Ramin Jabbarli (he/him/his)

I am a Ph.D. candidate in Sociology at the University of Washington, with a Special Concentration in Social Statistics. My research examines how rituals shape national belonging and collective identity in multiethnic societies, with a particular focus on Iran and Turkey. In my dissertation, Veils of Belonging: Ritual, Identity, and Nationhood in the Modern Middle East, I combine quantitative analyses of large-scale survey data with qualitative casework to understand how the intensity of religious practices fosters—or fails to foster—cross-ethnic solidarity.

My broader research agenda bridges theories of nationalism, religion, and social movements, while also engaging with questions of environmental justice and ethnic mobilization. My article “Making and Transcending Boundaries: The Effect of Ritual on Nationalism” (Theory and Society, 2024) develops a theory of ritual intensity to explain why some rituals bring dominant and minority groups together, while others reinforce divisions. I am currently testing this framework through comparative studies of Iran, Turkey, and Belgium, as well as cross-national datasets that trace how ritual practices vary globally. Alongside this work, I am developing a second line of research on environmental justice, analyzing how ethnic grievances shape responses to crises such as drought and water scarcity.

Teaching and mentoring are central to my academic practice. I have taught courses including Contemporary Social Movements, Global Social Movements, Introduction to Sociological Theory, and Sociology in Practice: Community/Civic Internship Program at the University of Washington, Hofstra University, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and Everett Community College. In the classroom, I emphasize inclusive pedagogy, scaffolded assignments, and mentorship that helps students connect theory to lived experience. 

Beyond academia, I am committed to public scholarship and community engagement. I serve as President of the Foundation for Inclusive Society, a Seattle-based nonprofit that publishes human rights and environmental reports on minority-populated regions of Iran. I am also Chief Editor of EtekYazi.com, a multilingual platform for social scientists writing in Azerbaijani Turkish and Persian. I give talks at international conferences and contribute commentary to media outlets including BBC, Voice of America, and The National Interest.

Through this combination of research, teaching, service, and public engagement, I aim to contribute scholarship that not only advances theory but also speaks to urgent issues of nationalism, inequality, and environmental justice in today’s world.