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Journals / Ekonomik ve Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi / 2026 / Cilt: 22 Sayı: 1

From Uncertainty to Belonging: The Politicization of Identity in the Age of Global Insecurity

Belirsizlikten Aidiyete: Küresel Güvensizlik Çağında Kimliğin Politikleşmesi

Nadir Ateşoğlu(SİNOP ÜNİVERSİTESİ, FEN-EDEBİYAT FAKÜLTESİ, SOSYOLOJİ BÖLÜMÜ, SOSYOLOJİ PR.)0000-0003-0561-3562
Pages
143–160
Publication Date
2026-06-29
DOI
—
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

The findings indicate that political behavior in the post-truth era is shaped by four fundamental components of what is termed the “emotional security regime”: (1) the ontological insecurity produced by information overload drives individuals toward the search for belonging; (2) emotions are not irrational but become strategically rationalized political instruments; (3) the post-truth citizen constructs identity not through knowledge but through emotional security; and (4) digital technologies institutionalize these emotional orientations through surveillance and algorithmic control.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

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Objective & Hypothesis:In the post-truth era characterized by global uncertainty and an overabundance of information, political behavior has increasingly shifted from being knowledge-based to being organized around the pursuit of emotional security.
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Key Findings & Data:This study aims to demonstrate that individuals, within a climate of global insecurity, seek stability not in factual truths but in emotional attachments.
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Conclusion & Impact:The findings indicate that political behavior in the post-truth era is shaped by four fundamental components of what is termed the “emotional security regime”: (1) the ontological insecurity produced by information overload drives individuals toward the search for belonging; (2) emotions are not irrational but become strategically rationalized political instruments; (3) the post-truth citizen constructs identity not through knowledge but through emotional security; and (4) digital technologies institutionalize these emotional orientations through surveillance and algorithmic control.
🔬Design:Araştırma Makalesi
📍Scope:Comprehensive Sample
⚙️Variables:Post-hakikat · Duygusal güvenlik rejimi · Aidiyet

Abstract

In the post-truth era characterized by global uncertainty and an overabundance of information, political behavior has increasingly shifted from being knowledge-based to being organized around the pursuit of emotional security. This study aims to demonstrate that individuals, within a climate of global insecurity, seek stability not in factual truths but in emotional attachments. This tendency leads political participation to be structured through emotional resonance rather than rational deliberation. The study employs a critical–interpretive qualitative design based on conceptual analysis, literature comparison, and theoretical synthesis. The approaches of thinkers such as Harari, Han, Ahmed, Bauman, Beck, and Giddens are examined comparatively. The findings indicate that political behavior in the post-truth era is shaped by four fundamental components of what is termed the “emotional security regime”: (1) the ontological insecurity produced by information overload drives individuals toward the search for belonging; (2) emotions are not irrational but become strategically rationalized political instruments; (3) the post-truth citizen constructs identity not through knowledge but through emotional security; and (4) digital technologies institutionalize these emotional orientations through surveillance and algorithmic control. The results suggest that the pursuit of emotional security gradually becomes institutionalized in the forms of emotional fanaticism and polarization, constituting the basis of political legitimacy. In this context, the “emotional security regime” offers an explanatory and conceptually guiding framework for understanding the politicization of belonging in the post-truth age.

Özet

Küresel belirsizlik ve enformasyon fazlasının belirlediği post-hakikat çağında, siyasal davranış giderek bilgi temelli olmaktan çıkarak duygusal güvenlik arayışı etrafında şekillenmektedir. Bu çalışma, bireylerin küresel güvensizlik ortamında istikrarı olgusal doğrularda değil, duygusal aidiyetlerde aradığını ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu eğilim, siyasal katılım biçimlerinin rasyonel tartışmadan ziyade duygusal yankı üzerinden örgütlenmesine yol açmaktadır. Çalışma, kavramsal çözümleme, literatür karşılaştırması ve kuramsal sentez tekniklerinden yararlanılarak eleştirel–yorumlayıcı nitel araştırma deseniyle yürütülmüştür. Harari, Han, Ahmed, Bauman, Beck ve Giddens gibi düşünürlerin yaklaşımları karşılaştırmalı biçimde incelenmiştir. Bulgular, post-hakikat çağında siyasal davranışın “duygusal güvenlik rejimi” adı verilen dört temel bileşen üzerinden biçimlendiğini göstermektedir: (1) bilgi bolluğunun yarattığı ontolojik güvensizlik, bireyleri aidiyet arayışına yöneltmektedir; (2) duygular irrasyonel değil, stratejik biçimde rasyonelleşmiş siyasal araçlara dönüşmektedir; (3) hakikat-sonrası yurttaş, bilgiden çok duygusal güvenliğe dayalı kimlik inşa etmektedir; (4) dijital teknolojiler, bu duygusal yönelimleri gözetim ve algoritmik denetim yoluyla kurumsallaştırmaktadır. Elde edilen sonuçlar, duygusal güvenlik arayışının zamanla duygusal fanatizm ve kutuplaşma biçimlerinde kurumsallaşarak siyasal meşruiyetin temelini oluşturduğunu göstermektedir. Bu bağlamda “duygusal güvenlik rejimi”, post-hakikat çağında aidiyetin politikleşmesini anlamak için açıklayıcı ve gelecekteki araştırmalar açısından yönlendirici bir kavramsal çerçeve sunmaktadır.

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Cite This Article

Ateşoğlu, N. (2026). From Uncertainty to Belonging: The Politicization of Identity in the Age of Global Insecurity. Ekonomik ve Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi, Cilt: 22 Sayı: 1, 143–160. https://ajindex.com/articles/1217910

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