Development and Democracy

How much is democracy dependent upon supportive economic and social conditions? This question, which has occupied political scientists and sociologists for almost half a century, has attracted special attention in the 1990s as more and more countries have engaged in efforts to democratize. This volume takes stock of current literature and puts it into context. It highlights the principal new gains of knowledge as well as continuing gaps in our understanding of the relationship between development and democracy. The chapters cover key issues in the field of comparative politics such as: economic development and democracy; globalization and democracy; class and democracy; state and democracy; civil society and democracy; and various institutional arrangements and democratic governance. "Development and Democracy" confirms the robust relationship between the level of economic development and democracy, but suggests that globalization is a key variable in determining the tenuous nature of this relationship in the periphery of the world economy. It raises new questions about the role of social classes in democratization, and points to the importance of including the nature of the state

'Refreshingly new stands on old established findings ... an interesting collection of review essays covering a wide range of theoretical, empirical and methodological debates and issues.' - Journal of International Development