This unique volume is about how ordinary people construct political meanings, form political emotions and identities, and become involved in or disengaged from political contests. Drawing on psychological anthropology, it illustrates the complexities of political subjectivities through engaging personal stories that complicate our understanding of the relationship between culture and politics. Chapters examine the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street in the United States, third gender activism in India, Rastafari in Jamaica, Courage to Refuse in Israel, the environmental movement in the U.S., Salafi movements in northern Nigeria, post-socialist labor politics in Romania, and anti-immigrant activism in Denmark.

Claudia Strauss is Professor of Anthropology at Pitzer College, USA. Her publications include Making Sense of Public Opinion: American Discourses about Immigration and Social Programs (2012) and A Cognitive Theory of Cultural Meaning (with Naomi Quinn, 1997). 

Jack R. Friedman is Research Scientist at the Center for Applied Social Research at the University of Oklahoma, USA. His research focuses on unemployment and political consciousness in Romania, mental health care, and socio-ecological responses to and stressors associated with climate change.