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Integrating theories, methods, and country cases with an emphasis on application and analysis.Combining thematic organization and a variety of country-specific case studies, Comparative Politics Integrating Theories, Methods, and Cases is an engaging and accessible introduction to comparative politics. Methodological tools are introduced early in the text and integrated throughout to helpstudents develop a systematic way of doing their own analyses of concepts and issues. These tools include theories, the basics of the comparative method, and manageable case materials for practice, all in the context of the big questions in comparative politics today.
"Examines decentralization and recentralization in the developing world, focusing on a comparison of Brazil and South Africa in the 1990s. Argues that decentralization follows declines in executive power, while subsequent recentralization is contingent upon presidents gaining exceptional governing opportunities, especially by resolving economic crises"--Provided by publisher.
Through essential excerpts of classic pieces and more recent contributions that have significantly advanced research and thinking in the field, Comparative Politics covers the major theoretical schools of thought and major research questions, giving students a clear sense of how scholarsunderstand the political dynamics of various countries and regions around the world.
This text presents 43 readings drawn from major magazines and newspapers including The Economist, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The New York Times, and The New Statesman. Addressing theoretical, methodological, and practical issues, the selections include contemporary articles thatintroduce students to key debates in the field along with more informal readings that help students to engage with the material.
Principles of Comparative Politics offers the most comprehensive and up-to-date introduction to comparative inquiry, research, and scholarship. In this thoroughly revised Third Edition, students now have an even better guide to cross-national comparison and why it matters. The new edition retains a focus on the enduring questions with which scholars grapple, the issues about which consensus has started to emerge, and the tools comparativists use to get at the complex problems in the field. Among other things, the updates to this edition include a thoroughly-revised chapter on dictatorships that incorporates a discussion of the two fundamental problems of authoritarian rule: authoritarian pow...
What is the state of governance in sub-Saharan Africa? Is it possible to identify the best practices and approaches to establishing political systems that promote accountability, transparency, peace, and civic space for all? These are the questions addressed in this book. While the concept of governance is considered to be central to political science, our understanding of it is still imprecise, with extant studies focused primarily either on think-tank indicators, economic management, or political studies of democratization. This book critically examines the record on democratization in Africa thus far, and seeks a new, integrated, focused approach to the study of governance. Such an approa...
Why do countries have different institutions and forms of government? Why do some social revolutions succeed and endure while others fail? Why are some societies subjected to terrorism and not others? An engaging and accessible introduction to the subject, Comparative Politics: Integrating Theories, Methods, and Cases gives students the methodological tools they need to answer the "big questions" in the field. The authors introduce methods early in the text and integrate them throughout in order to help students develop a systematic way of thinking about comparative politics. FEATURES * A unique structure offers the best of thematic and country-by-country approaches. Fifteen succinct themati...
The resurgence of the Left in Latin America over the past decade has been so notable that it has been called “the Pink Tide.” In recent years, regimes with leftist leaders have risen to power in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Uruguay, and Venezuela. What does this trend portend for the deepening of democracy in the region? Benjamin Goldfrank has been studying the development of participatory democracy in Latin America for many years, and this book represents the culmination of his empirical investigations in Brazil, Uruguay, and Venezuela. In order to understand why participatory democracy has succeeded better in some countries than in others, he examines the efforts in urban areas that have been undertaken in the cities of Porto Alegre, Montevideo, and Caracas. His findings suggest that success is related, most crucially, to how nationally centralized political authority is and how strongly institutionalized the opposition parties are in the local arenas.
This book examines the connection between territorial politics and ideological conflict in the global economic sphere, particularly in Latin America, based on in-depth field research in Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru.
To what extent do courts in Latin America protect individual rights and limit governments? This volume answers these fundamental questions by bringing together today's leading scholars of judicial politics. Drawing on examples from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica and Bolivia, the authors demonstrate that there is widespread variation in the performance of Latin America's constitutional courts. In accounting for this variation, the contributors push forward ongoing debates about what motivates judges; whether institutions, partisan politics and public support shape inter-branch relations; and the importance of judicial attitudes and legal culture. The authors deploy a range of methods, including qualitative case studies, paired country comparisons, statistical analysis and game theory.