Aala Abdelgadir

Aala Abdelgadir is a Presidential Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Politics Department at Princeton University. Her research examines Muslim identity and politics in two contexts:

1. In sub-Saharan Africa, she explores the determinants of conservative Islamic ideas and identities and their implications for political stability and social cohesion. Her book project characterizes conservatism, traces its origins to Arab missionary activities, and explores descriptively the ways it influences political attitudes and behavior.
2. In the European context, she examines the impact of institutional policies and societal attitudes on meaningful inclusion and integration of Muslim minorities. In joint and solo work, she evaluates the effect of the French headscarf ban and Islamophobic hate crimes on contemporaneous socioeconomic and identity outcomes. Her new work focuses on historical determinants of Muslims integration trajectories.