Authoritarianism in the Middle East: Regimes and Resistance Edited by Marsha Pripstein Posusney, Michele Penner Angrist Why do authoritarian regimes prevail in the Middle East while successful democratic transitions are occurring elsewhere in the developing world? Authoritarianism in the Middle East addresses this question, focusing on the role of political institutions and the strategic choices made by both rulers and opposition challengers. The authors eschew cultural explanations, highlighting instead the importance of robust coercive apparatuses in the region and the context of incumbent-opposition struggles. Their work sheds light on pivotal political dynamics throughout the Middle East, revealing the numerous ways in which the balance of power continues to favor the status quo. Marsha Pripstein Posusney is professor of political science at Bryant University and adjunct professor of international relations at the Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown University. Her publications include Labor and the State of Egypt, winner of the Hourani prize, and Woman and Globalization in the Arab Middle East (coedited with Eleanor Doumato). Michele Penner Angrist is assistant professor of political science in Union College. Her first book, Party Building in the Modern Middle East: the Origins of Competitive and Coercive Rule, is forthcoming from University of Washington Press.