engages with the question: Do different types of natural disasters—droughts, earthquakes, floods, storms, and others—trigger political instability? It revisits an ongoing debate over the nature of association between disasters and conflict and reassesses this relationship using the model of conflict developed by the Political Instability Task Force as well as its data, measures of political instability, and methods of assessment. The study finds only marginal support for the impact of certain types of disasters on the onsets of political instability. The preexisting country-specific conditions, including the resilience of a states institutions to crisis, account for most of the variance in the dependent variable. Once the characteristics of a states political regime are taken into account, the effect of disasters weakens or disappears completely, suggesting that natural disasters become catalysts of political instability in only those states which are already prone to conflict.

Resolved: Academic Debate Should Be a Part of Political Science Curricula

Should political science educators use debate for teaching their undergraduate students? This article argues for incorporation of academic debate into curriculum of undergraduate courses. It demonstrates the process of arriving at a decision favorable of debate through exploration and analysis of competitive reasons, arguments, and evidence for and against using academic debate as a method of teaching and learning. Empirical evidence for assessing strengths and limitations of academic debate was collected in the undergraduate political science classes by means of educational action research. A corollary of the study is that potential problems of debates should not deter educators from using this instructional technique. The knowledge of debates weaknesses can assist in improving the effectiveness of this teaching strategy in promoting students’ skills of critical thinking, and understanding of complex political issues. Awareness of obstacles to academic debate can help to implement this method of instruction in a way that is positive and nonthreatening to students.

Islam in Kazakhstan: a survey of contemporary trends and sources of securitization

This essay examines the nature of Islam in Kazakhstan and its role in contemporary Kazakh society and politics. It highlights the unique place of Islam in the social and individual experiences of Kazakhs who see Islamic religion as a ‘way of life’, and illuminates several interrelated qualities of the Kazakh religion, such as a strong association of religious identity with ethnic identity of Kazakhs, interpenetration of religious canons with indigenous traditions and a growing tendency toward ‘individualization’ and ‘intimization’ of Islam. Another goal of the paper is to shed light on the worrisome process of the securitization of Islam. The latter phenomenon refers to a discursive practice of presenting Islam as a threat to Kazakhstan despite the prevalence of ‘moderate’ and apolitical manifestations of Islam in the republic. The study documents political interests surrounding securitization of Islam and the context which made the invocation of security in relation to Islam possible.

The Ethnic Dimension of Religious Extremism and Terrorism in Central Asia

This study seeks to demonstrate and explain the variation in the extent of support for radical Islamic groups by ethnic minorities in the Central Asian states. It maintains that two related factors — the greater Islamicization of Uzbeks and Tajiks, and the escalating campaign of religious persecution of the ethnic minorities — have contributed to the greater support for Islamists among Uzbeks and Tajiks than among representatives of other ethnic groups. The research draws on social movement theory to explicate the impact of Islamic identification and religious persecution on the success of recruiting and mobilization efforts by radical Islamic groups.

Authoritarian legitimation: assessing discourses of legitimacy in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan

ABSTRACT What are the sources of authoritarian persistence in Central Asia? This study explores the argument that authoritarian regimes persist through effective authoritarian legitimation. Drawing on the theory and analysis of discourse, it develops an approach to authoritarian legitimation and examines discursive appeals to legitimacy by the Kazakh and Uzbek presidents. The study also assesses the effectiveness of the presidential discourses of legitimacy for public perception of the governing regimes in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. This research shows that by defining what constitutes legitimate power and presenting political rule as consistent with this definition, authoritarian governments can foster certain modes of reasoning and evaluation among citizens, and create possibilities for their acceptance of the regime as ‘right’ or ‘proper’.

Islam and power legitimation: instrumentalisation of religion in Central Asian States

ABSTRACT How can Islam play multiple and contradictory roles as a source of violence and peace, and a marker of identity differences and national unity? This study argues that religion, as a system of beliefs, manifests itself through discourses, which not only render intelligibility to religious practices and beliefs but also serve as the instruments of social control and regulation. An infinite variety of organizational and ideological differences within Islam presents the possibility for instrumentalisation of religion by stakeholders interested in accomplishing distinctive political aims connected to political legitimation. The study offers an empirical analysis of instrumentalisation of Islam by governments of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and uses this evidence for developing a framework linking various discursive representations of religion to their political uses.

Competing perspectives on democracy and democratization: assessing alternative models of democracy promoted in Central Asian states

This study examines alternative understandings of democracy and democracy promotion advanced by the US, EU, Russia and China in Central Asia using frame analysis. In the context of this study, ‘frames’ refer to the relatively cohesive sets of beliefs, categories and value judgements as well as specific ways in which these ideas are packaged for the targets of international democratization. The study assesses the implications of alternative representations of democracy promotion and competing models of governance for the prospects of democratization in Central Asia. It concludes that the substance of US and EU democracy promotion in Central Asia has neglected the cultural and political contexts of these states, while the Russian and Chinese models of governance and development have provided a better match to the interests of the ruling elites.

Russia's Foreign Policy Toward Iran: A Critical Geopolitics Perspective

Russias foreign policy stance on nuclear Iran has been a subject of debate. Why has Moscow oscillated between resistance to sanctions and support for punitive measures against Iran in the meantime supplying Tehran with new arms technologies, despite the protestations from the USA? This study engages with this question. It argues that the conventional approaches linking Russias foreign policy to either geostrategic calculations or considerations of economic efficiency are insufficient because they do not take into consideration the changing conceptions of geopolitics held by Russia. This study shows that a pragmatic application of critical geopolitics, which calls for the examination of Russias foreign policy through the lens of its own ‘geopolitics code’, can substantially enhance our understanding of Moscows foreign policy.

Convergence of Counterterrorism Policies: A Case Study of Kyrgyzstan and Central Asia

Why do counterterrorism policies of the Central Asian states grow more alike amid propensities for divergence? This article engages with this question. It focuses on the counterterrorism measures of Kyrgyzstan and attributes their growing intensity to influence of the neighboring states and regional organizations. It is the contention of this research that Kyrgyzstans increasingly vigorous responses aimed at combating terrorism are a part of a broader process of convergence of counterterrorism policies and measures targeting religious extremism adopted by Kyrgyzstans neighbors. The three mechanisms that lie at the roots of this process are direct coercive transfer, harmonization of security policies, and emulation of counterterrorism responses.