Assessing Azerbaijan's modernization trajectory in light of theories of modernity

Modernization theories study a country to identify whether a country is developed or not, or to identify the development level of a country. There are three commonly used distinctive features to analyze and measure the modernity level of a country, which are introduced by classical modernization theory (CMT) as: secularism, economic development, and political development. According to CMT and neo-modernization theory (NMT) these features necessarily interact with each other, and if a country possesses all these features then it can be accepted as modern. However, multiple modernities paradigm (MMP) states that interaction between these features is not necessary and explains that the development of the three fields do not have to appear as in Western countries in non-Western countries. These three features are examined in the Azerbaijan case to identify whether Azerbaijan is a modern or non-modern country. Indeed, as the theories advocate different points of view, the study comparatively analyzes the theories and their application to Azerbaijan. In contrast to CMT and NMT's Eurocentric modernity approach, MMP assumes a more universalized modernization viewpoint. By analyzing the modernization trajectory of Azerbaijan, this thesis illustrates that MMP is a more universally applicable theory than its counterparts. This thesis analyzes the social, economic, and political development of Azerbaijan and contributes to the literature on MMP by showing that these three features do not necessarily be positively correlated with each other. Key words: CMT, NMT, MMP, Azerbaijan, secularism, economy, democracy,