Democracy and democratisation Flashcards
What is democracy?
“government of the people, by the people, for the people” - Lincoln
What is procedural democracy
no concerns with anything substantive, other than the holistic opportunity for people to vote a government out of office
What is a “polyarchy”
‘rule by many’, form of government where power is invested in multiple people
What are key conditions of a “polyarchy”
- freedom of association
- freedom of expression and information
- universal suffrage
- free and fair elections
- right to stand as candidates
What do the conditions of a “polyarchy” ensure
- the inclusion of different voices in deciding what happens
- competition for power
What is substantive democracy
the belief that a country is either democratic or non-democratic
What conditions do Przeworski et al 2000 use to define a democracy
- chief executive is elected
- more than one party competing in elections
- legislature is elected
- alternation in power under identical electoral rules has taken place (EG: general election 2024 tory to labour)
What conditions does Larry Diamond 1999 use to define democracy
- free and fair elections
- active participation of people
- protection of human rights
- rule of law, in which the laws and procedures apply equally to all citizen
What is a polity score
measures that record key qualities of executive recruitment, constraints on executive authority and political competition
what is the polity score for a democracy
+6 to +10
What is the polity score for an Anocracy
-5 to +5
What is the polity score for an autocracy
-10 to -6
What is expert codes, with reference to V-Dem
four fold differentiation, where countries are placed
What are the four measurements put forward by V-Dem
- Closed autocracy
- Electoral autocracy
- Electoral democracy
- Liberal democracy
What is a closed autocracy
absence of fundamental democratic components such as freedom of expression - no multiparty elections for the executive
What is an electoral autocracy
insufficient levels of fundamental requisites such as freedom of expression and free and fair elections - multiparty elections for the executive exist
what is an electoral democracy
multiparty elections for the executive are free and fair with satisfactory degrees of suffrage, expression etc
What is a liberal democracy
where the requirements of electoral democracy are met, judicial and legislative constraints on the executive along with the protection of civil liberties and equality before the law
What are the stages of democratisation
- liberalisation
- transition
- consolidation (acceptance)
- deepening
What are three key theoretical explanations of democracy
- Economic
- Cultural
- Bargaining
What does Lipset (1959) say about Economic theory
“democracy is related to the state of economic development. the more well-to-do a nation, the greater the chances that it will sustain democracy”
What do economic theorists argue about modernisation
‘modernisation theory’ - as countries become wealthier, the economy transforms with the dominance of the large industry and service sector
economic theory hypothesis 1 - wealth correlates with democracy
Prezworski et al - commonality between the raising GPD and the decreasing likelihood of dictatorships
economic theory hypothesis 2 - democratic survival
transitions to dictatorship become less likely as wealth increases. Prezeworski et al: the wealthier a country is, the more likely it is to be a democracy
What does Putnam (1993) argue about cultural theory
“some countries are blessed with vibrant networks and norms of civic engagement, while others are cursed with vertically structured politics… and a culture of distrust” - believed these differences play a key role in explaining institutional success
What did Almond and Verba (1963) study in relation to the cultural theory
‘civic culture’ - partook in cross national surveys, found certain countries had more of a civic culture (trust between others) and they were therefore more likely to be democratic
cultural theory hypothesis 1 - classic cultural theory
democracy is more common in some cultures, which support democratic values - means tay democracy is based on the dominant culture of a country
what is an example of the first cultural theory hypothesis
Polity IV (2010) - Christian countries on average have better polity scores meaning they are more likely to foster democracy
cultural theory hypothesis 2 - cultural modernisation theory
Inglehart-Welzel (2022) - the more focus on self-expression values the more likely a country will turn into a democracy, in comparison to a country focused on survival - explains that economic development does not directly cause democracy, but it leads to cultural change which influences democracy
What is the argument of strategic bargaining
highly related to the economic explanation, emphasises how change in economic development/inequality affects the balance of power between social groups/political actors
What do Acemoglu and Robinson argue about strategic bargaining
“for a leader to make a credible commitment to pro-majority policies in order to prevent revolution, they need to give away some power, and need to secure this through democratic institutions”
bargaining theory hypothesis 1 (credible commitment)
elites cannot credibly commit to redistribute wealth without democratic institutions in place
bargaining theory hypothesis 2 (wealth inequality)
higher wealth inequality raises the risk of democracy for non-democratic elites, which leads to more efforts to suppress democracy
bargaining theory hypothesis 3 (economic shocks)
lead to transitions to democracy, but not transitions away from democracy
Evidence of strategic bargaining
- equal societies: democracy doesn’t redistribute much wealth, masses do not invest in revolution and the rich do not invest in repression
- unequal societies: democracies redistribute much wealth, masses invest in revolution and the rich invest in repression
What does the European and World values survey say about democracy being in decline
found more people are less willing to defend democracy, with a decline in the % of people who say it is essential to live in a democracy - EG: Britain - 1930s = 70% - 1980s = 30%
