Non-Western Encounters with Democratization: Imagining Democracy after the Arab Spring

Abstract

The book explores diverse perspectives on democratization across non-Western regions, particularly the Middle East, North Africa, and East Asia. It draws on case studies to examine how different societies experience and interpret democracy, especially in the context of political transitions following the Arab Spring. The volume challenges the assumption that Western democratic models are universally applicable and instead highlights alternative pathways and understandings of democracy. It also investigates why the Arab Spring sparked widespread uprisings in some regions while failing to produce similar movements elsewhere, emphasizing regional differences and socio-political contexts.