The effects of executive constraints on political trust

This article explores political trust, delving into its subcomponents and the relationship between them. It is interested in explaining why governmental trust and trust in regulative state institutions are similar in some countries and different in others. It argues that the variation can best be explained by checks on the executive. This is the case because the more restricted the executive, the less regulative state institutions are affected by the fluctuations in governmental trust. When the government cannot encroach upon state institutions, the impartiality and efficacy of regulative institutions are maintained. The less governmental interference to regulative state institutions, the more such institutions will be devoted to the public rather than partisan interests, resulting in a wider gap between state and government trust. The argument is tested through an empirical analysis of a cross-national panel data based on all existing waves of the World Values Survey.     

Building Democracy to Last: The Turkish Experience in Comparative Perspective

This study analyses the relationship between checks and balances and democracy, focusing on Turkey in comparative perspective. In a large-N setting, the effects of checks and balances on the quality of democracy are examined. The findings reinforce the essential relationship between democracy and checks and balances. The article then discusses the implications of the the findings for Turkey. It stresses the need for horizontal accountability via checks and balances vested in different state agencies. In addition to state-level checks and balances, the importance of societal actors as sources of accountability is also elaborated. The study identifies the need for vertical accountability, not only through free elections but also by creating a political setting in which pluralistic media and civil society can thrive. In light of findings, the article stresses the need for a new constitutional framework that can embrace both state- and societal-level checks and balances.     

Chemical Imaging of Human Fingermark by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS)

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is a widely used technique to characterize the surface chemistry of materials. It plays a crucial role in accessing qualitative and quantitative information and in detecting the presence of chemical functional groups on the surface of any material. The forensic methods available to detect and identify elements and organic/inorganic compounds are often destructive, so evidence cannot be re-analyzed. However, XPS allows rapid analysis of samples without damaging them. Recently, an increasing number of forensic researchers have begun to study certain chemical information on fingermarks. In this study, the authors aimed to present the applicability and power of XPS imaging in fingermark analysis which can also provide specific information about the fingermark chemical composition. Herein, monochromated X-ray (Al Kα) spot size was fixed at 50 μm. XPS mapping resulted in the acquisition of spectra at each pixel, in an array of 41 × 30 pixels with a step size of 50 μm. Then, a simple discussion has been made about how the scanned surface spectrum and basic snapshot spectra are used to identify different components at a fingertip of a scanned surface area (~3 mm²). Hence, a fingermark pattern contaminated with caffeine, TiO₂, and Pb/PbO deposited on the silicon wafer can be chemically mapped and visualized by XPS using principal component analysis (PCA). Thus, the present study showed the possible applicability of XPS for the identification of illicit drugs of abuse, gunshot residue, and skin care products on latent fingermark by mimicking a crime scene evidence.     

Elections and Democracy in Turkey: Reconsidering Competitive Authoritarianism in the Age of Democratic Backsliding

This article reflects on the reasons why Erdoğan and the Justice and Development Party (AKP) could still win in the recent 2023 presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkey despite, among other daunting issues, the deep economic crisis and their unsuccessful handling of the February 2023 earthquake. The article discusses the role of state apparatus and the media under a neopatrimonial system, as well as the role of the EU, which turned Turkey into a rentier state with the refugee deals. The discussion considers whether Turkey could still be seen as a competitive authoritarian regime and points to the difficulties in determining whether regimes such as the Turkish one are competitive authoritarian or not until the election results are seen and the opposition candidates actually win.     

Prevalence of alcohol in blood samples from traffic accident cases in Turkey

Alcohol is one of the main causes of traffic accidents worldwide. With a population of 70 million, 12 million vehicles, and 18 million drivers (16% women), Turkey is one of the European countries that has a high incidence of road traffic accidents.In accordance with Turkish laws, subjects were considered to be positive when alcohol blood concentration exceeded 50 mg/100 mL. The objective of the present study was to obtain reliable and comparable data about alcohol use in traffic cases in Turkey. All cases are admitted to the emergency department at Ege University Medical Faculty. The cases from police officers are described as traffic control cases. Alcohol was detected in the blood of about 54.4% of the traffic-related cases during October 2005 to March 2007. It has been observed that, in 17.4% of the traffic accident cases, the blood alcohol level was 50 mg/dL or less, which is the legal limit in Turkey for car drivers. Alcohol prevalence was 57.2% in male cases and 43.6% in female cases. In alcohol-positive cases; the ratios for males were 1.73 times more frequent in traffic-related cases. Prevalence data will help traffic safety professionals to adequately allocate resources and plan future efforts in reducing drinking-and-driving behavior and thereby reduce traffic accidents.     

Deliberating in difficult times: lessons from public forums in Turkey in the aftermath of the Gezi protests

ABSTRACT

This study examines the prospects of public deliberation in a semi-authoritarian political context and unfavourable political cultural setting through an in-depth analysis of three public forums taking place in the aftermath of the 2013 Gezi Protests. This analysis shows that while the gains of deliberation in terms of influencing policy decision-making are limited, significant gains can still be reached in terms of creating a more civic public and a more strongly connected civil society that keeps its linkages with social movements. The study also finds that such forums can help create dialogue among distant segments of the society even though such interactions are still rather modest. These findings have implications for public deliberation in other non-deliberative settings as they open new areas of research in terms of the prospects of such forums in increasing social capital, pluralism and civicness.     

Letter from Ankara

This article focuses on the relationship between discourses of economic development and prospects for democracy in Turkey. It does so by tracing the political discourse of high‐ranking government officials and journalists close to them to show how they use arguments for economic development as a tool to politically legitimise interventions into liberal democracy. I first illustrate the dangers caused by the discourse surrounding economic development to democracy by looking at the Gezi protests. I show how demands for pluralism and respect for different lifestyles—which are crucial aspects of liberal democracy—were instead framed by the government as chaos created by agents of the so‐called ‘interest rate lobby’ and provocations caused by those who want to stop Turkey's economic development. I analyse Gezi in comparative perspective with presidentialism debates and the corruption scandal of December 2013. In these cases too, demands for democracy, transparency, checks and balances are pitted against economic development. Citizens are made to choose between a vaguely defined notion of economic development and democratisation.