By Peter Jones, CRRC International Fellow
CRRC –
Armenia is excited to announce the latest cohort of its annual fellowship
program. The program was launched in 2004 to support researchers in the South
Caucasus interested in pursuing original policy-oriented research.
For the
2012-2013 program, 9 fellows working on 8 distinct research projects were
selected through a competitive process of peer review and a selection committee
of leading practitioners and researchers. The topics range from political
issues such as the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to social problems like the
existing stigmas of Armenians toward homosexuality.
Anna Malkhasyan’s research will explore
the relationship between online social networks and social capital formation
processes. She will use a web survey of Facebook users and a series of
qualitative interviews to understand how Facebook users promote their
initiatives and engage their audience.
Artyom Mkrtchyan will
explore the frequency that the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan refer to
the Karabakh conflict and the context of these references. He will also
investigate the rhetoric used when the conflict is mentioned and whether it is
offensive or defensive in nature.
Arusyak Aleksanyan seeks to understand
what political, social, economic, and educational developments, if any,
precondition democracy or if democracy preconditions these factors. Her
hypothesis is that each country’s democracy is formed from the specific
national, cultural, and traditional conditions that are unique to that country.
Karine Markosyan’s research will focus
on female sex workers in Armenia in order to understand the potential risks of
a future HIV epidemic in the country. In particular, she will evaluate how
frequently and consistently Armenian female sex workers refuse to provide
unprotected sex to their male clients. She will also look at the demographic,
psychological, and behavioral predictors behind their refusal to engage in
unprotected sex.
Lusine Saghumyan will research the causes
for homosexual-related stigmas in Armenia.Her hypothesis is that such stigmas
among Armenian youth are based on national, cultural, and religious attributes.
Mariam Matevosyan is researching the
relationship between trust and economic growth in the South Caucasus. Her
research question explores how trust in core democratic institutions and
economic growth relate. She is also investigating regional trends in the level
of interpersonal trust and the level of trust in core democratic institutions.
Tatevik Zohrabyan will
address two principal topics in her research: the socio-economic determinants
of female labor force participation in the South Caucasus, and the factors that
impact females’ perception that men are more entitled to employment when jobs
are scarce.
Vanuhi Mnatsakanyan and Ruzanna Gabrielyan are
exploring Armenia’s system of setting the minimum wage level. More specifically,
their research question is whether the system must change and, if so, why and
how to go about this.
These
fellows are only in the beginning stages of their research. However, their
topics are very unique and their findings could affect future public policy or
decision making in Armenia. Fellows are required to submit their publications
to a peer-reviewed journal in English, which CRRC sees as important for
integrating the Caucasus into global academic dialogue and discourse.
CRRC-Armenia wishes it fellows luck in their projects and is excited to see
their finished projects next year.
As these
projects finish, many of our fellows will be presenting their findings. Follow
our facebook page here for
updates on these presentations and much more!
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