The supposedly unique impact of Islamic culture on democracy has been debated by various scholars. While some argue that it has a deleterious effect, others explain why its effect is not any more negative than other r...The supposedly unique impact of Islamic culture on democracy has been debated by various scholars. While some argue that it has a deleterious effect, others explain why its effect is not any more negative than other religions. Some even argue that there is no reason to assume Islam has a negative impact on democracy at all. The results of empirical studies are equally confusing. While some support the negative view of Islam, others actually demonstrate its positive effect on democracy. This article contributes to this debate by focusing its attention on the often-neglected distinction between electoral and liberal democracies, comparing Islamic societies with the rest of the world. Its findings demonstrate that the religion of Islam cannot be used to explain the seeming lack of the growth of democracy among Islamic societies.展开更多
文摘The supposedly unique impact of Islamic culture on democracy has been debated by various scholars. While some argue that it has a deleterious effect, others explain why its effect is not any more negative than other religions. Some even argue that there is no reason to assume Islam has a negative impact on democracy at all. The results of empirical studies are equally confusing. While some support the negative view of Islam, others actually demonstrate its positive effect on democracy. This article contributes to this debate by focusing its attention on the often-neglected distinction between electoral and liberal democracies, comparing Islamic societies with the rest of the world. Its findings demonstrate that the religion of Islam cannot be used to explain the seeming lack of the growth of democracy among Islamic societies.
