Political Participation and Varying Understandings of Democracy

2021 ◽  
pp. 133-168
Author(s):  
Jie Lu

This chapter focuses on the behavioral implications of popular conceptions of democracy, that is, the attitude-to-behavior connections and in particular, conventional and unconventional political participation. The chapter shows that overall, compared to their fellow citizens emphasizing the instrumental values of democracy, people embracing the procedural understanding of democracy are significantly more likely to cast ballots, help with electoral campaigns, contact political and government agencies or agents, join a demonstration, march in a protest, or use violence for a political cause. Meanwhile, this impact varies significantly, depending on the features of the regime in a society: it is much stronger in authoritarian regimes than in democracies. In some cases, the impact even reverses as we move from autocracies to democracies. The chapter argues that such patterns are primarily driven by the expressive values served by political participation, which people embracing the procedural conception of democracy are more sensitive to.

2014 ◽  
pp. 88-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Syunyaev ◽  
L. Polishchuk

We study the impact of Russian regional governors’ rotation and their affiliation with private sector firms for the quality of investment climate in Russian regions. A theoretical model presented in the paper predicts that these factors taken together improve “endogenous” property rights under authoritarian regimes. This conclusion is confirmed empirically by using Russian regional data for 2002—2010; early in that period gubernatorial elections had been canceled and replaced by federal government’s appointments. This is an indication that under certain conditions government rotation is beneficial for economic development even when democracy is suppressed.


Author(s):  
Igor Ponomarenko ◽  
Kateryna Volovnenko

The subject of the research is a set of approaches to the statistical analysis ofthe activities of small business entities in Ukraine, including micro-enterprises. The purpose of writing this article is to study of the features of functioningof small business entities in Ukraine. Methodology. The research methodology isto use a system-structural and comparative analysis (to study the change in thenumber of small enterprises by major components); monographic (when studyingmethods of statistical analysis of small businesses); economic analysis (when assessing the impact of small business entities on socio-economic phenomena andprocesses in Ukraine). The scientific novelty consists to determine the features ofthe functioning of small businesses in Ukraine in modern conditions. The influenceof the activities of the main socio-economic and political indicators on the activities of small enterprises in recent periods of time has been identified. It has beenestablished that there is flexibility in the development of strategies by small businesses in conditions of significant competition, which makes it possible to quicklyrespond to changing situations in specific markets. Conclusions. The use of acomprehensive statistical analysis of small businesses functioning in Ukraine willallow government agencies to develop a set of measures to optimize the activitiesof these enterprises, which ultimately will positively affect the strengthening oftheir competitiveness and will contribute to the growth of the national economicsystem.


2015 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 425-445 ◽  
Author(s):  
On Barak

AbstractDuring the long 19th century, British coal proliferated throughout the Ottoman Empire in increasing quantity, rapidity, and regularity via junctions and political arrangements that became evermore stable and dominant. The British used coal export to project their power elsewhere, offshoring the Industrial Revolution by building an infrastructure that could support it overseas and connect it to existing facets of the imperial project. Examining this “outsourcing” and the importance of foreign coal markets to industrialization helps provincialize the steam engine and anchor it in a global context. It also allows us to explore the impact of fossil energy on the Middle East and the ways coal both set the stage for the arrival of oil and informed the possibilities for translating carbon power into politics. Coal, the article suggests, animated political participation in England while reinforcing authoritarian tendencies in the Middle East.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-93
Author(s):  
Alessandra von Borowski Dodl

This study focuses on the value structure that correlates improvements in the financial services consumer’s decision-making quality with the development of their autonomy. The discussion is based on the concepts of ceremonial and instrumental values, according to Bush (1987). We anchor our analysis on the premise that there is still room for enhancing the results within the National Financial System – NFS – by broadening the scope of initiatives on financial services consumers’ education and protection (von Borowski Dodl, 2020). Strengthening this perspective, we emphasize the consumer’s role as an agent and the relevance of taking decisions according to their life plans. The analysis is undertaken through the institutional literature lens, considering both schools of thought: Original Institutional Economics (OIE) (drawing on Tauheed, 2013a, 2013b) and New Institutional Economics (NIE) (focusing on North, 1990). From the conjunction of the theoretical apparatus and the applied analysis, we propose a governance policy within the NFS aimed at increasing its efficiency. Effective communication between stakeholders and consumers’ participation in the structuring of institutions – by publicly evincing their political power – hold the potential for promoting governance effectiveness. Additionally, although the approach taken focuses on the NFS, the diagnosis process carried out in this study can be easily reproduced in other contexts.


Author(s):  
Aishik Saha

In this paper, I shall attempt to respond to the charge that the digital labour theory, as developed by Christian Fuchs, doesn’t faithfully stick to the Marxist schema of the Labour Theory of Value by arguing that Marx’s critique of capitalism was based on the social and material cost of exploitation and the impact of capitalist exploitation of the working class. Engels’s analysis of The Condition of The Working Class in England links the various forms of violence faced by the working class to the bourgeois rule that props their exploitation. I shall argue, within the framework of Critical Social Media Studies, that the rapid advance of fascist and authoritarian regimes represents a similar development of violence and dispossession, with digital capitalism being a major factor catalysing the rifts within societies. It shall be further argued that much like the exploitative nature of labour degrades social linkages and creates conditions of that exaggerates social contradictions, the “labour” performed by social media users degenerates social relations and promotes a hyper-violent spectacle that aids and abets fascist and authoritarian regimes.


Author(s):  
Collen Sabao ◽  
Tendai Owen Chikara

The chapter examines and discusses the role and communicative potential of social media based platforms in citizen political participation and protests in Zimbabwe specifically focusing on the #thisflag movement on Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp. #thisflag is a social media-based platform that rose to challenge the Zimbabwean government over the political and economic decay as well as rampant corruption characterising the country contemporarily. While a new phenomenon to Zimbabwe and Zimbabwean politics, the impact and communicative potential of social media as an alternative public sphere was recently tested in nationwide protest stayaway organised through the Facebook and Twitter movement under the #thisflag handle/brand. This chapter discusses the manners in which such social media platforms impact national politics in Zimbabwe as well as globally, specifically looking at the #thisflag movement as a case study.


Author(s):  
Heru Susanto ◽  
Leu Fang Yie ◽  
Didi Rosiyadi ◽  
Akbari Indra Basuki ◽  
Desi Setiana

Digital ecosystems have grown rapidly over the years, and governments are investing in digital provision for their processes and services. Despite the advantages of distributed technologies, there are many security issues as well that result in breaches of data privacy with serious impact including legal and reputational implications. To deal with such threats, government agencies need to thoughtfully improve their security defences to protect data and systems by using automation and artificial intelligence (AI), as well as easing the data security measures including early warning of threats and detection. This study provides a comprehensive view of AI and automaton to highlight challenges and issues concerning data security and suggests steps to combat the issues. The authors demonstrate the role of AI-driven security tools and automation to mitigate the impact of data breaches to also propose recommendations for government agencies to enhance their data security protection.


2020 ◽  
pp. 772-786
Author(s):  
Collen Sabao ◽  
Tendai Owen Chikara

The chapter examines and discusses the role and communicative potential of social media based platforms in citizen political participation and protests in Zimbabwe specifically focusing on the #thisflag movement on Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp. #thisflag is a social media-based platform that rose to challenge the Zimbabwean government over the political and economic decay as well as rampant corruption characterising the country contemporarily. While a new phenomenon to Zimbabwe and Zimbabwean politics, the impact and communicative potential of social media as an alternative public sphere was recently tested in nationwide protest stayaway organised through the Facebook and Twitter movement under the #thisflag handle/brand. This chapter discusses the manners in which such social media platforms impact national politics in Zimbabwe as well as globally, specifically looking at the #thisflag movement as a case study.


Author(s):  
Narinder Kumar Bhasin ◽  
Anupama Rajesh

The objective of massive adaptation of digital payments by the banks with the support of the central bank of any country along with their government agencies is to improve customer services and satisfaction in the online payment systems in place of cashless and paperless payment systems. There are very few researches that have focused to measure the higher customer satisfaction based on factors like trust, risk-free, secure, transparent, accountability of banks, fintech, regulator, and payment system operators. This chapter analyzes the impact of digital banking and fintech in the Indian banking system, initiatives taken by RBI, NPCI, and the government to build the strong trust of customers in online payment systems to ensure improvement in customer services with higher customer satisfaction.


2021 ◽  
pp. 213-244
Author(s):  
Leonardo R. Arriola ◽  
Martha C. Johnson ◽  
Melanie L. Phillips

The concluding chapter revisits the main hypotheses regarding women’s experiences as aspirants, candidates, and legislators. Complemented by tables summarizing key findings, the chapter identifies where and how the book’s studies of Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Uganda, and Zambia either uphold or contradict hypotheses from the existing literature. Building on this summary, the chapter presents an agenda for future research on women’s political participation in African countries focused on the importance of financial constraints for women’s candidacies, the role of violence in shaping women’s political options, and the impact women in power have on gendered institutions. The book ends on an optimistic note, arguing that despite these barriers, the case studies clearly demonstrate that women are adept at securing a place for themselves, and asserting their voice, in local and national politics.


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