Cette étude aborde l’un des plus importants enjeux auxquels font face les mouvements islamiques, entre autres, l’engagement et la participation politique. Elle enquête sur la nature et les références de ses mouvements, en particulier le Mouvement de l’Unicité et de la Réforme (MUR) et aussi analyse, en adoptant une approche neutre et objective, combinant le cadre théorique avec celui de la pratique, leurs résultats en tant que mouvements sociopolitiques dans des communautés musulmanes, visant à apporter un changement social et politique. L’expérience de la participation politique des islamistes marocains à travers le Mouvement de l’Unicité et de la Réforme (actif politiquement, sous la couverture du Parti de la Justice et du Développement PJD) représente un modèle typique qui mérite toute attention de recherche et d’étude. En effet, le Maroc est parmi les premiers pays à autoriser aux mouvements islamiques modérés d’entrer officiellement dans le champ politique, et de s’y activer légalement. Aussi, ces derniers ont su se démarquer dans la scène politique et dépasser les thèses de coupures fondées sur une opposition radicale aux régimes gouvernants. Compte tenu de l’importance de la présence et du poids dont jouissent actuellement les mouvements islamiques, il est maintenant évident pour un grand nombre d’observateurs spécialistes que l’on ne peut plus parler de l’avenir politique et social dans les pays du monde islamique sans parler ou prendre en compte le rôle considérable de ces mouvements dans le tissu social du monde musulman. La plupart des études entreprises dans le domaine se préoccupaient du côté fondamental et théorique des mouvements islamiques, cependant cette présente étude s’émerge du lot par sa focalisation sur les organisations islamiques et leurs participations politiques en prenant le MUR comme cas d'étude. Elle aborde le problème définitionnel et cognitif lié à la notion des mouvements islamiques, puis explique la propagation rapide de ces mouvements dans le monde islamique, et identifie les idéologies motrices de leur action pour comprendre leurs concepts et leurs comportements envers l’autorité et la société. / This study addresses one of the most important issues facing Islamic movements, among others, engagement and political participation. It investigates the nature and references of these movements, particularly the Movement of Unification and Reform (MUR) and also analysis, adopting a neutral and objective approach, combining the theoretical framework with that of practice, their results as socio-political movements aiming to provide social and political change in Muslim communities. The experience of political participation of Moroccan Islamists across the Movement of Unification and Reform (active politically under the cover of the Justice and Development Party [PJD]) represents a typical model that deserves careful research and study. Indeed, Morocco is among the first countries to allow moderate Islamist movement, to officialy enter the political field and to activate in legally. Also, Islamists in Morocco have stood out in the political scene and overcame cuts theses based on a radical opposition to the governing regimes. Given the importance of the presence and weight currently enjoyed by Islamic movements, it is now clear to many observers and experts that we cannot talk about the political and social future in the countries of the Islamic world without mentioning or taking into account the important role of these movements. Most studies undertaken in the area were concerned with fundamental and theoretical aspects of Islamic movements; however, this study emerges from the batch by its focus on Islamic organizations and their political participation by taking MUR as a case study. It addresses the definitional and cognitive problem related to the notion of Islamic movements. Then explains the rapid spread of these movements in the Islamic world, and identifies the driving ideologies of their action to understand their concepts and attitudes toward authority and society.

Im Mittelpunkt dieser Arbeit steht die Frage, inwieweit in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland mit den Mitteln des Strafrechts auf rechtsextremistisch / fremdenfeindlich motivierte Gewalttaten reagiert werden sollte. Dabei geht es insbesondere um die Untersuchung, ob es einer Neuregelung im Strafrecht bedarf. Nach der Darstellung der kriminalpolitischen Lage wird zunächst ein Blick zurück auf den Umgang der deutschen Justiz mit Gesinnungstätern in der Vergangenheit seit 1945 gerichtet. Im Ergebnis wird festgestellt, dass sich die Justiz nicht zur Bekämpfung politischer Einstellungen oder gesellschaftlicher Skandale eignet. Die Untersuchung der Rechtsprechung bezogen auf fremdenfeindlich / rechtsextremistisch motivierte Gewalttaten seit 1990 bis heute zeigt, dass eine entsprechende Motivation in besonderer Weise, meist strafverschärfend berücksichtigt wird. Das bestehende Strafrecht erfasst diese Taten und bedroht sie mit angemessenen Strafen. Daraus ergibt sich die Frage, ob dennoch aus symbolischen Gründen eine neue strafrechtliche Regelung notwendig ist. In diesem Zusammenhang werden die "hate crime"-Regelungen der USA und einiger ausgewählter europäischer Staaten dargestellt. Diese sind entweder eigenständige Straftatbestände oder - überwiegend - Strafzumessungsregeln. Im Ergebnis wird für das deutsche Strafrecht eine Neuregelung, die einzig im Bereich der Strafzumessung realisierbar wäre, abgelehnt. / This work is focussed on the issue to what extend the penal law should be used against rightwing extremistic and xenophobic motivated crimes in the Federal Republic of Germany. It is investigated, whether a new legal regulation is necessary or not. First the current political situation regarding that crimes is discussed. Afterwards it is shown how certain political convictions have been taken into consideration by judicature in Germany from 1945 to the present. As a result it is found, that judicature is not a proper way to deal with political convictions or social scandals. Investigating the dispensation regarding rightwing extremistic and xenophobic motivated crimes since 1990 one finds that such a motivation leads to a more severe sentencing. Crimes likes that are already covered by the existing penal law and there are reasonable penalties for it. The resulting question is, whether a new regulation in penal law might be necessary for symbolic reasons. The hate crime concepts of the United States of America and some selected european countries are investigated in this context. Either these are separate penal laws or mostly sentencing regulations. It is shown, that only a sentencing regulation might be considered for the german penal law. As the final result, this is refused by the author.

Book Summary: The Routledge Handbook on Deviance brings together original contributions on deviance, with a focus on new, emerging, and hidden forms of deviant behavior. The editors have curated a comprehensive collection highlighting the relativity of deviance, with chapters exploring the deviant behaviors related to sport, recreation, body modification, chronic health conditions, substance use, religion and cults, political extremism, sexuality, online interaction, mental and emotional disorders, elite societal status, workplace issues, and lifestyle. The selections review competing definitions and orientations and a wide range of theoretical premises, while addressing methodological issues involved in the study of deviance. Each section begins with an introduction by the editors, anchoring the topics in relevant theoretical and methodological contexts and identifying common themes as well as divergence. Providing state-of-the-art scholarship on deviance in modern society, this handbook is an invaluable resource for researchers and students engaged in the study of deviance across a range of diciplines including criminology, criminal justice, sociology, anthropology, and interdisciplinary departments, including justice studies, social transformation, and socio-legal studies.

This paper sought to examine conspiracy theory (CT) use across three types of groups: radical violent extremists (RVE), non-violent extremists, and moderates. Using the theory of significance quest, or the desire for one’s life to have meaning (Kruglanski, Chen, Dechesne, Fishman, & Orehek, 2009), I sought to determine whether RVE groups were more likely to use CTs, invoke need for cognitive closure (NFCC) via the use of time pressure, elicit anomie, and promote significance quest through violence than the other groups. Using text analysis software, I pulled passages from six groups – two from each level of extremism - that had conspiratorial language and then coded for the variables described above. RVE groups were significantly more likely than the other groups to use CTs and invoke NFCC through time pressure but were less likely than non-violent groups to elicit anomie. In addition, RVE groups were more likely to promote significance gain through action, but not significance restoration or prevention of significance loss. Implications of the findings are discussed.

This dissertation uses social movement theory to analyze the emergence, activities and development of subcultures and small groups. The manuscript is comprised of an Introduction followed by three journal articles and one book chapter.  The introduction discusses: 1) the concept of theoretical extension whereby a theory developed for one purpose is adapted to another; 2) it identifies the social movement theories used to analyze subcultures and small groups; 3) it describes the data used in the analyses included here. The data for this work derives from two distinct research projects conducted by the author between 2002 and 2012 and relies on multiple sources of qualitative data. Data collection techniques used include fieldwork, archival research, and secondary data. Paper I uses resource mobilization (RM) theory to analyze the origin, development, and function of White Power music in relation to the broader White Power Movement (WPM). The research identifies three roles played by White Power music: (1) recruit new adherents, (2) frame issues and ideology for the construction of collective identity, (3) obtain financial resources. Paper II gives an overview of the subculture of Freestyle BMX, discussing its origins and developments—both internationally as a wider subcultural phenomenon, and locally, through a three-year ethnographic case study of a subcultural BMX scene known as “Pro Town USA.” Paper III conceptualizes BMX as a social movement using RM theory to identify and explain three different forms of commercialization within this lifestyle sport in “Pro Town.” The work sheds light on the complex process of commercialization within lifestyle sports by identifying three distinct forms of commercialization: paraphernalia, movement, and mass market, and analyses different impacts that each had on the on the development of the local scene.  Findings reveal that lifestyle-sport insiders actively collaborate in each form of commercialization, especially movement commercialization which has the potential to build alternative lifestyle-sport institutions and resist adverse commercial influences. Paper IV refines the small group theory of collaborative circles by: (1) further clarifying its concepts and relationships, (2) integrating the concepts of flow and idioculture, and (3) introducing a more nuanced concept of resources from RM. The paper concludes by demonstrating that circle development was aided by specific locational, human, moral, and material resources as well as by complementary social-psychological characteristics of its members.

Studiens huvudsakliga syfte var att undersöka och förklara begreppen ”jihad” och "heligt krig" och svara på ifall dessa begrepp kunde användas för att rättfärdiga terrorism, samt förklara den politiska islam, al-Qaida och det Muslimska Brödraskapets kopplingar till terrorism idag. Undersökningen gjordes med hjälp av kvantitativa metoder och framförallt genom litteraturstudier. Resultatet visade att det inte finns någon definitiv förklaring till begreppet jihad, utan det finns åtminstone två sätt att tolka det på, samt att våld genom jihad kan rättfärdigas genom att tolka och ta koranverser ur sin kontext.

Die Arbeit untersucht die Stellungnahmen der NPD-Fraktion im Sächsischen Landtag auf rechtsextremistische Inhalte. Dafür werden die entsprechenden Abschnitte der Plenarprotokolle aus dem ersten Teil der 4. Legislaturperiode (Oktober 2004 bis Juli 2006) mittels einer qualitativen Inhaltsanalyse untersucht.

In the submitted thesis the author focuses on the rising popularity of extremist political parties in the Czech Republic. The popularity growth of extremist political parties in the Czech Republic is proven by election results in recent years. Right-wing extremists{\crq} ``combat power{\crqq} growth is closely connected with the increasing number of their followers. Regional elections in 2008, in which the Labour Party achieved almost 29 thousand votes, which represents eight times more than the party had achieved in the previous elections in 2004, can be a proof of that. What is more, this party achieved 1.07% votes in the European Parliament elections and it surpassed the limit which is necessary for the state subsidy requisition. In the Theoretical Part the author deals with definitions of basic terms ``extreme{\crqq} and ``radical{\crqq}. Then he deals with the theoretical division of the political scene, from both the current point of view and the historical point of view, into the rights and the lefts. Then he attends to some terms which are closely associated with extremism, such as: nationalism, anti-Semitism and racism. In the Conclusion of the Theoretical Part the author focuses on the far rights and the far lefts. He pays attention to both the current representatives and to their predecessors of those extreme lines. In the Practical Part the author sets his targets and defines hypotheses and he also attends to the used research procedure there. The research was made via questionnaire investigations. Questions were focused on people{\crq}s opinions which are related to inadaptable citizens and extremism. There were also some questions which were focused on activities of those parties in the above mentioned fields, regarding the inadaptable citizens and extremism, which have their members in the Parliament of the Czech Republic. In the Practical part of the thesis the author also evaluates the observed results in light of respondents{\crq} achieved level of education. In the Discussion of the thesis the author compares the observed data with the knowledge of experts. He also focuses on divergent opinions of asked respondents, in connection with their achieved level of education. The thesis and the observed results could be used by general public interested in extremism in the Czech Republic. Besides, the thesis and the observed results could be used as a source of information to improve general knowledge about the scene of extremism and about the problems pertaining to the scene in the Czech Republic.

There can be many different approaches to the study of governments and their policies. Each of them has its advantages and disadvantages. One of the approaches would be a comparative case study which would give a clear frame of reference in relation to other states. In such a study it is possible to identify similarities and differences and relate the findings of one case to the findings of another. Such a study is useful but, because of the quantity of material, it might limit the depth of each case study. Comparative case studies are important, especially when no clear frame of reference is in place. In the case of states’ contemporary policy on Islamism, this frame is however already in place. Many of the theories of policy analysis emphasise extraordinary events as playing important roles in causing policy alterations. It is evident that for instance Nine Eleven led to changes in both western and eastern states’ stance towards Islamism. Knowing that, this thesis analyses whether any such events can be identified in the Egyptian context. Was Nine Eleven e.g. followed by a policy change in Egypt as well? Apart from the effect of extraordinary events, other causal factors are also illuminated. International relations, policy inheritance and the domestic situation can be mentioned as potentially interesting in further explaining policy stasis or change. This thesis aims at critically analysing the driving factors of the Egyptian state response to Islamism and Islamic extremism. In order to structure and systematise the data, the Punctuated Equilibrium Theory (PE) is applied as a tool of analysis. The thesis attempts to understand and explain policy change in President Mubarak’s Egypt by adapting a state-centric perspective and mainly using PE as a tool of analysis.

Islamic fundamentalism is a hotly debated and contested issue in the global arena and is often depicted as having replaced communism as the predominant threat to the West in the post-Cold War world. This study analyses the ideologies espoused by Islamic fundamentalist groups in Algeria, Sudan and South Africa by means of the dialogic model of interpretation in order to arri ve at a more thorough, less judgment al understanding thereof. The study begins with an in -depth analysis of various definitions of the concept Islamic fundamentalism. This is followed by a critical discussion of rationalist approaches to Islamic fundamentalism as well as reference to the ir shortcomings in order to justify the use of the dialogic model of interpretation. This model aims to critically evaluate Islamic fundamentalist ideas through interaction with the irrespective originators, thereby questioning the validity of a s ingle Western rationalist- inspired version of the truth. Structural factors, the political, cultural and soc io-economic conditions in Algeria, Sudan and South Africa, are also accommodated by the model. Consequently, the rise of Islamic revivalism is discussed within the historical context of the increasing influence of the West in the world of Islam and the introduction (and eventual failure) of secularist ideologies in the post-independence era. The focus is on different strands of Islamic political thought, Islamic fundamentalists, Islamic traditionalists, Islamic modernists and Islamic pragmatists. The country case studies, Algeria, Sudan and South Africa are then approached by means of an indepth analysis of the ideologies of prominent Islamic fundamentalist groups, as well as a consideration of structural (political, economic and social) factors. [n the case of Algeria, a detailed discuss ion of the ideology of the Front Islamique du Salut (F1S - Islamic Salvation Front) is placed in the context of the rise of Islamic fundamentalism and the dynamics of the current civil war. When it comes to Sudan, the ideology of the ruling National Islamic Front (NIF) is discussed, and is also placed in the context of the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in that country, as well as a discussion of government policies since 1989, with specific reference to the Sudanese civ il war and the current crisis in the Darfur region. In terms of South Africa, the focus is on the ideology of People against Gangsterism and Drugs (PAGAD), which is placed in the context of the urban terrorist attacks that characterised the Western Cape a few years ago. The final chapter looks at what has been learned from using the dialogic model of interpretation (with an additional evaluation of structural factors) as a theoretical approach. Recommendations are made with regard to each of the respective case studies which may be potentially useful for a future resolution of the conflicts in Algeria and Sudan, and, in the case of South Africa, may help ensure continuing stability as far as Islamic fundamentalism is concerned. Copyright / Dissertation (MA (Political Science))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Political Sciences / unrestricted