The pluralistic momentum in Iran and the future of the reform movement

Adib-Moghaddam, Arshin

Abstract

This article explores the pluralistic momentum in Iran. It challenges the state-centric approach to Iranian politics, arguing that contemporary Iranian reformism manifests itself as a trajectory, yet original and indigenous, political culture that feeds into the political process in a bottom-up manner—from society to the state—not the other way around. Assessing the theoretical, methodological and empirical implications of this hypothesis, the article outlines the contours of Iran's reform movement and its interaction with the country's diverse civil society. As long as Iranian politics is driven by the pluralistic momentum, it is claimed, Iranian reformism will elicit political results and—to highly dissimilar degrees—will continue to provoke the silent subservience of central institutions of the state.

Citation

Adib-Moghaddam, A. (2006). The pluralistic momentum in Iran and the future of the reform movement. Third World Quarterly, 27(6), 665-674. https://doi.org/10.1080/01436590600720868

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Jun 1, 2006
• Deposit Date: Jan 31, 2008
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 2, 2106
• Journal: Third World Quarterly
• Print ISSN: 0143-6597
• Electronic ISSN: 1360-2241
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 27
• Issue: 6
• Pages: 665-674
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01436590600720868