Sociology of Authoritarian Law: Insights from Central Asia (SOCIAL)
Sociology of Authoritarian Law: Insights from Central Asia (SOCIAL)
The SOCIAL project focuses on supporting democratisation and good governance in authoritarian regimes, particularly in Central Asia. The aim is to connect research, education, and political practice in the sociology of authoritarian law. The project will gather original empirical data on the relationship between law, society, and governance in undemocratic contexts. It will bring new theoretical insights to enrich the debates on authoritarian legality. It will also create an interdisciplinary doctoral programme that will prepare future researchers to understand these topics across disciplines and regions. The project's outputs will also be applied practically, offering recommendations to international organisations, policymakers, and the academic community on effectively supporting democratic changes in authoritarian environments. The project involves 14 universities from Europe and Canada, where 17 doctoral students will be engaged.
Research team
The primary investigator of the project is Associate Professor PhDr. Slavomír Horák, Ph.D., from the Institute of International Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University, with the project assuming that researchers from the following institutions will further participate in its resolution:
- Lund University, Sweden
- University of the West of England in Bristol, United Kingdom
- Marmara University, Turkey
- Estonian Business School, Estonia
- University of Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Centre for Humanities Berlin (Geisteswissenschaftliche Zentren Berlin), Germany
- Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany
- Malmö University, Sweden
- University of Zurich, Switzerland
- University of Groningen, Netherlands
- Södertörn University, Sweden
- University of Toronto, Canada
- Turība University, Latvia
- Charles University, Czech Republic
- Vilnius University, Lithuania
- Kurultai PE, Uzbekistan
- Tajik State University of Commerce, Tajikistan
- Tebigy Kuwwat Public Association, Turkmenistan
- OSCE Academy in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
- Zhetysu University, Kazakhstan
- Tashkent State University of Law, Uzbekistan
- The Science and Politics Foundation (Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik), Germany
- General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Uzbekistan
- Anti-Corruption Council of the Kyrgyz Republic, Kyrgyzstan
- Eurasian Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies, Kazakhstan
- National Movement Yuksalish, Uzbekistan
- University of Tsukuba, Japan
- Academy of Public Administration under the President of Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan
- Academy of Public Administration under the President of Tajikistan, Tajikistan
- Crossroads Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan
- Centre for the Education of Lawyers at the Ministry of Justice, Uzbekistan
- International University in Tashkent, Uzbekistan
- Academy of Law Enforcement of Uzbekistan, Uzbekistan
- Mirzo Ulughbek National University of Uzbekistan, Uzbekistan
Donor
The project is funded by the European Commission through the Horizon MSCA Doctoral Networks programme.
Duration
The project will take place from January 2026 to December 2029.
