Project Description

The research project ‘Towards a Typology of Contestations’ (TTC) aims to construct a typology of contestations of the liberal script that takes the diversity of current contestations on a global scale into consideration. The analysis considered over 30 features of 53 contestants, consisting of different actors in all world regions, across five dimensions: normativity, epistemology, identity, emotions, and intensity. This endeavor also involved collaboration with other branches of the SCRIPTS cluster, and with experts in area studies in particular to identify various contestation movements in the world’s regions.

Research Questions

What are the main categories of the current contestations of the liberal script on a global scale?

Research Approach

To develop the typology, the project proceeded in four broad stages: (1) First, variables were theoretically derived from the literature on contestations and the liberal script that may provide meaningful distinctions between contestants. We differentiated aspects related to specific components of the liberal script that are being targeted – and hence more to the goals of the contestation – and factors that relate more to the characteristics of a contestant and their means of mobilisation – and hence more to the form of the contestation. (2) Second, we compiled a list of potential contestants that should possibly feature actors hitherto unknown to us. To achieve this, news agencies from different world regions were selected to have their articles from 2016-2019 scraped based on keywords related to the liberal script. A named entity recognition algorithm extracted the names of potential contestants mentioned in those articles.

(3) Subsequently, we drew a sample of contestants from that list to reduce the number of cases to a manageable size. The sample is based on different strata to ensure a diverse selection of contestants. (4) Each actor from our stratified sample, was then assigned codes for the variables from the first stage. (5) Finally, we conducted a cluster analysis on the dataset to identify four types of contestants and a Principal Component Analysis to sketch a two-dimensional space in which all the contestants can be located.

Relation to the Liberal Script

The typology may benefit the Cluster as a whole by supporting further research into the causes and consequences of specific types of contestations and examining their relative strength towards the liberal script. Additionally, by describing the different types, the typology provides a phenomenology of current contestations, which allows individual contestants to link to broader developments more easily. This, in turn, could facilitate other research projects within the Cluster.

Core Findings

Our project demonstrates that contestations of the liberal script are polyphonic and that it is not possible to identify one dominant contestation. Based on the observation that liberal ideas, institutions, and orders are challenged globally and in diverse ways, we identify four clusters of contestants challenging the liberal script: "the Fundamentalists," "the Authoritarian Populists," "the Market-sceptic Egalitarians," and "the Identity-focused Contestants."

These clusters transcend traditional classifications, grouping diverse actors based on their critiques of liberal principles, epistemological standpoints, intensity of their contestation, identities and emotions. The Fundamentalists, including Islamist, far-right, and one socialist actor, pose the greatest challenge to the liberal script through their rejection of liberal principles and endorsement of alternative scripts. The Authoritarian Populists, formed by far-right and right-wing actors globally, challenge equal moral weight and civil rights. The Market-sceptic Egalitarians, composed mainly of left-wing actors and environmentalist movements, critique the capitalist market economy. The Identity-focus Contestants, including right-wing, left-wing, and ethnicity-based actors from the Global South, focus on either constructing national identities or challenging the oppression of minority groups, often criticising liberal authorities for being “hypocritical”.

Based on this analysis and employing the underlying database, we also grasp a two-dimensional space of global opposition to the liberal script. One dimension revolves around the issue of (in)equality, and another around the issue of democracy vs authoritarianism. The meaning of these dimensions diverges from the new cleavage theory. The liberal cosmopolitan and authoritarian nationalism dimension is clear-cut, contrasting authoritarian and strongly democratic views of society. Both sides challenge the liberal status quo. The second dimension transforms the traditional economic Right-Left divide into a broader struggle for equality. One side criticizes market-driven inequality and the lack of recognition for identity-based groups, while the other seeks cultural, political, and economic dominance.

Academic Innovations

Both project achievements – a typology built on a systematic cluster analysis of 53 cases based on 31 features, and the development of a global space of opposition to the liberal script – are, to our knowledge, unprecedented. These academic achievements provide valuable insights to grasp the diversity of contestants of the liberal script and how they relate to each other. They offer a unique opportunity to develop more nuanced and context-dependent approaches to study the causes and consequences of different contestations.

Publications

Alter, Karen J. / Zürn, Michael 2020: Conceptualising backlash politics: Introduction to a special issue on backlash politics in comparison, The British Journal of Politics and International Relations 22(4): 563–584.

Alter, Karen J. / Zürn, Michael 2020: Theorizing Backlash Politics. Conclusion to a special issue on backlash politics in comparison, The British Journal of Politics and International Relations 22(4): 739–752.

Freier, Feline / Fernández Rodríguez, Nieves 2021: The Impact of Visa Policies on the Gendered Nature of Migration, in: Mora, Claudia / Pipler, Nicola (eds.): Handbook on Gender and Migration, Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 505-521.

Freier, Feline / Fernández Rodríguez, Nieves 2021: Trends in Domestic Refugee Law in Latin America, in: Gandini, Luciana / Espinoza, Marcia Vera / Mezzanotti, Gabriela (eds.): Latin America and Refugee Protection: regimes, logics and challenges, New York: Berghahn, 256-276.

Röllicke, Lena 2023: Polarisation, Identity and Affect. Conceptualising Affective Polarisation in Multi-Party Systems, Electoral Studies 85: 1-16.

Schäfer, Armin / Zürn, Michael 2021: Die Demokratische Regression, Berlin: edition suhrkamp.

Schäfer, Armin / Zürn, Michael 2023: The Democratic Regression. The Political Causes of Authoritarian Populism, Cambridge (UK); Hoboken (US): Polity Press.

Zürn, Michael 2020: Symposium on Backlash Politics in Comparison, The British Journal of Politics and International Relations 22(4): 563–584.

Zürn, Michael 2021: How Non-Majoritarian Institutions Make Silent Majorities Vocal: A Political Explanation of Authoritarian Populism, Perspectives on Politics 20(3): 788–807.

Zürn, Michael 2022: Autoritäre Herrschaftsformen im 21. Jahrhundert, in: Frankenberg, Günter / Heitmeyer, Wilhelm (eds.): Treiber des Autoritären. Pfade von Entwicklungen zu Beginn des 21. Jahrhunderts, Frankfurt: Campus Verlag, 89–116.

Zürn, Michael 2023: Authority in International Relations. Contracted, Inscribed, or Reflexive?, in: Daase, Christopher / Deitelhoff, Nicole / Witt, Antonia (eds.): Rule in International Politics, Cambridge University Press.