The Youth and the Arab Spring: Cohort Differences and Similarities
In: Middle East Law and GovernanceSearch for other papers by Michael Hoffman in
Current site
Google Scholar
Search for other papers by Amaney Jamal in
Current site
Google Scholar
The Arab Spring has been described as a youth rebellion driven by grievances about unemployment and dissatisfaction with existing regimes. In this article, we assess these claims by examining the characteristics of the current youth generation in the Arab world in comparison with earlier cohorts. We find that some of the conventional assumptions about this generation—that they are less religious, more likely to be unemployed, and more likely to protest—are true, but others—that they are more supportive of secularization, more interested in politics, and more dissatisfied with their regimes—should be reconsidered. Using the first wave of the Arab Barometer survey, we discuss how patterns of political attitudes and behavior vary across cohorts, and cast doubt upon the claim that the Arab Spring was the result of an angry youth cohort that was especially opposed to the old regimes.
Purchase
Buy instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):
Institutional Login
Log in with Open Athens, Shibboleth, or your institutional credentials
Personal login
Log in with your brill.com account
-
3)
UNICEF, A Generation on the Move: Insights into the Conditions, Aspirations and Activism of Arab Youth (Beirut: Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy & International Affairs, 2011).
-
6)
Mounira Chaeib, “Young in the Arab World: Lebanon,” BBC World Service, 8 February 2005, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/documentary_archive/4559765.stm.
-
7)
Ellen Knickmeyer, “The Arab World’s Youth Army,” Foreign Policy, 27 January 2011.
-
8)
Nimrod Raphaeli, “Unemployment in the Middle East – Causes and Consequences,” Middle East Media Research Institute, 10 February 2006.
-
10)
Jack Shenker et al., “Young Arabs Who Can’t Wait to Throw off Shackles of Tradition,” The Guardian, 14 February 2011.
-
12)
Gavriel Queenann, “Report: 70% of Arab Youth Want to Leave Region,” Arutz Sheva, 16 November 2011.
-
17)
David Gardner, “Arab Youth Steps in Where Islamism Failed,” Financial Times, 10 July 2011.
-
18)
John Esposito, “Arab Youth Want Democracy, Not Theocracy,” CNN, 28 February 2011, http://articles.cnn.com/2011-02-28/opinion/protests.democracy.islam_1_islamists-arab-youth-islamic?_s=PM:OPINION.
-
23)
Sara Sorcher, “Arab Youth Still Want Change, But Won’t Be Politicians,” National Journal, 4 August 2011.
| All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 2554 | 350 | 45 |
| Full Text Views | 654 | 69 | 5 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 554 | 131 | 4 |
The Youth and the Arab Spring: Cohort Differences and Similarities
In: Middle East Law and GovernanceSearch for other papers by Michael Hoffman in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by Amaney Jamal in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
The Arab Spring has been described as a youth rebellion driven by grievances about unemployment and dissatisfaction with existing regimes. In this article, we assess these claims by examining the characteristics of the current youth generation in the Arab world in comparison with earlier cohorts. We find that some of the conventional assumptions about this generation—that they are less religious, more likely to be unemployed, and more likely to protest—are true, but others—that they are more supportive of secularization, more interested in politics, and more dissatisfied with their regimes—should be reconsidered. Using the first wave of the Arab Barometer survey, we discuss how patterns of political attitudes and behavior vary across cohorts, and cast doubt upon the claim that the Arab Spring was the result of an angry youth cohort that was especially opposed to the old regimes.
| All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 2554 | 350 | 45 |
| Full Text Views | 654 | 69 | 5 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 554 | 131 | 4 |