scholarly journals Non-violent resistance and the quality of democracy

2019 ◽  
pp. 073889421985591 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felix S Bethke ◽  
Jonathan Pinckney
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Transition ◽  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Quality Of Democracy ◽  
Democratic Quality ◽  
Democratic Regimes ◽  
Positive Effect

Previous research has shown that successful non-violent resistance (NVR) campaigns promote democracy compared with violent revolutions and top-down liberalization. However, research to date has not examined the character and quality of the democratic regimes following NVR campaigns, or evaluated the mechanisms that produce this effect. In this paper, we address this gap by analyzing the effect of NVR on the quality of democracy, using the Polyarchy index from the Varieties of Democracies project and its sub-components: (1) elected executive; (2) free and fair elections; (3) freedom of expression; (4) associational autonomy; and (5) inclusive citizenship. Using kernel matching and differences-in-differences estimation we find that initiating a democratic transition through NVR improves democratic quality after transition significantly and substantially relative to cases without this characteristic. Our analysis of the Polyarchy index’s sub-components reveals that this positive effect comes about primarily owing to improvements in freedom of expression and associational autonomy. This finding speaks to the strength of NVR in promoting expressive dimensions of democracy.

scholarly journals Threat or Corrective? Assessing the Impact of Populist Parties in Government on the Qualities of Democracy: A 19-Country Comparison

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Davide Vittori
Keyword(s):  
Negative Impact ◽  
Quality Of Democracy ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
Country Comparison ◽  
Democratic Regimes ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Scholars have long debated whether populism harms or improves the quality of democracy. This article contributes to this debate by focusing on the impact of populist parties in government. In particular, it inquires: (1) whether populists in government are more likely than non-populists to negatively affect the quality of democracies; (2) whether the role of populists in government matters; and (3) which type of populism is expected to negatively affect the quality of liberal-democratic regimes. The results find strong evidence that the role of populists in government affects several qualities of democracy. While robust, the findings related to (2) are less clear-cut than those pertaining to (1). Finally, regardless of their role in government, different types of populism have different impacts on the qualities of democracy. The results show that exclusionary populist parties in government tend to have more of a negative impact than other forms of populism.

scholarly journals Direitos Humanos, Cidadania e Violência no Brasil: a qualidade da democracia em perspectiva | Human Rights, Citizenship and Violence in Brazil: the quality of democracy in perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. e50753
Author(s):  
Carlos Frederico Domínguez Ávila
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Civil Rights ◽  
Legal System ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
Quality Of Democracy ◽  
Democratic Quality ◽  
Basic Rights ◽  
Personal Dignity

O artigo explora a evolução recente dos Direitos Humanos, da Cidadania e da Violência, e seus impactos na qualidade da democracia no Brasil. São utilizadas como unidades de análise três conjuntos de tópicos: a dignidade pessoal, os direitos civis, e os direitos políticos. Em geral, constata-se a existência de uma distância considerável entre a proclamação normativa desses Direitos Humanos no sistema legal, de um lado, e a efetiva promoção e execução desses direitos básicos na realidade política e social do Brasil.Palavras-chave: Direitos Humanos; Qualidade da Democracia; Brasil.ABSTRACTThe paper explores the evolution of Human Rights, Citizenship and Violence, and their impacts in the study of democratic quality in Brazil. It is used three set of basic rights as topics for research: the personal dignity, the civil rights, and the political rights. At the end, it is noted some distance between the existence of opportunities for Human Rights in the legal system of the country and the actual guarantee of those set of basic rights in the political and social Brazilian reality.Keywords: Human Rights; the Quality of Democracy; Brazil. Recebido em: 30 de Março 2020.

Israeli Jews from Muslim Countries: Immigrant Associations and Civic Leverage

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 324-337
Author(s):  
Paula Kabalo
Keyword(s):  
Additional Assumption ◽  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Population Group ◽  
The State ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Muslim Countries ◽  
Democratic Regimes ◽  
Volunteer Organizations ◽  
Jewish Immigrants ◽  
Democratic Principles

This article sheds light on the salient and far-reaching pattern of association-forming among Jewish immigrants from Muslim countries in Israel during the 1950s and 1960s. They were formally established associations that operated by means of representatives and spokespersons and strove to mediate between the population group that they represented and the state authorities that dealt with immigration and its integration. Interestingly, although few of the members or leaders of these entities have lived under democratic regimes, they established organizations that operated on the basis of democratic principles: election of representatives, holding members’ assemblies, and freedom of expression. They articulated their positions publicly and openly and were not deterred from criticizing policymakers, even those in the highest of echelons. The extent of the phenomenon challenges the conventional image in research on immigration to Israel from the Islamic countries—that of a passive, dependent population that has no voice of its own. Additionally, it suggests that the volunteer organizations’ pressure and contacts with the authorities paid off and influenced policymakers’ agendas—leading to an additional assumption that immigrant absorption policy was crafted via exchange and interaction and not solely in a “top-down” manner.

scholarly journals Don’t Good Democracies Need “Good” Citizens? Citizen Dispositions and the Study of Democratic Quality

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Quinton Mayne ◽  
Brigitte Geißel
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
Democratic Institutions ◽  
National Data ◽  
Quality Of Democracy ◽  
Fine Grained ◽  
Democratic Quality ◽  
Cross National

This article advances the argument that quality of democracy depends not only on the performance of democratic institutions but also on the dispositions of citizens. We make three contributions to the study of democratic quality. First, we develop a fine-grained, structured conceptualization of the three core dispositions (democratic commitments, political capacities, and political participation) that make up the citizen component of democratic quality. Second, we provide a more precise account of the notion of inter-component congruence or “fit” between the institutional and citizen components of democratic quality, distinguishing between static and dynamic forms of congruence. Third, drawing on cross-national data, we show the importance of taking levels of inter-dispositional consistency into account when measuring democratic quality.

Mediated democracy and internet shutdown in India

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Md. Nurul Momen ◽  
Harsha S. ◽  
Debobrata Das
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Freedom Of Speech ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Quality Of Democracy ◽  
Jammu And Kashmir ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Union Territory

Purpose This paper aims to highlight the very recent cases of internet shutdown during the creation of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and enactment of Citizenship Amendment Act and the detention under Section 66 (A) of Information Technology Act 2000. Design/methodology/approach This study takes up a broad explorative discussion of the challenges posed to the consolidation of democracy in India due to frequent internet shutdowns for online communication and social media usages. Findings As findings, it is narrated that due to politically motivated reasons, India compromises its commitment to the pluralism and diversity in views, in particular, individual rights to freedom of expression and opinion, enshrined in the constitution. Originality/value Right to freedom of speech and expression has now taken a new shape due to the emergence and availability of the internet that enriches the quality of democracy.

Taking the multidimensionality of democracy seriously: institutional patterns and the quality of democracy

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 473-494 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Bernauer ◽  
Marc Bühlmann ◽  
Adrian Vatter ◽  
Micha Germann
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
Regression Models ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
State Structure ◽  
Quality Of Democracy ◽  
Track Record ◽  
Democratic Quality ◽  
The Relationship

Democracies come in all shapes and sizes. Which configuration of political institutions produces the highest democratic quality is a notorious debate. The lineup of contenders includes ‘consensus’, ‘Westminster’, and ‘centripetal’ democracy. A trend in the evaluation of the relationship between empirical patterns of democracy and its quality is that the multidimensional nature of both concepts is increasingly taken into account. This article tests the assertion that certain centripetal configurations of proportionality in party systems and government, and unitarism in the remaining state structure, might outperform all other alternatives both in terms of inclusiveness and effectiveness. Analyzing 33 democracies, the results of interactive regression models only partially support this claim. Proportional–unitary democracies have the best track record in terms of representation, but there are little differences in participation, transparency, and government capability compared with other models.

Heterogeneity, Participation and Democratic Quality in Latin America: A Comparison between Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru

2012 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 422-455
Author(s):  
Michael Stoiber ◽  
Michèle Knodt ◽  
Marie-Sophie Heinelt
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Context ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Optimal Composition ◽  
Quality Of Democracy ◽  
Institutional Settings ◽  
Democratic Quality ◽  
Context Variables ◽  
Democratic Stability ◽  
The Given

Abstract Societal and economic heterogeneity are regarded as a challenge to the functioning of democracies. We integrate this problem as context variables into a model of evaluating the quality of democracy. The context determines the optimal composition of participation structures. This demand has to be confronted with the given structure and its effectiveness. We discuss the problem of effective participation for Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, which share similar problems regarding economic inequality and societal heterogeneity. Our main aim is to analyze how different institutional settings are enabling citizens, particularly minorities, in the decision making process and how these elements affect democratic stability and the quality of democracy. We deduce the demand for differentiated participation structures from the societal and institutional context and qualitatively compare the effectiveness of the given participation structures. We analyze how the deficits in the institutional arrangements and their effectiveness affect the democratic quality and the democratic stability of the systems. We find that overlapping societal and socio-economic heterogeneity can be considered as especially threatening to democratic consolidation and stability.

scholarly journals Are digital parties more democratic than traditional parties? Evaluating Podemos and Movimento 5 Stelle’s online decision-making platforms

2019 ◽  
pp. 135406881988487 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paolo Gerbaudo
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
European Countries ◽  
New Wave ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Party Leadership ◽  
Democratic Quality ◽  
Five Star Movement ◽  
Online Decision Making ◽  
State Of Affairs

A number of Western European countries have recently seen the emergence of ‘digital parties’. This term refers to a new wave of political organisations committed to transforming intra-party democracy (IPD) through the adoption of online ‘participatory platforms’, sections of their official websites where registered members can debate and decide on various issues. In this article, I assess the democratic quality of online participatory platforms in the Five Star Movement in Italy and Podemos in Spain, examining various features embedded in them – discussions and proposals, elections of party officials and candidates and referendums – and evaluating their degree of inclusiveness, centralisation and institutionalisation. I argue that counter to their promise to introduce a more membership-controlled and inclusive democracy, IPD in digital parties is strongly top-down. What these formations offer is a plebiscitarian ‘reactive democracy’ where members have little say over the process and are mostly left with ratifying decisions taken by the party leadership. This state of affairs calls for a critical rethinking of digital technology’s potential for transforming IPD.

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