Roll over image to zoom in Click on image to zoom

Democracy and Elections in Africa

Name: Democracy and Elections in Africa
Brand: JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY PRESS
SKU: 9780801883330
Price: 69.99 AUD
Availability: InStock

JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY PRESSISBN: 9780801883330

Price:

$69.99

Stock:

Out of Stock - Available to backorder

Quantity:

By Staffan I. Lindberg
Imprint: JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY PRESS
Release Date: November 14, 2006
Format: PAPERBACK
Pages: 248

Share this product

Button Actions

Please copy the ISBN for submitting review copy form

This volume studies elections as a core institution of liberaldemocracy in the context of newly democratizing countries.Political scientist Staffan I. Lindberg gathers datafrom every nationally contested election in Africa from1989 to 2003, covering 232 elections in 44 countries. Heargues that democratizing nations learn to become democraticthrough repeated democratic behavior, even if theirelections are often flawed.Refuting a number of established hypotheses, Lindbergfinds no general negative trend in either the frequency orthe quality of African elections. Rather, elections in Africa,based on his findings, are more than just the goal ofa transition toward democracy or merely a formal procedure.The inception of multiparty elections usually initiatesliberalization, and repeated electoral activities createincentives for political actors, fostering the expansion anddeepening of democratic values. In addition to improvingthe democratic qualities of political regimes, a sequenceof elections tends to expand and solidify de facto civil libertiesin society.Drawing on a wealth of data, Lindberg makes the casethat repetitive elections are an important causal factor inthe development of democracy. He thus extends Rustow's(1970) theory that democratic behavior produces democraticvalues. 7 line drawings.

List of Tables and FiguresPreface1. IntroductionThe Role of ElectionsWhy Africa?On RegimesOn Elections and DemocracyPreindependence and Postindependence Elections in African NationsContemporary Africa's Track RecordOutline of the Book2. On Democracy and ElectionsMaking a Conceptual ChoiceDefining DemocracyOperationalizing Democratic Qualities of ElectionsData Collection and Processing3. Elections in Africa over TimeFrequency and Number of ElectionsThe Democratic Qualities, on AverageDemocratic Qualities of Elections over Time Conclusions4. The Self-Reinforcing Power of ElectionsGoing from Bad to WorseFirst, Second, Third, Fourth, and Later ElectionsA Panel-Group ComparisonConclusions5. The Causal Effects of ElectionsDemocratic Qualities in SocietyA Missing Factor of DemocratizationHypotheses and Causal Links6. Democratization by Elections?Elections Are Associated with Civil LibertiesAnalyzing by CountriesConclusions7. Comparative Perspectives and ReflectionsThe Transition ParadigmCorruption and DemocratizationStateness and Social CitizenshipLessons on ConsolidationPolicy ImplicationsThe Power of Elections in Unfavorable ConditionsAppendix 1: Overview of Elections in Africa, by YearAppendix 2: Changes in Civil Liberties RankingsAppendix 3: About the Freedom House Civil Liberties IndexAppendix 4: A Data Set on Elections in AfricaNotesReferencesIndex

""Without doubt, this study provides a strong stimulus for future research, and this is precisely what excellent scientific work is meant to be.""

Democracy and Elections in Africa

Request Academic Copy

Description

You may also like

Recently viewed