Behind the Veil

The Strategic Use of Religious Garb

Bibliographic Data

ID2236034
AuthorsOzan Aksoy (0000-0003-2170-6099, University of Oxford, corresponding author), Diego Gambetta (0000-0002-1655-6615, New College)
Year2016
Volume32
Issue6
Pages792-806
Publication date2016-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueEuropean Sociological Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0266-7215 • E-ISSN: 1468-2672
PublisherOxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1093/esr/jcw035
OpenAlexW2493074979
LanguageEN
Citations received10
References cited30

There is anecdotal evidence that since the late 20th century young, educated, and urban Muslim women veil more frequently and strictly. Does this imply that the classical sociological theories of religion, which predict that modernization should cause a decrease in religious behaviours, do not apply to Islam? We investigate this question using structural equation modelling to analyse three datasets, one from Turkey, one covering 25 Muslim countries, and one from Belgium where Muslims are a minority. We find that averagely religious women conform to the classical theories’ predictions. But among highly religious women the modernizing forces—education, occupation and higher income, urban living, and contacts with non-Muslims—increase veiling. We conjecture that for highly religious women modernizing factors raise the risk and temptation in women's environments that imperil their reputation for modesty: veiling would then be a strategic response, a form either of commitment to prevent the breach of religious norms or of signalling women’s piety to their communities. Our findings have implications for cultural policy and Muslim integration in Europe.

Islam · Modernization theory · Piety · Political science · Reputation · Social science · Sociology · Temptation · History · Law · Psychology · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Society, and Development · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology · Social Psychology

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