Back to top

Photograph of Judd King

Judd King Adjunct Senior Professorial Lecturer Critical Race Gender and Culture Studies

Degrees
Ph.D., Islamic Studies (Georgetown University);

M.A., Arab Studies (Georgetown University Graduate School of Foreign Service);

B.A., Comparative and International Studies & Asian and African Languages and Literatures (Duke University)

Languages Spoken
Arabic (Classical/Modern Standard), Arabic (Colloquial Egyptian), French, Persian, Turkish
Bio
Judd King currently teaches in the Department of Philosophy and Religion and is affiliated with the Arab World Studies Program. His primary research interests are modern Islamic political movements, global populism, contemporary Turkey, and moral psychology, although he is also trained in Islamic intellectual history.

Through years of research in Turkey, he has developed an extensive network of contacts including intellectuals, journalists, civil servants, and politicians from across the political spectrum. His dissertation, based on detailed ethnographic interviews he conducted with core “Islamist” voters supporting Turkey's ruling AK Party, explores how ideological beliefs which are not rationally consistent with each other can coexist within the same person – in turn demonstrating why the beliefs of political actors are not a sufficient basis to predict their behavior.

Subsequent projects have included research on the way some Muslims espouse conspiracy theories imputing a non-Muslim origin to ISIS/Da'esh, as well as an interview-based study on the motives behind populist anti-Islamic activism on American college campuses. His current research, (starting May, 2023) is a longitudinal study of the changing cultural, political, and religious attitudes of conservative Turkish voters interviewed once in 2010 and then again in 2023.

Proficient in several regional languages, Judd has experience working, living, and conducting research in the Middle East extending back to 2001. In addition to academic publications and presentations at conferences ranging in theme from Islam, to Middle East studies, to psychology of religion, he has also contributed substantive political analysis to media outlets such as CNN.
For the Media
To request an interview for a news story, call AU Communications at 202-885-5950 or submit a request.

Teaching

Fall 2024

  • AWST-225 Arab Societies