Ilker Kalin
Contact
Name and title: Ilker Kalin
Workplace: Department of Economic History and International Relations Länk till annan webbplats.
Visiting address Universitetsvägen 10 A, plan 9
Postal address Institutionen för ekonomisk historia och internationella relationer106 91 Stockholm
About me
Ilker Kalin is a Visiting Scholar at the Stockholm University Institute for Turkish Studies (SUITS). He is also a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Institute for Democracy at Matej Bel University in Slovakia, funded by the Research and Innovation Authority of Slovakia (VAIA) Fellowship (Project No. 09I03‑03‑V04‑00609). His current research examines contemporary threats to democracy through survey experiments conducted in Turkey, Hungary, and Slovakia.
He holds a PhD in Political Science from Wayne State University (Detroit, MI, USA). Prior to joining SUITS, he was a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Center for Foreign Policy and Peace Research (CFPPR) at Bilkent University (2023–2024). His broader research agenda focuses on political violence, protest movements, authoritarianism, and military socialization, with a particular emphasis on Turkey.
His work has been published in Political Research Quarterly, International Interactions, Conflict Management and Peace Science, and by Freedom House. He has received several grants and fellowships, including the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC) Online Teaching Fellowship (2022–2023), the IPRA Foundation Peace Research Grant (2024), and the VAIA Fellowship (2025–2026).
"Social Movements and Authoritarianism in the Middle East," Department of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, June 16, 2025
"Human Rights in the Middle East and Turkey," Department of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, Fall 2025
"Civil Resistance: The Theory and Practice of Nonviolent Action" International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC), Fall 2022-Spring 2023
His research primarily examines political violence, protest movements, authoritarianism, and the military, with a particular focus on Turkey. He is currently leading a project that investigates how authoritarian and authoritarian‑leaning governments suppress dissent through subtle mechanisms while simultaneously maintaining an image of democratic governance and public legitimacy. This work employs comparative survey experiments conducted in Turkey, Hungary, and Slovakia. The project is funded by the Research and Innovation Authority of Slovakia (VAIA) (Project No. 09I03‑03‑V04‑00609).
Selected publications (for full list, see Google Scholar)
Lanigan, A., & Kalin, I. (2025). Constrained but not transformed: Civilian-led certification reform and officer misconduct. Political research quarterly. (Online First)
Kalin, I., Lounsbery, M. O., Sezgin, F. S., Rakshit, D., & Pearson, F. S. (2025). Speeding Up Success: Analyzing Factors Influencing the Duration of Nonviolent Movements. Peace & Change, 50(3), 269-283.
Tokdemir, E., Kalin, İ., Cunningham, K. G., Aksoy, D., Carter, D. B., Loyle, C. E., Akcinaroglu, S. & Gleditsch, K. S. (2025). Fostering Cooperation in Conflict Research Beyond Borders. All Azimuth: A Journal of Foreign Policy and Peace, 14(2), 295-330
Kalin, I., & Kirisci, M. (2024). US Military training, external support, and security defections during nonviolent resistance. International Interactions, 50(3), 448-477.
Kalin, I., Lounsbery, M. O., & Pearson, F. (2022). Major power politics and non-violent resistance movements. Conflict management and peace science, 39(3), 241-265.