The Political Consequences of Religious Institutions and Practices

The project contributes to the literature in three ways. First, it focuses on the political significance of non-state institutions and practices in shaping political behavior, thus complementing existing insights on the importance of formal and state institutions. Second, it brings data from Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country and third-largest democracy. The country is relatively understudied, yet its clientelistic political landscape makes it a particularly promising case to study informal political structures and practices. Third, on a broader level, studying religious institutions and practices in Indonesia and how they affect political behavior enhances our understanding of politics in the Muslim world beyond the Middle East and North Africa region.