Download or read book The Autocratic Middle Class written by Bryn Rosenfeld and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2020-12 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The conventional wisdom is that a growing middle class will give rise to democracy. Yet the middle classes of the developing world have grown at a remarkable pace over the past two decades, and much of this growth has taken place in countries that remain nondemocratic. Rosenfeld explains this phenomenon by showing how modern autocracies secure support from key middle-class constituencies. Drawing on original surveys, interviews, archival documents, and secondary sources collected from nine months in the field, she compares the experiences of recent post-communist countries, including Russia, the Ukraine, and Kazakhstan, to show that under autocracy, state efforts weaken support for democracy, especially among the middle class. When autocratic states engage extensively in their economies - by offering state employment, offering perks to those to those who are loyal, and threatening dismissal to those who are disloyal - the middle classes become dependent on the state for economic opportunities and career advancement, and, ultimately, do not support a shift toward democratization. Her argument explains why popular support for Ukraine's Orange Revolution unraveled or why Russians did not protest evidence of massive electoral fraud. The author's research questions the assumption that a rising share of educated, white-collar workers always makes the conditions for democracy more favorable, and why dependence on the state has such pernicious consequences for democratization"--

Download or read book Trust and Democratic Transition in Post communist Europe written by Ivana Marková and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 217 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A collection of essays concerned with theoretical and empirical analyses of trust and distrust in post-communist Europe which show that, while political and economic changes can have rapid effects, cultural and psychological changes may linger and influence political trust and representations of democracy.

Download or read book Communism s Shadow written by Grigore Pop-Eleches and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2017-05-09 with total page 355 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It has long been assumed that the historical legacy of Soviet Communism would have an important effect on post-communist states. However, prior research has focused primarily on the institutional legacy of communism. Communism's Shadow instead turns the focus to the individuals who inhabit post-communist countries, presenting a rigorous assessment of the legacy of communism on political attitudes. Post-communist citizens hold political, economic, and social opinions that consistently differ from individuals in other countries. Grigore Pop-Eleches and Joshua Tucker introduce two distinct frameworks to explain these differences, the first of which focuses on the effects of living in a post-communist country, and the second on living through communism. Drawing on large-scale research encompassing post-communist states and other countries around the globe, the authors demonstrate that living through communism has a clear, consistent influence on why citizens in post-communist countries are, on average, less supportive of democracy and markets and more supportive of state-provided social welfare. The longer citizens have lived through communism, especially as adults, the greater their support for beliefs associated with communist ideology—the one exception being opinions regarding gender equality. A thorough and nuanced examination of communist legacies' lasting influence on public opinion, Communism's Shadow highlights the ways in which political beliefs can outlast institutional regimes.

Download or read book How Ukraine Became a Market Economy and Democracy written by Anders Åslund and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2009-03-01 with total page 371 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of Europe's old nations steeped in history, Ukraine is today an undisputed independent state. It is a democracy and has transformed into a market economy with predominant private ownership. Ukraine's postcommunist transition has been one of the most protracted and socially costly, but it has taken the country to a desirable destination. Åslund's vivid account of Ukraine's journey begins with a brief background, where he discusses the implications of Ukraine's history, the awakening of society because of Mikhail Gorbachev's reforms, the early democratization, and the impact of the ill-fated Soviet economic reforms. He then turns to the reign of President Leonid Kravchuk from 1991 to 1994, the only salient achievement of which was nation-building, while the economy collapsed in the midst of hyperinflation. The first two years of Leonid Kuchma's presidency, from 1994 to 1996, were characterized by substantial achievements, notably financial stabilization and mass privatization. The period 1996–99 was a miserable period of policy stagnation, rent seeking, and continued economic decline. In 2000 hope returned to Ukraine. Viktor Yushchenko became prime minister and launched vigorous reforms to cleanse the economy from corruption, and economic growth returned. The ensuing period, 2001–04, amounted to a competitive oligarchy. It was quite pluralist, although repression increased. Economic growth was high. The year 2004 witnessed the most joyful period in Ukraine, the Orange Revolution, which represented Ukraine's democratic breakthrough, with Yushchenko as its hero. The postrevolution period, however, has been characterized by great domestic political instability; a renewed, explicit Russian threat to Ukraine's sovereignty; and a severe financial crisis. The answers to these challenges lie in how soon the European Union fully recognizes Ukraine's long-expressed identity as a European state, how swiftly Ukraine improves its malfunctioning constitutional order, and how promptly it addresses corruption.

Download or read book Post Communist Transition written by Grzegorz W. Kołodko and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 199 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An examination, by Poland's former Minister of Finance, of the underlying reasons why the transition from state-controlled to free market economies has not been as smooth as envisaged by the relevant governments and international organizations.

Download or read book economic reform growth and democracy during post communist transition written by jan fidrmuc and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 39 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book From Triumph to Crisis written by Hilary Appel and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2018-05-10 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explains the surprising endurance of neoliberal policymaking over two decades in post-Communist countries, from 1989-2008, and its decline after the financial crash.

Download or read book The Third Wave written by Samuel P. Huntington and published by University of Oklahoma Press. This book was released on 2012-09-06 with total page 388 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Between 1974 and 1990 more than thirty countries in southern Europe, Latin America, East Asia, and Eastern Europe shifted from authoritarian to democratic systems of government. This global democratic revolution is probably the most important political trend in the late twentieth century. In The Third Wave, Samuel P. Huntington analyzes the causes and nature of these democratic transitions, evaluates the prospects for stability of the new democracies, and explores the possibility of more countries becoming democratic. The recent transitions, he argues, are the third major wave of democratization in the modem world. Each of the two previous waves was followed by a reverse wave in which some countries shifted back to authoritarian government. Using concrete examples, empirical evidence, and insightful analysis, Huntington provides neither a theory nor a history of the third wave, but an explanation of why and how it occurred. Factors responsible for the democratic trend include the legitimacy dilemmas of authoritarian regimes; economic and social development; the changed role of the Catholic Church; the impact of the United States, the European Community, and the Soviet Union; and the "snowballing" phenomenon: change in one country stimulating change in others. Five key elite groups within and outside the nondemocratic regime played roles in shaping the various ways democratization occurred. Compromise was key to all democratizations, and elections and nonviolent tactics also were central. New democracies must deal with the "torturer problem" and the "praetorian problem" and attempt to develop democratic values and processes. Disillusionment with democracy, Huntington argues, is necessary to consolidating democracy. He concludes the book with an analysis of the political, economic, and cultural factors that will decide whether or not the third wave continues. Several "Guidelines for Democratizers" offer specific, practical suggestions for initiating and carrying out reform. Huntington's emphasis on practical application makes this book a valuable tool for anyone engaged in the democratization process. At this volatile time in history, Huntington's assessment of the processes of democratization is indispensable to understanding the future of democracy in the world.

Download or read book Economic Reform Democracy and Growth During Post communist Transition written by Jan Fidrmuc and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 48 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Russia s Capitalist Revolution written by Anders Åslund and published by Peterson Institute. This book was released on 2007 with total page 389 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book A Normal Country written by Andrei Shleifer and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2005 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers a firsthand glimpse into the intellectual challenges that Russia's turbulent transition generated. It deals with many of the most important reforms, from Gorbachev's half-hearted "perestroika," to the mass privatization program, to the efforts to build legal and regulatory institutions of a market economy.

Download or read book The Political Economy of International Trade written by Edward D Mansfield and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 2015-07-03 with total page 387 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume includes many of Edward D Mansfield's contributions to research on the political economy of trade. Among the topics addressed are the effects of power relations and international economic institutions on trade flows, the influence of domestic politics on trade policy, the factors that shape the mass public's attitudes toward trade, and the determinants of the formation and expansion of international trade agreements. The Political Economy of International Trade is an essential reference for scholars and graduate students interested in the international political economy. Contents:Systemic Approaches to the International Trading System:The Concentration of Capabilities and International TradePower Politics and International TradeAlliances, Preferential Trading Arrangements, and International TradeInternational Institutions and the Volatility of International TradeThe Political Economy of Trade Policy and Trade Attitudes:The Political Economy of Nontariff Barriers: A Cross-National AnalysisFree to Trade: Democracies, Autocracies, and International TradeVotes and Vetoes: The Political Determinants of Commercial OpennessSupport for Free Trade: Self-Interest, Sociotropic Politics, and Out-Group AnxietyThe Political Economy of Preferential Trading Agreements:The Proliferation of Preferential Trading ArrangementsWhy Democracies Cooperate More: Electoral Control and International Trade AgreementsVetoing Co-operation: The Impact of Veto Players on Preferential Trading ArrangementsMultilateral Determinants of Regionalism: The Effects of GATT/WTO on the Formation of Preferential Trading ArrangementsThe Expansion of Preferential Trading Arrangements Readership: Postgraduates, researchers, academics, and policymakers interested in international political economics. Key Features:Covers a much broader range of topics than other competing titlesAddresses the international influences on trade flows, the domestic influences on both trade flows and trade policy, and how individuals in the United States perceive trade, and also addresses the international and domestic influences on trade agreements between countries The author and his co-authors are among the most prominent scholars of international political economy Keywords:Political Economy;International Trade;Globalization

Download or read book Trust in Contemporary Society written by and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2019-07-22 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Trust in Contemporary Society, by well-known trust researchers, deals with conceptual, theoretical and social interaction analyses, historical data on societies, national surveys or cross-national comparative studies, and methodological issues related to trust. The authors are from a variety of disciplines: psychology, sociology, political science, organizational studies, history, and philosophy, and from Britain, the United States, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Australia, Germany, and Japan. They bring their vast knowledge from different historical and cultural backgrounds to illuminate contemporary issues of trust and distrust. The socio-cultural perspective of trust is important and increasingly acknowledged as central to trust research. Accordingly, future directions for comparative trust research are also discussed. Contributors include: Jack Barbalet, John Brehm, Geoffrey Hosking, Robert Marsh, Barbara A. Misztal, Guido Möllering, Bart Nooteboom, Ken J. Rotenberg, Jiří Šafr, Masamichi Sasaki, Meg Savel, Markéta Sedláčková, Jörg Sydow, Piotr Sztompka.

Download or read book The Anatomy of Post Communist Regimes written by Bálint Magyar and published by Central European University Press. This book was released on 2021-02-20 with total page 834 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Offering a single, coherent framework of the political, economic, and social phenomena that characterize post-communist regimes, this is the most comprehensive work on the subject to date. Focusing on Central Europe, the post-Soviet countries and China, the study provides a systematic mapping of possible post-communist trajectories. At exploring the structural foundations of post-communist regime development, the work discusses the types of state, with an emphasis on informality and patronalism; the variety of actors in the political, economic, and communal spheres; the ways autocrats neutralize media, elections, etc. The analysis embraces the color revolutions of civil resistance (as in Georgia and in Ukraine) and the defensive mechanisms of democracy and autocracy; the evolution of corruption and the workings of “relational economy”; an analysis of China as “market-exploiting dictatorship”; the sociology of “clientage society”; and the instrumental use of ideology, with an emphasis on populism. Beyond a cataloguing of phenomena—actors, institutions, and dynamics of post-communist democracies, autocracies, and dictatorships—Magyar and Madlovics also conceptualize everything as building blocks to a larger, coherent structure: a new language for post-communist regimes. While being the most definitive book on the topic, the book is nevertheless written in an accessible style suitable for both beginners who wish to understand the logic of post-communism and scholars who are interested in original contributions to comparative regime theory. The book is equipped with QR codes that link to www.postcommunistregimes.com, which contains interactive, 3D supplementary material for teaching.

Download or read book Theorizing Transition written by John Pickles and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2005-08-31 with total page 552 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Theorizing Transition provides a comprehensive examination of the economic, political, social and cultural transformations in post-Communist countries and an important critique of transition theory and policy. The authors create the basis of a theoretical understanding of transition in terms of a political economy of capitalist development. The diversity of forms and complexities of transition are examined through a wide range of examples from post-Soviet countries and comparative studies from countries such as Vietnam and China. Theorizing Transition challenges many of the comfortable assumptions unleashed by the euphoria of democratisation and the triumphalism of market capitalism in the early 1990s and shows transition to be much more complex than mainstream theory suggests.

Download or read book Post Communist Democratization written by John S. Dryzek and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2002-06-13 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the way democracy is thought about and lived by people in the post-communist world.

Download or read book The Great Rebirth written by Anders Aslund and published by Peterson Institute for International Economics. This book was released on 2014-10-29 with total page 531 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The fall of communism 25 years ago transformed the political and economic landscape in more than two dozen countries across Europe and Asia. In this volume political leaders, scholars, and policymakers assess the lessons learned from the “great rebirth” of capitalism, highlighting the policies that were the most successful in helping countries make the transition to stable and prosperous market economies, as well as those cases of countries reverting to political and economic authoritarianism. The authors of these essays conclude that visionary leadership, and a willingness to take bold and comprehensive steps, achieved the best outcomes, and that privatization of state-owned enterprises and deregulation were essential to success. Recent backsliding, such as the reversal of economic and democratic reforms in Russia and Hungary, has cast a shadow over the legacy of the transition a quarter century ago, however.