Islam, Authoritarianism and Underdevelopment: A Global and Historical Comparison

Islam, Authoritarianism and Underdevelopment: A Global and Historical Comparison, by Ahmet T. Kuru, Bruce E. Porteous Professor of Political Science at San Diego State University, is a recent book on economics and history that compares the history of Islam and Europe, and through it, finds the roots of authoritarianism and its role in (under)development. Kuru seeks to answer the question why Islamic societies, as developed before the ninth century, gradually took the path of decline and underdevelopment, and this trend has continued to this day. To answer this question, Kuru conducts a comparative historical study to find an answer for the underdevelopment of Islamic societies; in doing so, he delves deep into the history of states in the broader Islamic world in the middle ages. His main concern is, what factors have led to the institutionalization of a particular interpretation of Islam in the structure of political power.