Studied by 0 people
Looks like no one added any tags here yet for you.
The study of political institutions, conflicts, and identities by comparing countries, regions, or time periods to find general explanations.
Why do countries develop differently? Why do revolutions succeed or fail? Why do some places have more women in politics? Why do some restrict civil liberties more? Factors include geography, government type, resources, culture, and social structures.
The U.S. has never had a president like Trump before, but other countries, like Venezuela with Hugo Chávez, have. His impeachment shows that democracy and checks and balances still function. A key turning point for democracies is when political rivals see each other as enemies instead of competitors.
Focused on how and why - open ended - empirical - matter in the real world and for existing debates
Testing an idea you already have
Coming up with an idea through your research
Most similar: Comparing cases that are almost the same except for one key difference.
Most different: Comparing cases that are very different except for one key similarity.
Question whether factors are measured accurately, if processes are well captured, and if individual cases are properly explained.
The goal is to move beyond the divide between qualitative and quantitative research by applying a unified logic of inference, emphasizing that the best research often combines both approaches.
Selecting research based on the dependent variable can bias results, often hiding real relationships. A proper sample should be chosen independently of the dependent variable's value.
Key functions of the state: defense, infrastructure, education, handling shared threats (e.g., biohazards), tax collection, and defining its population.
Society-centered theory on States
The state's main functions include national defense, building infrastructure, providing education, managing shared threats (like biohazards), collecting taxes, and determining its population.
States can act independently when cohesive groups of officials are insulated from dominant socio-economic interests.
State-in-society theory on States
States are seen as one of many social actors competing with each other. They are made up of various parts that can either reinforce or contradict each other, leading to a dynamic of strong societies and weak states.
States are viewed as one of many social actors competing with each other. They consist of parts that can both reinforce and contradict each other, resulting in strong societies and weak states.
Max Weber's concept that politics involves the struggle for power, legitimacy, and authority, emphasizing the role of leadership types in state governance.
Traditional leaders: Authority based on the past, used by patriarchs and patrimonial princes.
Charismatic leaders: Leadership based on personal devotion, heroism, and individual qualities.
Legal leaders: Authority based on the validity of laws and functional competence under rationally created rules.
Charismatic leadership: Becoming more popular as it is highly desired by a state's citizens.
Thesis: When elite families are spread out across a state, they are more likely to support a strong central government because they represent multiple areas. In contrast, concentrated elites have narrower interests. This study challenges typical Eurocentric views on state-building.
To assess poverty and social outcomes, consider the following:
Poverty: Is poverty increasing or decreasing over time?
Social outcomes/human development: Look at indicators like life expectancy, infant mortality, and literacy rates to evaluate improvements in health and education.
Equity across groups: Examine gender equality and racial/ethnic relations to see how different groups are treated and included.
Satisfaction and happiness: Are people more or less satisfied with their lives and well-being?
Environmental sustainability: How well are natural resources being managed for future generations?
Owning and managing key industries
Infrastructure management (e.g., highways, airports, telecommunications)
Enforcing rules (e.g., banking, labor relations, product safety)
Fiscal policies (e.g., taxation and government spending)
Monetary policy (e.g., controlling money supply, promoting exports, managing inflation)
Public services (e.g., education, healthcare)
Military spending
Why do some States develop more/faster than others?
More of the Market: The "invisible hand" of the market suggests that when private actors pursue their own interests, it leads to the most efficient outcomes. The state should stay out of the economy.
More of the State: Quality state interventions are necessary because free markets alone aren't enough and may even cause problems. The state needs to coordinate actors, stimulate investments or consumption, develop new sectors, and prevent private companies from exploiting or distorting political processes.
What are extractive and inclusive institutions?
Extractive: Taking wealth and resources from one group and redistributing them to another.
Inclusive: Focused on power-sharing, increasing productivity, improving education, and promoting technological advances.
Free trade drives growth and reduces poverty, but financial flows need to be managed. Job retraining programs in the Global North are essential to compensate for economic changes.
Greater wealth can lead to more democracy, but popular demands should not outpace the state's capacity as the economy develops. Economic growth driven by natural resources may reduce democracy, as there is less need for taxation and easy funds for repression.
As new industries grow, they face increased worker mobilization. To avoid activism, these industries move to other countries, and the cycle repeats. The result is global waves of labor disagreements.
Liberal Market Economies
Firms mainly coordinate through market competition and hierarchies like contracting and hostile takeovers. They hire, fire, and poach employees but don't invest heavily in their education. Firm leaders have significant power and can make quick decisions. Firms prioritize immediate returns, focusing on the stock market, and tend to drive radical innovations (e.g., the U.S.).
Firms share information, including private details, through various ties supported by the government. They collaborate with unions to hire employees long-term and invest in vocational training. Firm leaders must consult councils with diverse stakeholders. Firms have longer time horizons, can survive downturns, and focus on incremental innovation (e.g., Germany).
An economy where most coordination happens through the market, but the state still owns many enterprises and tries to guide the economy toward its desired direction.
The control of a state by large interest groups, which can take authoritarian or democratic forms. Examples include fascist Italy, and contemporary Germany and Japan.
Groups present competing arguments in an open "marketplace of ideas," ensuring equal opportunity for participation.
Economic development comes from effective states, while stagnation happens with ineffective states. Success depends on the quality of the state, not the amount of intervention. States can be organized in three ways: neopatrimonial, cohesive-capitalist, or fragmented multi-class. Cohesive-capitalist states grow fastest in developing countries because their focus on growth matches the needs of private entrepreneurs.
This discusses the job insecurity in America due to labor systems that give employers strong tools to resist unionization. It also highlights how firms' market power is often overlooked as long as consumers aren't directly harmed. This situation is rooted in American political and economic institutions, which reward business models focused on minimizing labor costs.
Achievement involves internal complexity, diverse ways of describing it, being open to revision, reciprocal recognition, an original example, and progressive competition.
A regime that emphasizes political rights (e.g., free and fair elections, open voting and candidacy) and civil rights (e.g., freedom of expression, press, information, and assembly).
Democracy focuses on formal aspects like free and fair elections, ensuring basic civil liberties, and competitive political processes.
vs
Expands to include not only elections but also active participation in decision-making, social justice, economic equality, and the overall quality of civic engagement.
Ways of measuring democracy
Freedom House Scores: 1 = "most free," 7 = "least free."
POLITY IV: 21-point scale, from -10 (hereditary monarchy) to +10 (consolidated democracy). Categories:
-10 to -6 = autocracy
-5 to +5 = anocracy
+6 to +10 = democracy
V-Dem: Distinguishes between 5 high-level principles of democracy: electoral, liberal, participatory, deliberative, and egalitarian.
What are some causes of democratization?
Modernization Theory: As countries get wealthier, they are more likely to become democratic, thanks to factors like better education and a stronger middle class.
Rational Choice Theory: When elites face a revolution, they must make concessions to the people, and democracy is the best way to do that.
Successful democratization in one place can inspire other countries to democratize as well.
These are systems lacking democratic basics, such as monarchies, dictatorships, military juntas, and hybrid regimes. They are measured by Freedom House, POLITY IV, and V-Dem.
Powerful groups unite to protect their privileges in crucial times, establishing long-lasting authoritarian institutions. The poor have less political involvement, which lets elites gain more power. State weakness can be explained by political culture theories.
What causes authoritarian regimes to endure?
Selectorate Theory: Dictators only need to please a small group to stay in power, not everyone.
Collective Action Problems: People may want regime change, but no one wants to be the first to act or join in.
Benefits of Authoritarian Elections: Oppositions can have some say, but they can't win power. Dictators use elections to measure opposition strength.
What are some difficulties for autocrats?
Information Issues (Dictator's Dilemma): Dictators need to know the public's grievances but fear allowing complaints to be aired.
Mistakes Are Hard to Avoid/Correct: Without elections or a free press, it's difficult to fix mistakes. Famine often happens under dictatorships or colonies.
Succession Issues: Without elections, it's unclear who will replace the authoritarian leader.
Coup Issues: Leaders need a strong security force but can't always trust them, creating uncertainty.
This discusses the conditions needed for a democratic regime, like democracy, economic growth, lower inequality, and good international relations. It shows that parliamentary systems are more durable than presidential ones. The key point is that economic factors are essential for keeping democracy strong.
This argues against the idea that civil society is crucial for democracy, using Weimar Germany as an example. Despite having a strong civil society, the main issue was weak institutionalization, not a lack of civil society.
This generated optimism among allies about the potential for political change by connecting various opposition groups, civil society organizations, and voters. It convinced voters that their vote mattered and helped publicize fraudulent elections.
"Competitive authoritarianism" refers to regimes that appear democratic but still act like authoritarian states. Elections happen regularly and are mostly free of fraud, but leaders abuse state resources, limit media for the opposition, harass candidates, and sometimes manipulate results.
The article argues that in autocratic elections, people vote for reasons like civic duty or wanting to improve democracy, rather than for economic gain. Data from Cameroon shows that these reasons explain more of the voting behavior than economic ones.
What are informal vs formal institutions?
Informal Institutions: Unwritten, socially shared rules created and enforced outside official channels.
Formal Institutions: Official rules and procedures created and enforced through accepted channels, like a constitution.
Constitutions are the supreme laws of a country, laying the foundation for its political system and other laws. They reflect a society's history, values, and aspirations.
In a parliamentary system, parliament picks the head of government, who has both legislative and executive power but depends on parliament's support. Elections happen within a set time, and if parties lose unity, an election may be called.
The paper highlights that constitutional theorists often overlook the political conditions that lead to judicial activism, usually ignoring the idea of "politics by other means." It argues that in a dysfunctional democracy, there is a higher chance of expansive judicial power emerging.
The author argues that most stable democracies are parliamentary systems, where executive power relies on legislative support. The US is an exception. Presidential systems often worsen conflict, concentrate power, and are more rigid.
They argue that presidential systems weaken political parties, while parliamentary systems make them stronger. In presidential systems, lawmakers act more independently, while in parliamentary systems, they follow party lines more closely.
Serving as the leader of a group, an organizer, with goals larger than just getting reelected or passing policies—goals that may even go beyond establishing a specific regime.
