POLS 373 Foundations of Comparative Politics

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POLS 373 Foundations of Comparative Politics

• What Makes a Democracy?
• May 22-24, 2007
• Professor Timothy Lim
• California State University, Los Angeles

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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• First off

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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• the world is becoming more democratic

This graph shows the number of states with each
of three general authority patterns democracy,
autocracy, and anocracy (an anocracy is defined
as a regime type that has characteristics of both
democratic and authoritarian rule). ______________
______ Source Global Conflict Trends
An autocracy is technically a form of
governmentwhere power is held by one person in
this case,it is used more generally to refer to
non-democraticpolitical system
Democracies
Anocracies
Autocracies
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• The world is becoming more democratic

Another perspective In 1910, 0 percent of the
worlds population lived in democracies by 1950,
31 percent of the worlds population is
democratic By 2000, according to one source,
58.2 percent of the worlds people lived in
democracies by 2006, this figure had grown to
63 (based on estimates by Freedom
House) _______________________ Source R.J.
Rummel, Democratic Peace Clock
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• Why Is Democracy Spreading?
• The global spread of democracy raises a number of
  important questions
• Is the expansion of democracy inevitable? Will
  it necessarily reach all countries in time?
• Or, is democracy the product of particular
  forces and processes that will be forever
  resisted by some parts of the world, such as the
  Middle East and China?
• Why did the 20th century witness the most major
  advances of democracy globally? Was there
  something unique about the 20th century?
• What is the best method of promoting democracy?
  Should the United States be in the business of
  exporting democracies?

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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• Defining Democracy
• The definition of democracyis subject to great
  debate, but defining democracy is an essential
  first step, so

What is democracy?
A discussion point
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• What is Democracy? A Short Video

This short video from YouTube (click here) poses
the question, What is democracy to a handful of
Americans Note We will watch only a portion of
the video in class.
Video intentionally removed Check CourseSite
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• Defining Democracy One Definition
• I would say democracy exists where you have a
  multiparty system with political parties
  competing with one another, free and non-corrupt
  voting procedures to elect political leaders, and
  an effective legal framework of civil liberties
  or human rights that underlie the mechanisms of
  voting processes
• Anthony Giddens

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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• Defining Democracy A Formal Definition
• Giddens definition includes three core
  characteristics of democracy
• A competitive multiparty system
• Free and non-corrupt elections
• An effective legal framework of civil liberties
  or human rights
• To this list, we might add a fourth
  characteristic
• (Near) universal and equal suffrage (suffrage
  is simply the right or privilege of voting)

A discussion point
Are these characteristics enough?
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• Defining Democracy A Formal Definition
• To many people, formal democracy is not
  democracy at all it may be a democracy in name,
  but not in reality
• Instead, manybelieve thatdemocracy mustbe
  defined insubstantive terms

This cartoon illustrates the problem with formal
democracies people may have the right to vote
in free and non-corrupt elections, but the real
power lies with the corporate elite
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• Defining Democracy The Debate
• How should democracy be defined?
• Is a formal or narrow definition adequate?
• Or, is a substantive or broad definition
  necessary?

Points ofdiscussion
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• The Case for a Formal Definition
• Substantive definitions of democracy are
  important, but a formal definition are sometimes
  necessary
• The appropriateness of a formal definition
  Bare bones definitions are important to
  distinguish between two distinct outcomes or
  phenomena if the distinction can be justified
  and supported, it is appropriate
• Consider this question

Is a political system that meets the minimal
requirements of a formal democracy significantly
different from an autocracy or dictatorship,
such as the one once ruled over by that
evil-doer Saddam Hussein?
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• The Case for a Formal Definition
• Some Concrete Examples to Consider

Nazi Germany under Adolf Hitler or Germany under
Chancellor Angela Merkel
Chile under Pinochet (1974-1990) or Chile under
President Michelle Bachelet
Japan under Prime Minister Hideki Tojo or Japan
under Juniichiro Koizumi
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• The Case for a Formal Definition
• Key Point If there is a significant difference
  between democracies and autocracies (or
  dictatorships or fascist regimes), then a formal
  definition of democracy is both appropriate and
  meaningful even more, a formal democracy matters
• it matters because it signifies (in contrast
  to autocratic rule) a real and significant change
  in society The establishment of formal
  democracy invariably supports (although does not
  guarantee) progress towards greater substantive
  social, political, and economic equality

Is a political system that meets the minimal
requirements of a formal democracy significantly
different from an autocracy or dictatorship,
such as the one once ruled over by that
evil-doer Saddam Hussein?
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• The Case for a Formal Definition
• Analytically speaking, it is also critical that
  concepts such as democracy be operationalized
• Quick definition Operationalization is the
  process of defining a concept so that it can be
  ______________ through specific observations.
• Operationalization is important in the sciences,
  for if it is not possible to measure (or
  quantify) a phenomenon, it is difficult if not
  impossible to evaluate its causes or
  consequences
• For example, how can we know that someone is
  intelligent if we cannot measure
  intelligence?How can we study intelligence if
  we cannotadequately distinguish it from other
  aspectsof human consciousness?

measured
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What Makes a Democracy?Introduction

• The Case for a Formal Definition
• One last point
• Using a formal definition of democracy does not
  mean that we should ignore substantive
  definitions
• Indeed, depending on the purpose of the
  research, a substantive definition is sometimes
  preferred, if not absolutely essential
• Example. A study of why some democracies are
  strong while others are weak or a study of how
  to improve democracy
• both require a substantive definition

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• Explanations of Democracy

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Some Questions
• There is a tendency--in the West at least--to
  assume that democracy benefits everyone. But this
  isnt necessarily true. To begin a study of
  democracy, then, it is crucial to begin with some
  basic questions
• In general, who (or which groups) in society
  opposes democracy?
• In general, who (or which groups) in society
  favor democracy?
• Who benefits from democracy and whose interests
  are threatened?

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Who Opposes Democracy?
• For the dominant groups in society, democracy
  generally represents a concrete threat to their
  own interests, since, by its very nature,
  democracy gives power to the oppressed or
  subordinate classes who constitute the large
  majority of any societys population

Historically, the group most resistant to
democracy has been the landowning class this is
because landowners, more than any other dominant
class, depend on a subservient, oppressed labor
class
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Who Opposes Democracy?
• Think of it this way If the majority of people
  in a society are poor and exploited would they
  not be immediately tempted, in a democratic
  system, to use their new-found and overwhelming
  voting power to redistribute economic resources
  and, ultimately, to undermine permanentlyif
  not destroythe position and privileges of the
  wealthy (or political and economic elite)?

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Who Opposes Democracy?
• In the 20th century, opponents of democracy have
  also included states and/or state leaders,
  especially in poor or developing countries

The 1989 Chinese democracy movement in
Tiananmen Square represents an example of
state-opposition to democracy ___________________
___________ Leaders of modern states often oppose
democracy because their own survival may be at
stake once they are out of office other state
leaders believe that democracy will result in too
many demands by labor, thus undermining the
industrialization process
Video intentionally removed  Check CourseSite
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Who Favors Democracy?
• Simple Answer Any group or segment of society
  that would benefit from having a greater voice in
  the political process

Historically, this has included the middle
class, the working class, the masses in general,
the petty bourgeoisie (e.g., small merchants,
craftsmen, and other self-employed groups), and
the intellectual class (especially university
students)
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• Democracy and Power
• Given the almost undeniable tension between
  democracy and social inequality, most analysts
  agree

Democracy is above all a matter of power
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Democracy and Power Implications
• Democracy does not just happen through some
  automatic process, but is a product of a
  political struggle among competing groups with
  competing interests
• Democratization requires some underlying shift in
  power (among or between different groups)
• The transition to democracy marks a significant
  political change, but transitions to democracy
  are never guaranteed indeed, given the nature of
  democratic change, opposition and attempts to
  re-impose a non-democratic system should be
  expected

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Democracy and Power Implications
• Structuralists, rationalists, and culturalists
  generally agree on the significance of power, but
  they differ on several key questions
• Who are the key agents of change? Are they
  elites, subordinate actors, outside agents or
  some combination?
• How does the struggle for power unfold? Is it the
  product of elite interaction? Is it a structural
  phenomenon, a cultural one, or something else?
• Do certain conditions need to exist before
  democratization can happen? Or is democracy
  possible under any circumstances?

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Democracy and Power Structural View
• To structuralists, transitions to democracy are
  shaped and even determined by broad structural
  changes that reorder the balance of power among
  different classes and class coalitions in society
• For democracy to emerge, subordinate classes must
  have sufficient power to challenge the dominant
  classes, but

How do subordinate classes get power?
Discussionquestion
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Democracy and Power Structural View
• How do subordinate classes get power?
• Basic Answer The power of subordinate classes
  is a product of capitalist development, which
  brings unavoidable changes to any society.
  Specifically
• Capitalism creates subordinate classes with the
  capacity for _________________________.
• Capitalism also entails greater dependence of
  elite groups on subordinate classes simply put,
  capitalists rely on workers to work
• Capitalism creates tensions between elite groups
  landowners, in particular, lose power at the
  expense of industrialists, which weakens the
  cohesion of the elite

self-organization
SELF-ORGANIZATION An Explanation Capitalism
brings the subordinate class or classes together
in factories cities wheremembers of those
classes can associate and organized more easily
it improves the means of communication and
transportation in these and other ways, it
strengthenscivil society and facilitates
subordinateclass organization
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• The importance of self-organization is
  underscored in Marx and Engels famous quote
  (from the Communist Manifesto)

Workers of the world unite! You have nothing to
lose but your chains
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Democracy and Power Structural View
• Having more power doesnt automatically lead to
  democracy for subordinate groups
• Sometimes subordinate groups are co-opted by the
  elite
• Sometimes subordinate groups, while more
  powerful, still lack enough power to topple the
  existing regime--in these cases, alliances with
  other groups may be necessary
• In a similar vein, sometimes the state is
  overdeveloped (i.e., possesses excessive
  coercive capacity, often as a result of an
  alliance with major Western countries)
• Sometimes transnational forces intervene, e.g.,
  during the Cold War, the US helped or abetted to
  overthrow democratically elected governments in
  Iran, Iraq, Chile, Guatemala, Dominican Republic,
  Indonesia, Greece, etc. more recently, some
  argue that the US attempted to overthrow Hugo
  Chavez in Venezuela

Co-option refers to the process of being
incorporatedinto the mainstream or dominant
power structure, butalways in a subservient
role. Frequently, thosewho have been co-opted
will embrace the interestsof the dominant power
structure while neglectingthe interests of their
original group
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Democracy and Power Structural View
• In general, however, structuralists assert that
  capitalist development is the underlying process
  through which democracy emerges
• This helps explain why democracy is a primarily
  20th century phenomenon capitalist
  industrialization has made its greatest and most
  rapid strides in the 100 years or so
• In the postwar period, consider the cases of
  South Korea and Taiwan
• At the same time, (to structuralists) democracy
  is an essentially unintended outcome of
  capitalism that is, capitalism is not designed
  to promote democracy (or freedom) indeed, it may
  be antithetical to capitalism

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Democracy and Power Structural View
• Questions for consideration and discussion
• As a rapid growing capitalist society, is the
  breakdown of authoritarian, communist party rule
  in China inevitable?
• Can structuralists account for the longevity of
  authoritarianism in the Middle East, especially
  among Arab Islamic countries?
• Are there any inconsistencies in the structural
  account that you can identify? How would a
  rationalist or a culturalist respond? Why, for
  example, does the quality or substance of
  democracy seem to be weakening today, even in
  well-established democracies, such as the United
  States?

Hint Consider how globalizationis weakening
subordinate classes,especially the working class
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• An Alternative Perspective
• Rationalists do not agree that inert, invisible
  structures make democracies. To put it very
  simply, believe that

people make democracy
People may be political elites or the people,
as in mass movements
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Different Processes, Different Actors
  Rationality
• Some Basic Differences and Assumptions
• Rationalists dont consider capitalism to be the
  key process in democratization
• Rationalists dont necessarily discount the role
  of subordinate classes, but they tend to put
  greater emphasis on the interests and actions of
  the elite (more on this shortly)
• Rationalists dont like to focus on underlying
  (economic) structures they believe that
  democracy is possible in virtually any economic
  context

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Different Processes, Different Actors
  Rationality
• Some Basic Differences and Assumptions among
  Rationalists
• Rationalists dont agree on which people matter
  most
• Some rationalists argue that only the elite
  matter, that they are the key agents in
  democracy
• Others argue that the people (and not just the
  working class) are the key agents of political
  change

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Different Processes, Different Actors
  Rationality
• Some Basic Differences and Assumptions among
  Rationalists
• Rationalists dont agree on the basic process of
  democratization
• Some rationalists argue that democratization is
  a product of negotiations among the elite, also
  known as ____________ in this view democracy is
  a cooperative and very deliberate project
• Other rationalists argue that democratization is
  a non-cooperative project, that is, it is a
  product of coercion, whereby authoritarian
  leaders are, in essence, forced to leave office
  under threat of violence

pacting
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Different Processes, Different Actors
  Rationality
• Implications of Cooperative and Non-Cooperative
  Explanations
• Cooperative Explanations Epitomized by Samuel
  Huntingtons observation on an ironic feature of
  contemporary democratization
• Non-Cooperative Explanations Suggests that
  democracy is product of people who want it and
  are willing to risk their lives to get it from
  a rational choice perspective, the push for
  democracy changes the strategic environment for
  political leaders when mass-movements are strong
  enough, leaders can see the writing on the wall,
  they know they have no choice but to leave

Democracy without democrats
What does this statement mean? From a
rationalist perspective, how does this statement
make sense?
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Different Processes, Different Actors
  Rationality
• Empirical Issues
• Both cooperative (elite-centered) and
  non-cooperative approaches (mass-based) have
  empirical support
• Latin American cases
• Supports Elite-Centered Mass-Based approach?
• Post-Communist cases (Eastern Europe)
• Supports Elite-Centered Mass-Based approach?

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Different Processes, Different Actors
  Rationality
• So where does this leave us?
• Can the rational choice approach provide a
  theoretically coherent and empirically
  comprehensive explanation of democratic
  transition?

The answer is a definite
maybe
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Differing Authoritarianisms An Alternative
  Rational Choice Perspective
• A little comparative checking will tell us that
  not all authoritarian regimes are alike
• Some are dominated by military leaders, who may
  have taken power through a coup d'état
• Some are dominated by personalist or
  charismatic leaders single individuals who
  dominate the political process
• Some are dominated by a highly cohesive, tightly
  disciplined party structure--so-called single
  party regimes

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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• Differing Authoritarianisms An Alternative
  Rational Choice Perspective
• For a long time, many scholars took these
  differences for granted they did not assign any
  particular causal significance to the different
  varieties of authoritarianism
• One scholar, however, asked the question

Can different types of authoritarianism lead to
different outcomes?
In other words, is authoritarian type an
independent variable?
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• The Rationality of Authoritarianism
• Begins with the premise that different types of
  authoritarian leaders have different preferences
  or interests
• Military leaders are less concerned with
  political power and more concerned with the
  survival and efficacy of the __________________
  itself and with the preservation of
  ________________________.
• Personalist leaders have an overriding interest
  in staying in power the perks of political
  power are many, while the costs of losing power
  are extremely high and almost certain (e.g.,
  imprisonment, death, or, at best, exile)
• Single-party leaders also have an overriding
  interest in holding on to political power, but,
  unlike personalist regimes, their power base is
  more stable and enduring than in personalist
  regimes

military
national security
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• The Rationality of Authoritarianism
• Basic Argument Different types of regimes arise
  for different reasons, but, once created, they
  tend to exhibit similar characteristics
  regardless of political, social or cultural
  context
• ______________ regimes are the most likely to
  breakdown because the leaders are not interested
  in political power per se
• Moreover, if any internal splits threaten the
  cohesion and power of the military, their
  preference is to save the military rather than
  to hold on to political power
• Key Implication Military authoritarian regimes
  not only tend to have the shortest life spans,
  but the transition to democracy is generally
  negotiated and cooperative

Military
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• The Rationality of Authoritarianism
• Basic Argument Different types of regimes arise
  for different reasons, but, once created, they
  tend to exhibit similar characteristics
  regardless of political, social or cultural
  context
• __________________ and ________________ regimes
  are more resistant to breakdown because the
  political leaders have more to lose leaders will
  fight tooth-and-nail to hold on to power
• This means that transitions are almost always
  _____________________
• In addition, the impetus for a transition to
  democracy, especially in single-party regimes,
  will generally come from the outside, that is,
  __________________ shocks are usually needed to
  spark a change

Personalist
Single party
non-cooperative
exogenous
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What Makes a Democracy? Competing Explanations

• NOTE
• The cultural perspective on democracy will not
  be covered in our lecture Please review pp.
  188-195