Islamic Political Thought

Analysis of New Social Movements in the Middle East (Case Study: Egyptian revolution of 2011)

Document Type : Case- Study (International Relation)

Author

Assistant Professor, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

The emergence of new social movements in the Middle East with the aim of reforming or changing the established system and with different characteristics from traditional and classical movements is one of the topics that has attracted the attention of sociologists and social researchers. In this study, using a descriptive-analytical method, based on Ted Robert Greer's theory of "relative deprivation", an attempt has been made to investigate the emergence of new social movements in the Middle East and to examine whether another factor was involved in the emergence of this phenomenon or not. In order to facilitate the process of research and show real evidence, the Egyptian revolution will be discussed as a case study. Thus we organize the present article in the framework of the following questions: "Does the theory of 'relative deprivation' have the ability to explain new social movements in the Middle East, such as the Egyptian revolution?" And "What factors besides this theory can enhance the ability to explain these movements?" The results obtained from the analysis of the January Revolution in Egypt and the role of social media Revolution indicate that although the developments of Islamic societies are rooted in the dissatisfaction of the people of these countries with the situation of their society, however, the role of "mass media" in motivating and organizing people to participate in the main streets and squares of the city cannot be ignored. In fact, the "relative deprivation" of Egyptian society during the rule of Hosni Mubarak has acted as a motivating factor of people and social media and networks such as Facebook have played the role of catalyst.

Keywords

Main Subjects

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Islamic Political Thought
Volume 9, Issue 2
October 2022
Pages 143-153
  • Receive Date: 18 June 2022
  • Revise Date: 05 August 2022
  • Accept Date: 30 August 2022