Beyond Piety and Politics: Religion, Social Relations, and Public Preferences in the Middle East and North Africa

How do ordinary men and women in Muslim-majority societies create religion-informed views of political topics such as democracy and economics?

Beyond Piety and Politics provides a groundbreaking approach to understanding the depth and variety of political attitudes held by people who consider themselves to be pious Muslims. Using survey data on religious preferences and behavior, the authors argue for the relevance and importance of four outlook categories--religious individualist, social communitarian, religious communitarian, and post-Islamist--and use these to explore complex and nuanced attitudes of devout Muslims toward issues like democracy and economic distribution. They also reveal how intrafaith variation in political attitudes is not due simply to doctrinal differences but is also a product of the social aspects of religious association operating within political contexts.

By highlighting the dynamic societal and political implications of religious devotion, Beyond Piety and Politics offers a fascinating new theoretical perspective on Islam and politics.

Sabri Ciftci is Professor of Political Science and the Michael W. Suleiman Chair at Kansas State University. He is author of Islam, Justice, and Democracy.

F. Michael Wuthrich is Associate Professor of Political Science and Associate Director of the Center for Global and International Studies at the University of Kansas. He is author of National Elections in Turkey: People, Politics, and the Party System.

Ammar Shamaileh is Assistant Professor of Politics and International Relations at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies. He is author of Trust and Terror: Social Capital and the Use of Terrorism as a Tool of Resistance.