A Cross-National Comparison of Sub-National Variation

2017 ◽  
Vol 61 (8) ◽  
pp. 908-931 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine Enriquez ◽  
Martin Sybblis ◽  
Miguel Angel Centeno
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Standard Deviation ◽  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
State Capacity ◽  
The State ◽  
Government Services ◽  
National Comparison ◽  
National Analysis ◽  
Cross National

Previous research has highlighted that, in addition to being operationally opaque, the concept of state capacity has been confined to national and cross-national analysis, with inadequate attention paid to variations at the regional and sub-national levels of the state. Our current research seeks to help remedy this lacuna. Inspired by the growing consensus that state capacity is not monolithic, but instead comprises capabilities distributed in distinct ways across sectors and institutions, we have developed a parsimonious approach to understanding the concept so as to increase its utility. Specifically, we explore variations in the provision of government services across sectors, wealth, geography, and urbanity in three countries: India, Peru, and Ukraine—representing Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. Importantly, we offer an analysis of state capacity as a function of variation as measured by standard deviation.

Explaining Peaceful Change in Central and Eastern Europe

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Tabachnik ◽  
Benjamin Miller
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
State Capacity ◽  
The State ◽  
National Identities ◽  
Great Power ◽  
Soviet System ◽  
The Balkans ◽  
Independent Variables ◽  
Two Independent Variables

This chapter explains the process of peaceful change in Central and Eastern Europe following the demise of the Soviet system. It also explains the failure of peaceful change in the Balkans and some post-Soviet countries, such as the Ukrainian conflict in 2014. The chapter accounts for the conditions for peaceful change and for the variation between peaceful and violent change by the state-to-nation theory. The two independent variables suggested by the theory are the level of state capacity and congruence—namely the compatibility between state borders and the national identities of the countries at stake. Moreover, according to the theory, great-power engagement serves as an intervening variable and in some conditions, as explained in the chapter, may help with peaceful change.

Political Parties, Party Systems, and Democracy in East Asia

2001 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 94-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
HANS STOCKTON
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
South Korea ◽  
East Asia ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Necessary Conditions ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Curvilinear Relationship ◽  
National Comparison ◽  
Cross National

Institutionalized parties and party systems have traditionally been viewed as necessary conditions for democracies to function effectively. Although this area of research is germane to all democracies, most analyses have been divided by regional investigation. Seeking to bridge the gap, this article applies concepts and measures of institutionalization from the study of Latin America to Pacific Asia's two most prominent cases of democratic transition, South Korea and Taiwan. An effort is made to apply the approaches of Dix and Mainwaring and Scully on party and system institutionalization in Latin America to South Korea and Taiwan. Cross-national comparison reveals a curvilinear relationship between institutionalization and consolidation. Taiwan's path to consolidation has been predicated on a pattern very similar to those taken by Latin American cases, whereas South Korea, theoretically, should not be as close to consolidation as it is.

Representation By Consultation? The Rise of Direct Democracy in Latin America

2001 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 37-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica Barczak
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Party System ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
The United States ◽  
Constitutional Reform ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Political Interests ◽  
National Comparison ◽  
Cross National

AbstractMost of the countries of South America experienced two notable institutional phenomena during the 1990s: the reform or rewriting of constitutions and the emergence of direct democracy mechanisms. This paper examines the latter process through a cross-national comparison. The introduction of direct democracy mechanisms is typically driven by traditionally excluded political interests. It takes two forms, both involving the failure of representative democratic institutions. In most cases, these traditionally excluded interests win control over the constitutional reform and rewriting process, although this is not a necessary condition for the emergence of direct democracy. Drawing illustrations from 12 cases of constitutional reform, this paper links arguments about direct democracy in the United States and Western Europe, institutional change, neopopulism, and the decline of the party system in Latin America.

When Do States Take the Bait? State Capacity and the Provocation Logic of Terrorism

2016 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 381-409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Blankenship
Keyword(s):  
State Capacity ◽  
Clear Effect ◽  
Executive Authority ◽  
National Analysis ◽  
Cross National

A prominent theory holds that groups may use terrorism in order to provoke governments into undertaking repression that alienates the population. However, virtually no studies have addressed the central puzzle of this provocation logic: why states would actually fall into this trap, if doing so can backfire. This study seeks to address this puzzle by suggesting conditions under which states would respond to terrorism with repression. I argue that states with limited bureaucratic capacity are more prone to using repression after terrorist incidents, as their ability to selectively crack down is inhibited by their more limited capability for controlling, monitoring, and collecting revenue from their populations and for collecting intelligence on suspected terrorists. Using a cross-national analysis with data from 1981 to 2011, I find it is low-capacity states which are most likely to respond to terrorism with repression, while constraints on executive authority have no clear effect.

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