The Center is pleased to announce the publication of the 7th issue of Currents: Briefs on Contemporary Israel, our bi-annual publication. The Spring/Summer 2023 issue features an article by Avital Sicron, a Ph.D student in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and a former Visiting Researcher at the Nazarian Center, "An Activist Court? Reassessing the Decline In Trust In the Israeli Supreme Court."

 August 16, 2023 – The UCLA Y&S Nazarian Center’s Spring/Summer 2023 issue of Currents: Briefs on Contemporary Israel was published this week, featuring an essay by Avital Sicron, a Ph.D student in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and recipient of a Nazarian Center research grant, "An Activist Court? Reassessing the Decline In Trust In the Israeli Supreme Court." Sicron argues that Israelis' declining trust in the country's Supreme Court can be attributed to the actions of societal actors rather than the court's increased involvement in political affairs, which is commonly depicted as the central propellent of the public's shifting opinion of the court.

Click here to read Currents issue 7 (Spring/Summer 2023). 

About the Author

Avital Sicron is a Ph.D student in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She is studying the changes in public perception of the Israeli Supreme Court since 1977, as a case study for the erosion of the legitimacy of authoritative institutions. Her doctoral research is conducted under the supervision of Prof. Eva Illouz. Avital holds a BA degree in Psychology, Sociology and Anthropology (summa cum laude), and an MA degree in Sociology (summa cum laude), both from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She has worked in collaboration with Prof. Illouz in the study of Israeli populism and is a contributor to her upcoming book: “The Emotional Life of Populism: How Fear, Disgust, Resentment, and Love Undermine Democracy”.

Covering Israel’s society, politics, economy, and culture, Currents aims to disseminate scholarly expertise, cutting-edge research, and innovative analyses of Israel to a wide audience.