Second Round for Papers: Turkish Politics in Transition: New Perspectives on State, Society, and Foreign Policy

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in Uncategorized

The Political Studies Association’s Turkish Politics Specialist Group invites paper proposals for an upcoming online workshop and a prospective special issue focused on the evolving landscape of Turkish politics.

In recent years, Turkey has undergone significant transformations across political institutions, civil society, and foreign policy. These shifts raise important questions about state–society relations, authoritarian governance, opposition dynamics, and Turkey’s changing role in regional and global politics. This call seeks contributions that critically engage with these developments through innovative theoretical approaches and diverse methodological strategies. We are particularly interested in work that examines the interconnectedness of domestic political change and international dynamics.

Second Round of Submissions

We had shared a call for papers in the summer.

Call for Papers: Turkish Politics in Transition – New Perspectives on State, Society, and Foreign Policy

We are now opening a second round of this call for papers, with a new abstract submission deadline of 5 January. We aim to notify applicants of decisions within one week of the deadline and to organise the online workshop in February 2026.

Format and Timeline

The workshop will be held online and will be based on pre-circulated papers. All selected participants will be expected to read each other’s work in advance and to provide comments during the workshop. Our aim is to create a supportive and collegial environment that offers detailed, constructive feedback, with a view to developing papers for the planned special issue, which is scheduled for submission in May 2026.

Please submit an abstract of no more than 300 words, along with a short biographical note, to turkishpoliticspsa@gmail.com.

We warmly encourage submissions from scholars at all career stages and look forward to receiving your proposals.

Join us For Autumn 2025 Turkish Politics Online Workshop Series

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in News

The Turkish Politics Online Workshop returns this autumn with a compelling new series exploring the intersections of digitalization, gender politics, and social inequality in contemporary Turkey. Convened by Assistant Professor Aykut Öztürk (University of Glasgow) and Assistant Professor Digdem Soyaltin-Colella (University of Aberdeen), the programme brings together scholars for three in-depth discussions on the evolving dynamics of political, economic, and social transformation in Turkey.

The sessions will take place on Zoom and the registration links will be updated closer to the events.

4 November (13:00, UK time)

Autocratization in an Age of Digitalization

Presenter: Huseyin Emre Ceyhun (Princeton University)

Discussants: Dr. Melis Laebens (Central European University) and Dr. Rachael McLellan (University of Glasgow)

Register here

17 November (15:00, UK time)

Who Balances the Scale? Parliamentary Framings of Work-Family Life Reconciliation in Türkiye’s Labor Law Debates

Presenter: Cansu Yetimoglu (Bilkent University)

Discussants: Dr. Elifcan Çelebi (University College Dublin) and Dr. Nazli Kazanoglu (Nisantasi University)

Register here

8 December (15:00, UK time)

How Exposure to Economic Inequality Deflects Resentment from Disadvantaged Groups

Presenter: Aysenur Deger (Syracuse University)

Discussants: Dr. Aysenur Dal (Bilkent University) and Dr. Gizem Arikan (Trinity College Dublin)

Scholars, students, and interested participants are warmly invited to join these sessions and contribute to the discussions.

For any queries contact: turkishpoliticspsa@gmail.com

Register here

Civil Society and Autocratisation: Virtual Book Launch with Bilge Yabancı on Co-optation, Repression, and Resistance in Turkey

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in News

As Turkey confronts deepening authoritarian pressures, the question of how civil society adapts and resists has become more urgent than ever. Addressing this challenge, we are delighted to host the launch of Civil Society and Autocratisation: Co-optation, Repression and Contestation in Turkey (Edinburgh University Press), where Bilge Yabancı examines how NGOs, charities, businesses, activist groups, and religious organisations are reshaped under autocratic rule.

About the Author

Dr. Bilge Yabancı holds a dual appointment at Deusto University (Spain), where she is an assistant professor of research funded by the Ikerbasque Foundation of the Basque Government, and a Ramón y Cajal Fellow supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation.

She previously held posts as a Marie Curie Global Fellow at Northwestern University (USA) and Ca’ Foscari University of Venice (Italy), an Open Society Fellow in the Human Rights Cohort, and a Swedish Institute Postdoctoral Fellow.

Her research examines social movements and the transformation of civic space under autocratisation. She has also written extensively on populism, the nexus between populism, religion, and nationalism, and the role of emotions and performance in political mobilisation. In her current project, she studies social marginalisation to identify potential pathways for shifting attitudes toward refugees and vulnerable groups.

About the Discussants

The book presentation will be followed by feedback from two discussants. Dr. Zeynep Atalay, Associate Professor of Sociology at St. Mary’s College of California, specialises in state–civil society relationships in hybrid regimes, neoliberal governmentality, and the role of faith-based organisations in reproducing conservative communitarianism. Dr. Begüm Zorlu, ESRC Research Fellow at City St George’s University of London, researches political opposition in Turkey and Venezuela, the dynamics of solidarity and contestation in International Relations, and the changing landscape of warfare.

About the Event

The event will take place online on Wednesday, 8 October 2025, at 17:30 (UK time). Registration is available via Zoom, and all are welcome to attend. The presentations will be followed by a Q&A session.

Please register here.

Call for Submissions: Autumn 2025 Turkish Politics Online Workshops by PSA’s Turkish Politics Specialist Group

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in News

The Turkish Politics Specialist Group of the Political Studies Association invites submissions for the Autumn 2025 Turkish Politics Online Workshops, co-convened by Dr Aykut Ozturk (University of Glasgow) and Dr Digdem Soyaltin-Colella (University of Aberdeen).

Photo: Digdem Soyaltin-Colella

Turkish Politics Online Workshops are back!

We are happy to announce the call for submissions for the Autumn 2025 Turkish Politics Online Workshops organised by the Turkish Politics Specialist Group of the Political Studies Association (PSA). This online workshop series aims to provide detailed and constructive feedback for working papers on Turkish politics.

We recognize that publishing is essential to secure employment and promotion in academia. Our goal is to provide junior scholars of Turkish politics (PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, assistant professors, or mid-career researchers) with an opportunity to improve the quality of their manuscripts. We are open to all theoretical and methodological approaches to studying Turkish politics, including those from comparative, international relations, or foreign policy perspectives.

We are planning to organize three sessions in October and November 2025. Each sessionwill feature only one paper and last one hour. We expect the applicant to submit a full draft paper at least ten days before the seminar date. During the seminar, the presenter will make a brief presentation about the paper, no longer than 10 minutes. After that, the submitted paper will be discussed extensively by one or two discussants who are experts on the topic, co-convenors of the online workshop, and other attendees. The session will be finalized with a short Q&A session.

Scholars interested in presenting in the Turkish Politics Online Workshops series should send their draft papers to turkishpoliticspsa@gmail.com (Subject: Online Workshop Autumn 2025) by September 21st, 2025. We accept dissertation chapters and pre-analysis plans, as well as manuscripts written in the format of journal articles. We will prioritizemanuscripts that will benefit most from the workshop. 

We will notify the successful applicants by the end of September.

We very much look forward to receiving your applications!

Call for Papers: Turkish Politics in Transition – New Perspectives on State, Society, and Foreign Policy

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in News

The Political Studies Association’s Turkish Politics Specialist Group invites contributions for an upcoming online workshop and a prospective special issue on the evolving landscape of Turkish politics.

In recent years, Turkey has witnessed dramatic shifts in its political institutions, civil society, and foreign policy orientation. This call seeks papers that critically engage with these developments through innovative theoretical lenses and methodological strategies. We are especially interested in research that explores the interconnectedness of domestic political change and international dynamics.

Please see our full call for papers below:

Political Science Association Turkish Politics Call for PapersDownload

Format and Timeline

This will be an online workshop with pre-circulated papers. All selected participants will be expected to read each other’s papers in advance and provide comments during the workshop. Our aim is to offer detailed, constructive feedback in a supportive environment.

Key Dates

  • Abstract and bio deadline: 8 September 2025
  • Notification of acceptance: 15 September 2025
  • First draft due: 17 November 2025
  • Online workshop: 1 December 2025
  • Final papers for special issue consideration: 2 March 2026

Please send your abstract (max 300 words) and a short bio to turkishpoliticspsa@gmail.com.

We look forward to your submissions.

Scotland to Host Inaugural Workshop on Turkish Politics at University of Glasgow

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in Uncategorized

We are pleased to share the call for papers for the inaugural Scotland Workshop on Turkish Politics, a one-day academic event to be held on 18 June 2025 at the University of Glasgow’s School of Social & Political Sciences. The workshop will bring together early career researchers to present new work and engage in dialogue on contemporary political developments in Turkey.

Organized by a team of scholars based in Scotland and Turkey, the event aims to establish a recurring platform for interdisciplinary research exchange on Turkish politics, with future workshops expected to rotate among Scottish universities. The organizing committee includes Dr Aykut Öztürk (University of Glasgow), Dr Sevinç Öztürk (Çukurova University & University of Glasgow), and Candaş Ayan (Hacettepe University & University of Glasgow).

The call for papers is open until 30 May 2025, with submissions welcomed from doctoral students, postdoctoral researchers, and early career faculty. Accepted participants will be notified by 6 June, and full papers are due by 10 June.

The workshop comes at a time of increasing scholarly interest in Turkey’s political trajectory, marked by democratic backsliding, polarizing populism, and complex shifts in foreign and economic policy. Topics of interest include regime change, digital activism, identity politics, Turkey-EU relations, migration, and more. Both theoretical and empirical approaches across disciplines are encouraged.

The format includes paper presentations with assigned discussants for detailed feedback, a keynote address by Dr Diğdem Soyaltın Colella (University of Aberdeen), and a concluding roundtable on the future of Turkish politics research in Scotland. Dr Soyaltın Colella and Dr Uğur Özdemir (University of Edinburgh) are also confirmed as discussants, with additional names to be announced.

There is no fee to participate, though attendees are responsible for their own travel and accommodation costs. Interested researchers and discussants should send submissions or enquiries to turkishpolitics.scotland@gmail.com.

With its ambition to position Scotland as a hub for critical scholarship on Turkey, the workshop promises to be a milestone for early career researchers and a catalyst for future collaboration across borders and disciplines.

See the full call for papers in the attachment below.

CfP_Scotland Workshop on Turkish PoliticsDownload

Virtual Book Launch: Civic Death in Contemporary Turkey

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in Uncategorized

We are pleased to invite you to the launch of Dr. Seçkin Sertdemir Özdemir’s new book, Civic Death in Contemporary Turkey: Mass Surveillance and the Authoritarian State (Cambridge University Press).

Dr. Sertdemir Özdemir is a Visiting Fellow at the European Institute of the London School of Economics and Political Science. Her research explores democratic theory and key issues in contemporary political philosophy, including civil disobedience and political rights.

In her book, Sertdemir examines the Turkish government’s response to the coup, which included the dismissal of approximately 152,000 individuals through emergency decrees known as “kanun hükmünde kararnameli” in Turkish. The book explores how these authoritarian securitisation methods were implemented and their impact on the lives of the affected individuals.

The book launch will take place on 4 June at 9:00 AM Pacific Time / 5:00 PM BST / 6:00 PM CEST.


The book will be discussed by Banu Bargu (University of California, Santa Cruz) and Elise Massicard (Sciences Po).

You can read more about the book here.

The event will take place via Zoom. You can find the joining link here.

New Book: Civic Death in Contemporary Turkey: Mass Surveillance and the Authoritarian State

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in Uncategorized

We are excited to announce the release of Civic Death in Contemporary Turkey: Mass Surveillance and the Authoritarian State by our colleague Seçkin Sertdemir, published by Cambridge University Press. The study investigates the profound implications of state actions on individual citizens in Turkey following the failed 2016 coup attempt.

In this study, Sertdemir examines the Turkish government’s response to the coup, which included the dismissal of approximately 152,000 individuals through emergency decrees known as Kanun hükmünde kararnameli. The book explores how these authoritarian securitisation methods were implemented and their impact on the lives of the affected individuals.

'Civic Death in Contemporary Turkey' by @seckinsertdemir.bsky.social.Analyses the aftermath of the 2016 Turkish coup attempt, wherein the AKP government introduced new methods of authoritarian securitisation.📚 cup.org/3Wm4vYU 📚

— Cambridge University Press Political Science & IR (@cambridgeuppolisci.bsky.social) 2025-01-20T08:35:09.118Z

Sertdemir’s analysis brings together perspectives from political philosophy, social anthropology, and sociology to shed light on the lived experiences of those targeted by these measures. The book also highlights the specific impacts on women, as well as disabled and LGBTQ+ communities.

To read more about the book click here.

*Seckin Sertdemir is a Visiting Fellow in the European Institute at London School of Economics and Political Science.

Spring 2025 Turkish Politics Workshop: Join the Discussion

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in News

We are pleased to invite you to the Spring 2024 Turkish Politics Online Workshop, a forum for scholarly discussions on key political issues shaping contemporary Turkey. Organized by Assistant Professor Aykut Ozturk (University of Glasgow) and Assistant Professor Digdem Soyaltin-Colella (University of Aberdeen), this workshop is open to all academics and researchers with a focus on Turkish politics. The event will take place via Zoom.

The workshop is structured to provide detailed and constructive feedback on working papers, offering presenters the opportunity to engage critically with both scholars and participants. This collaborative environment is intended to support the refinement and advancement of ongoing research. Each session is designed to foster rigorous academic exchange and encourage interdisciplinary dialogue.

Please find below the programme for our Spring workshop. All of the events will take place at 15:00 UK time.

Meanings/Conceptualization of Democracy: A Political Ethnography in Kirklareli, Turkey
  • Presenter: Cana Tülüs Türk (Sabanci University)
  • Discussants: Begüm Zorlu (City University), Tugce Ercetin (Bilgi University)
  • Date: February 10
  • Registration link

Government Type, Electoral Dynamics, and Subnational Unit Proliferation in Turkey
  • Presenters: Murat Abus (Syracuse University) & Sabri Ciftci (Kansas State University)
  • Discussants: Özge Kemahloglu (Sabanci University), T. Murat Yildirim (University of Stavanger)
  • Date: February 17
  • Registration Link

The Language of Diplomatic Contestation: A Quantitative Text Analysis of Turkey’s Response to EU Criticism
  • Presenter: Lungta Seki (Koç University)
  • Discussants: Senem Aydin Duzgit (Sabanci University), Bugra Gungor (American University of Central Asia)
  • Date: February 24
  • Registration Link

Exploring Syrian Refugees’ Local Destination Preferences: Evidence from Turkey and Germany
  • Presenters: Sefa Seen (Nazareth University), Sevinç Oztürk (Çukurova University), Aykut Öztürk (University of Glasgow)
  • Discussants: Sedef Turper (Koç University), Oguzhan Turkoglu (Hertie School, Berlin)
  • Date: March 10
  • Registration Link

Loyalty or Persuasion? Local Voting Behaviour of Electors in Büyükçekmece
  • Presenter: Murat Oztürk (Istanbul University)
  • Discussants: Aysenur Deger (Syracuse University), Mohsin Hussain (University of Aberdeen)
  • Date: March 17
  • Registration Link

For any queries, contact us via email at turkishpoliticspsa@gmail.com. We are looking forward to a comprehensive discussion and knowledge exchange.

Online Book Launch: Memory, Patriarchy and Economy in Turkey

by psaturkishpolitics, posted in News

We are inviting you to the online launch event of Meral Uğur-Çınar’s (Bilkent University) book, Memory, Patriarchy, and Economy in Turkey: Narratives of Political Power. The book, published by Edinburgh University Press, investigates the interplay between collective memory, economic development, and patriarchy in shaping political narratives in Turkey.

The book brings together feminist theories and theories of the state for a holistic account of issues of legitimacy and resistance in Turkish politics.

To read more about the book click here.

The launch will take place on Thursday, January 16th at 15:00 (UK time) and will host an engaging discussion in the fields of Turkish politics, collective memory, and gender studies.

It will feature Sultan Tepe (University of Illinois at Chicago) and Lisel Hintz (Johns Hopkins University) as discussants.

Registration:

To join the event, please register via this link. For any questions, feel free to contact us at turkishpoliticspsa@gmail.com.