With democracy on the rise world-wide, questions about "transition" are rapidly being replaced by questions about "consolidation". How can leaders provide for a stable democracy once a nation has made its initial commitment to the rule of law and popularly elected government? This book focuses on four nations of Southern Europe - Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece - which have successfully consolidated their democratic regimes. Drawing on a decade of intensive research into Southern Europe's democratic transitions and consolidations, this book takes stock of findings while comparing and contrasting Southern European democratic trajectories with those of South America and Eastern Europe. In 11 chapters, it examines the impact of historical, international, regional, military and political factors, including the roles of political parties and interest groups, on the process. This work offers a model for the study of democratic consolidation elsewhere and also suggests the direction that emerging democracies can take.
Rezensionen / Stimmen
"The book has two chief qualities. The first is its uncompromising comparative scope and the subsequent complementarity of its parts. The editors avoid a common pitfall of edited volumes: lack of integration and unifying perspective... The second quality of the book lies in its ambition to transcend the boundaries of Southern Europe and draw insights from the understanding of that region's experience to be used more generally in the theoretical study of democratic consolidation... It is without doubt the best comparative work on Southern European politics to date."--Stathis N. Kalyvas, 'Journal of Modern Greek Studies' "There is a wealth of information here, but the outstanding merit of this volume lies in its illuminating comparative analysis."--'Foreign Affairs'
Sprache
Verlagsort
Zielgruppe
Für höhere Schule und Studium
Für Beruf und Forschung
Maße
Höhe: 229 mm
Breite: 152 mm
Gewicht
ISBN-13
978-0-8018-4981-7 (9780801849817)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Klassifikation
Richard Gunther is professor of political science at Ohio State University. P. Nikiforos Diamandouros is professor of political science at the University of Athens. Hans-J|rgen Puhle is professor of political science at the University of Frankfurt.
Autor*in
Ohio State University
Goethe-Universitat Frankfurt
List of Figures and Tables
Preface
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2. The Political and Socioeconomic Contours of Southern European History
Chapter 3. Democratic Transition and Consolidation in Southern Europe, with Reflections on Latin America and Eastern Europe
Chapter 4. Democratic Consolidation and the Military in Southern Europe and South America
Chapter 5. The International Context of Democratic Consolidation: Southern Europe in Comparative Perspective
Chapter 6. Mass Mobilization and Regime Change: Pacts, Reform, and Popular Power in Italy (1918-1922) and Spain (1975-1978)
Chapter 7. Legitimacy and Democracy in Southern Europe
Chapter 8. Executive-Legislative Relations in Southern Europe
Chapter 9. Organized Interests and Democratic Consolidation in Southern Europe
Chapter 10. Political Parties and Democratic Consolidation in Southern Europe
Chapter 11. Conclusion
Notes
Contributors
Index
