A radical right lived ideology: an in-depth case study of the ideology of Sinine Äratus
Date
2024
Authors
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Publisher
Tartu Ülikool
Abstract
This thesis answered the research question “What is the nature and what are the core features
of the ideology of Sinine Äratus?”. The decision to investigate the ideology of Sinine Äratus,
a radical right youth organisation associated with the radical right Conservative People’s Party
of Estonia, is multifaceted. Firstly, it serves as a compelling case for exploring the ideology of
a radical right youth organisation, offering a rich source of information. Additionally, Sinine
Äratus is situated in Eastern Europe, has global affiliations with other radical right
organisations and activists, and has the potential to influence its mother party. To answer the
research question, the author used dual-method approach. First, through theory-driven content
analysis, the author demonstrated that the ideology of Sinine Äratus encompasses three key
characteristics of radical right ideology: authoritarianism, anti-democracy, and nationalism, as
defined by Elisabeth Carter. This confirmed that Sinine Äratus indeed is a radical right
ideology. Second, the author employed data-driven qualitative content analysis along with
morphological analysis to delve into the concepts, arguments connecting these concepts, and
the underlying values that constitute the ideology of Sinine Äratus. The identified concepts
were categorised into three themes: ethnonationalism, national independence, and
environment. Using two different methods for studying the ideology of Sinine Äratus not only
allowed the author to reconstruct the ideology of Sinine Äratus from two different perspectives
but also allowed the author to demonstrate what researchers would fail to capture if they were
to just use one method for studying an organisation’s ideology.