Abstract
This study focuses on explaining the variation in the treatment of religious minorities in Muslim-majority countries using a novel dataset on religious discrimination-the Religion and State- Minorities (RASM) Dataset. As few theories exist to explain the causes of religious discrimination, this study compares theories related to general religion-state relations based on ideology, culture, and rational choice. We find that while political and structural factors are important in explaining variation in levels of discrimination across Muslim countries, ideational factors may help to explain why certain minority groups appear to be targeted more than others within individual countries. Regional and cultural differences in levels of discrimination exist across the Muslim world, and the identity of the religious minority group matters in determining why some groups face greater repression than others. We argue that knowing the targets of discrimination is important in developing theory about the causes of it.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 423-446 |
Number of pages | 24 |
Journal | Nationalism and Ethnic Politics |
Volume | 17 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 2011 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:Previous versions of this article were presented at the annual meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, the Comparative Politics Workshop at Yale University, and at Calvin College. This research was supported by the Israel Science Foundation (Grant 896/00), the Sara and Simha Lainer Chair in Democracy and Civility, and the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this study are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.
Funding
Previous versions of this article were presented at the annual meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, the Comparative Politics Workshop at Yale University, and at Calvin College. This research was supported by the Israel Science Foundation (Grant 896/00), the Sara and Simha Lainer Chair in Democracy and Civility, and the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this study are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.
Funders | Funder number |
---|---|
Sara and Simha Lainer Chair | |
John Templeton Foundation | |
Israel Science Foundation | 896/00 |