Democracy and institutions : the life work of Arend Lijphart / edited by Markus M.L. Crepaz, Thomas A. Koelble, and David Wilsford.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Crepaz, Markus M. L., 1959-

Koelble, Thomas A., 1957-

Wilsford, David.

Michigan Publishing (University of Michigan), publisher.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Lijphart, Arend.

Democracy.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (269 p.)

Place of Publication:

Ann Arbor : University of Michigan Press, c2000.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Institutions are the channels of political power. This volume explores Arend Lijphart's life work--the design of political institutions. All the contributors to this volume share the fundamental insight that the design of political institutions matters in how democracies work. The essays in this volume offer both theoretical insights into the context and implications of Lijphart's ideas and empirical exploration of the ideas. Two chapters by Thomas Koelble and Andrew Reynolds examine and apply Lijphart's insights to South Africa, while another study by Jack Nagel explores the fascinating institutional changes taking place in New Zealand. Essays by Bernard Grofman and Rein Taagepera examine Lijphart's work from a theoretical perspective and place Lijphart's work in the wider neo-institutionalist school of thought. Milton Esman applies the principle of power-sharing to mobilized communities, not only in democratic societies but also to those which are governed by authoritarian rule. Bingham Powell offers an empirical approach to the crucial question of the connection between political institutions and responsiveness of policy-makers. Markus M. L. Crepaz and Vicki Birchfield argue that in this age of globalization, countries with consensual political institutions will not only systematically refract the pressures of globalization but will be able to absorb the domestic consequences of globalization more successfully than majoritarian countries. Finally, Arend Lijphart responds to the arguments made in these essays, extending and adding novel concepts and insights to his conceptual framework. The book will be of interest to political scientists, lawyers, and sociologists who study institutions, the impact of electoral systems, and constitutional design. In addition, those who study "globalization" will be attracted by the relevance of domestic political institutions and their refractory effects as the tides of globalization wash against the domestic shores. Markus M. L. Crepaz is Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Georgia. Thomas A. Koelble is Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Miami. David Wilsford is President and Professor, the Institute for American Universities.

Contents:

""Contents""; ""1. Studying Democracy and Putting It into Practice: The Contributions of Arend Lijphart to Democratic Theory and to Actual Democracy / David Wilsford""; ""2. Political Responsiveness and Constitutional Design / G. Bingham Powell Jr.""; ""3. Arend Lijphart and the New Institutionalism / Bernard Grofman""; ""4. Arend Lijphart and Dimensions of Demoracy / Rein Taagepera""; ""5. Power Sharing and the Constructionist Fallacy / Milton J. Esman""; ""6. Expanding the Spectrum of Democracies: Reflections on Proportional Representation in New Zealand / Jack H. Nagel""

""7. The New South African Constitution: A Case of Consensus Democracy? / Thomas A. Koelble""""8. Majoritarian or Power-Sharing Government / Andrew Reynolds""; ""9. Global Economics, Local Politics: Lijphart's Theory of Consensus Democracy and the Politics of Inclusion / Markus M. L. Crepaz and Vicki Birchfield""; ""10. Varieties of Nonmajoritarian Democracy / Arend Lijphart""; ""Index""

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on information from the publisher.

ISBN:

9786612644627

9781282644625

1282644629

9780472026845

0472026844

OCLC:

655241525