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TURKEY IN THE CASPIAN SEA REGION
Title
TURKEY IN THE CASPIAN SEA REGION.
Creator
Akkoyunlu, Seyma, Sadri, Houman, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
This thesis will determine the influence of Turkey's domestic resources on Turkey's foreign relations with the five Turkic states in the Caspian Sea Region. The spheres analyzed in this study are the common ties, which are history, culture, religion and language, with the regional countries, pan-Turkism, Turkey's initial interactions as well as ongoing constructive policies in the region. Findings showed that both Turkey and the five Turkic republics were enthusiastic to carry...
Show moreThis thesis will determine the influence of Turkey's domestic resources on Turkey's foreign relations with the five Turkic states in the Caspian Sea Region. The spheres analyzed in this study are the common ties, which are history, culture, religion and language, with the regional countries, pan-Turkism, Turkey's initial interactions as well as ongoing constructive policies in the region. Findings showed that both Turkey and the five Turkic republics were enthusiastic to carry their relations in every field to future cooperation following the break up of the Soviet Union. However the Turkic Republics' interest in Turkish development model gradually declined starting from the 1994s.The hypothesis that socio-cultural ties will ease establishing close foreign relations is applicable to all five republics. The Turkic states welcomed Turkey's educational and cultural policies with great willingness. In the field of business we find that Turkish economy follows a similar pattern in its relations with the Azerbaijani and Central Asian markets. Accordant policy goals of Turkey and the five republics led Turkey to establish close foreign relations with the regional countries. Turkey tried to give military aid to the Turkic republics of Central Asia in their struggle against terrorist groups which have the capacity to destabilize governments and to threaten international security. The hypothesis that the more Turkey has business interests in the Caspian Sea Region the more Turkey will have closer foreign relations with Turkic countries is mostly apparent in the case of Azerbaijan. In the area of energy politics Turkey has its strongest link with Azerbaijan. Besides being strong economic partners Turkey is Azerbaijan's biggest supporter in the region against Armenia.
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Date Issued
2008
Identifier
CFE0002117, ucf:47548
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002117
THE IMPACT OF ISLAM ON WOMEN IN THE MIDDLE EAST: A DISCUSSION OF THE POLITICAL ROLE OF ISLAM IN TURKEY, SAUDI ARABIA, AND LEBANON
Title
THE IMPACT OF ISLAM ON WOMEN IN THE MIDDLE EAST: A DISCUSSION OF THE POLITICAL ROLE OF ISLAM IN TURKEY, SAUDI ARABIA, AND LEBANON.
Creator
Barimo, Elise, Sadri, Houman, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
The social instability of the Middle East is often assumed to be consequential predominantly from the influences of extreme traditional Islamic practices; with substantial prominence placed upon the treatment of and violence against Middle Eastern women. This discussion seeks to directly prove the prevalence of Islamic influence on Middle Eastern politics and the resulting social instability. This assessment is designed around an interdisciplinary examination of coalescent factors. By...
Show moreThe social instability of the Middle East is often assumed to be consequential predominantly from the influences of extreme traditional Islamic practices; with substantial prominence placed upon the treatment of and violence against Middle Eastern women. This discussion seeks to directly prove the prevalence of Islamic influence on Middle Eastern politics and the resulting social instability. This assessment is designed around an interdisciplinary examination of coalescent factors. By assessing the political history, social and cultural lifestyle, and political and legal situation of the region, the assessment examines the contributors to the social instability of Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, and Turkey. The principal conclusion of this narrative is that the influences of extreme traditional Islamic values have a direct influence on the social instability and gender equality exhibited in Islamic Middle Eastern nation-states.
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Date Issued
2012
Identifier
CFH0004291, ucf:44920
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004291
A CONTEMPORARY ANALYSIS AND COMPARISON OF KURDISH NATIONAL MOVEMENTS: SYRIA, IRAQ, AND TURKEY
Title
A CONTEMPORARY ANALYSIS AND COMPARISON OF KURDISH NATIONAL MOVEMENTS: SYRIA, IRAQ, AND TURKEY.
Creator
Lanza, Grayson, Sadri, Houman, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
As commonly understood, and particularly espoused by Kurdish nationalists, the Kurds are by far the largest ethnic group in the world without their own nation-state. An estimated 2 to 2.5 million ethnically Kurdish people inhabit portions of Syria. There are approximately 6.5 million ethnically Kurdish people in Iraq, 7.6 million in Iran, and 16 million in Turkey. Overall, there are about 30 million Kurds in the world. In the broader context of the Kurdish nationalist struggle, this paper...
Show moreAs commonly understood, and particularly espoused by Kurdish nationalists, the Kurds are by far the largest ethnic group in the world without their own nation-state. An estimated 2 to 2.5 million ethnically Kurdish people inhabit portions of Syria. There are approximately 6.5 million ethnically Kurdish people in Iraq, 7.6 million in Iran, and 16 million in Turkey. Overall, there are about 30 million Kurds in the world. In the broader context of the Kurdish nationalist struggle, this paper suggests that there is a growing bipolar hegemony for power over the control of Kurdish land and politics. Research was predicated around the question of why not all Kurdish groups pursue full independence. Standing in contrast to each other despite relatively similar goals is the Group of Communities in Kurdistan (KCK) and the Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP). The KCK movement is the more diverse of the two, with its member organizations being the dominant forces of the Kurdish movement in Turkey, Syria, and Iran. Within Turkey, the KCK is represented politically through the HDP and PKK, along with the armed wing of the PKK (HPG). In Syria, KCK is represented politically through the PYD and its armed wing YPG. In Iran, the KCK is represented by PJAK and in Iraq it is represented by the PÇDK. In Syria and Turkey, KCK affiliated groups are the dominant political and militia force. The only Kurdish inhabited region where this is not the case is in the Kurdish Regional Government in Iraq, which is dominated politically, economically, and militarily by the KDP and its affiliates. The two camps differ in a host of ways: the KCK espouses anti-state, anarcho-socialist sentiment while the KDP opts for establishing a traditional nation-state. The KCK has poor relations with Turkey universally, while the KDP and by extension the KRG has warm relations built off of growing economic interests. Most importantly, their end goals for Kurdish society are drastically different: KCK organization call for autonomous communities and do not advocate for a state, in direct contrast to the KDP's long iii term goal of an independent nation-state for the Kurdish people. Despite the common enemy of Islamic State, tensions between the two camps have only increased as each looks to become the voice for the Kurdish nation.
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Date Issued
2017
Identifier
CFH2000196, ucf:45998
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH2000196
POLITICAL ISLAM AND DEMOCRACY
Title
POLITICAL ISLAM AND DEMOCRACY.
Creator
Browne-Michael, Mikellon S, Sadri, Houman A., University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
The Middle East is a predominately Islamic region. Islam is not only a religion, it is the Muslim way of life and law. The western world follows a more modern system of government, in the form of democracy. Democracy is not modern, as in new, since it was started by the ancient Greeks, but it is modern, because it is the main system being adopted in contemporary times. Muslims follow the ideals found in the Holy Quran, the book dictated by the prophet Muhammad. The Middle East has had a...
Show moreThe Middle East is a predominately Islamic region. Islam is not only a religion, it is the Muslim way of life and law. The western world follows a more modern system of government, in the form of democracy. Democracy is not modern, as in new, since it was started by the ancient Greeks, but it is modern, because it is the main system being adopted in contemporary times. Muslims follow the ideals found in the Holy Quran, the book dictated by the prophet Muhammad. The Middle East has had a strong Islamic influence since the mid-seventh century. Islam originated in Mecca in 610 C.E. About twelve years later, in 622 C.E., after much persecution in Mecca, Muslims migrated to Medina. This was in 622 C.E. and it marked the start of the Muslim calendar. Soon, by 655 C.E., Islam had begun spreading over the regions along the Mediterranean Sea, Arabian Peninsula, Asia, and Africa. This research will span the political systems from pre-Ottoman, to Ottoman, to the Modern era. The beginning of the modern Middle East is marked by the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the end of World War I. Since the end of World War I, much of the Middle Eastern region has been exposed to the western system of government and western culture. The intent of this Thesis is to analyze and draw a conclusion on the possibility of Politically Islamic states having Democracy and following Democratic ideologies. It will examine the ideologies of Islam to determine if democracy, a system of government that includes the citizens of the nation having the right to speak and receiving civil liberties to choose their leaders, is actually present. It will use data from Turkey, Iran, and Egypt, Middle Eastern nations located either in, or bordering, three different continents of the world. In each country the research will examine, the governmental system, the regime type, the leaders past and present, and the policies, including how each country vary according to a specific Islamic sector (Sunni or Shia). This thesis will draw conclusions from the comparative analysis on each case study, on whether it is possible to have democracy in a state where Islamic ideologies are a major factor. From the case study findings, there were clear differences between all the countries studied. Turkey was found to be majority Sunni with a secular republic government but it is showing signs of reverting into the realm of political Islam. Iran was found to be majority Shia with a religious republic government, one that freely allows religion into the law-making body and has emphasized policies that are based on Islamic law. In addition, Iran shows adversity to western democratic bodies, which falls in line with the idea that Islam and democracy are at odds. Finally, Egypt the most revolution-plagued has changed leaders constantly through coups and protests, when the citizens find the leaders as corrupt or not acting in the best interest of the country. Like Turkey, Egypt is a secular republic with the majority of its citizens being from the Sunni Islamic sect it has recently shown an inclination to be the most democratic nation of those studied. The research showed that the Middle East is still having trouble adjusting to the idea of democracy and democratic ideology. The issues were found on various cultural, social, and leadership levels. There were not only civil and regional disputes among the nations of the Middle East, some of the issues have been extended to international levels. The split between Democracy and traditional Islamic values, appeared to only deepen the conflicts of the region.
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Date Issued
2017
Identifier
CFH0000238, ucf:44673
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0000238
DETERMINANTS OF THE WELL-BEING OF POLICE OFFICERS IN THE TURKISH NATIONAL POLICE
Title
DETERMINANTS OF THE WELL-BEING OF POLICE OFFICERS IN THE TURKISH NATIONAL POLICE.
Creator
YILDIZ, SERDAR, WAN, THOMAS, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
ABSTRACT This research evaluates the relationships of time balance, social relations, role conflict, perception of work environment, and fourteen control variables to police officers' well-being in Turkish National Police. Well-being is identified in the management literature as having a strong relationship with performance. Therefore, by finding the factors affecting well-being, this research seeks to identify intervention strategies, which can promote a healthy workforce and police...
Show moreABSTRACT This research evaluates the relationships of time balance, social relations, role conflict, perception of work environment, and fourteen control variables to police officers' well-being in Turkish National Police. Well-being is identified in the management literature as having a strong relationship with performance. Therefore, by finding the factors affecting well-being, this research seeks to identify intervention strategies, which can promote a healthy workforce and police performance. Such interventions, in addition, may improve police performance through improved well-being. Individual police officers were analyzed to better understand the relationship between work environment on family life, social life, and the well-being of the police officers. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in the seven geographic regions of Turkey for all branches of Turkish National Police. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to validate the measurement of latent constructs and their relationships. A 45-item questionnaire collected demographic data and items associated with the latent constructs such as time balance, social relations, role conflict, perception of work environment, and the police officers' well-being. This 45-item questionnaire was based on two survey instruments that have been used by Eurofound in Europe for two decades. The response rate for the questionnaire in this dissertation was 47.14% with 495 respondents out of 1,050 subjects. The analysis revealed statistically significant relationships between following latent constructs: time balance and well-being (an indirect effect via role conflict), time balance and social relations, time balance and role conflict, social relations and role conflict, role conflict and well-being, and perception of work environment and well-being. In addition, six control variables (rank, department, optimism, isolation, income sufficiency, and working days per week) were statistically significantly related with well-being. No direct significant relationship was found between time balance and well-being, and social relations and well-being constructs. Eight control variables (gender, marital status, service time, extra work, confusion, region, work type, and working hours per day) had no significant relationship with well-being. These findings support some commonly expressed complaints of police officers. These findings also suggest that attention should be paid to the effects of time balance, income sufficiency, work environment, and workdays on the well-being of the officers.
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Date Issued
2008
Identifier
CFE0002238, ucf:47904
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002238
Why is Democracy in Decline: Democratic Backsliding in Venezuela and Turkey
Title
Why is Democracy in Decline: Democratic Backsliding in Venezuela and Turkey.
Creator
Bayraktar, Fatih, Ash, Konstantin, Wilson, Bruce, Dolan, Thomas, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
It has long been argued that the end of the 20th century marked the triumph of liberal democracy. The third wave of democracy has increased the number of democracies in the world unprecedentedly and gave hope to many that democratic revolution is underway. However, in the last decade, this democratization process seems to have halted; there has been decline both in the number and quality of democracies. This thesis proposes an agent-based theory of democratic backsliding. More specifically,...
Show moreIt has long been argued that the end of the 20th century marked the triumph of liberal democracy. The third wave of democracy has increased the number of democracies in the world unprecedentedly and gave hope to many that democratic revolution is underway. However, in the last decade, this democratization process seems to have halted; there has been decline both in the number and quality of democracies. This thesis proposes an agent-based theory of democratic backsliding. More specifically, it is argued that leaders with undemocratic normative preferences and their ability to mobilize previously persecuted segments of society are the driving factors behind the present-day authoritarian resurgence. While the leader's fight with the oppressors of the marginalized group can bring a short-term of democratization, we argue that the unconditional support given by the marginalized group to the leader can allow the leader to undermine democracy by removing the checks on his power. The paper attempts to investigate similarities in the process of democratic derogation in a comparative case study of Venezuela and Turkey. The study shows that the support given to Erdogan and Chavez by the previously persecuted groups in their respective countries, religious/conservatives in Turkey and poor in Venezuela, allowed both leaders to undermine democracy in a subtle and incremental way.
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Date Issued
2018
Identifier
CFE0007155, ucf:52302
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007155
DEGREES OF CAUSALITY: AN ASSESSMENT OF ENDOGENOUS CONTRIBUTORS TO INSTABILITY IN JORDAN, SYRIA, & TURKEY
Title
DEGREES OF CAUSALITY: AN ASSESSMENT OF ENDOGENOUS CONTRIBUTORS TO INSTABILITY IN JORDAN, SYRIA, & TURKEY.
Creator
Willman, Gabriel, Sadri, Houman, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
The political instability of the Middle East is often perceived to be derived primarily from the interaction of Middle Eastern nations with external forces; with significant emphasis placed upon the disruptive effects of modern colonialism and Westernization. While this study does not seek to directly contest the catalytic primacy of exogenous factors, it does seek to establish the necessary causality of pre-existing internal factors. Rather than approaching the situation from a linear causal...
Show moreThe political instability of the Middle East is often perceived to be derived primarily from the interaction of Middle Eastern nations with external forces; with significant emphasis placed upon the disruptive effects of modern colonialism and Westernization. While this study does not seek to directly contest the catalytic primacy of exogenous factors, it does seek to establish the necessary causality of pre-existing internal factors. Rather than approaching the situation from a linear causal perspective, this assessment is oriented around an interdisciplinary examination of confluent factors. By examining the political history, ethno sociology, and economy of the region, the analysis investigates the underlying variables which have contributed to the instability of the Jordan, Syria, and Turkey. The primary conclusion of this analysis is that the interactions of multiple endogenous variables provide a basis of necessary causality which may be of equal causal import to that of modern colonialism and Westernization.
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Date Issued
2012
Identifier
CFH0004228, ucf:44965
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004228