Comparative Democratizatn: LA

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Juris Doctor, Undergraduate

The study of democracy and democratization has a long history in the social sciences. Interest in this topic has expanded dramatically in recent years, because of the spread of the so-called "third wave" of democratization extending from Southern Europe and Latin America to Eastern Europe, Africa and parts of Asia. Thus, to the considerable literature on democratization as a historical process of social change has been added a number of new studies of what could be termed "quick democratization." It is primarily this latter research, and its intersection with historical work, that we will be addressing in this course. The course is guided by three goals. First, to introduce students to the major issues, theories, concepts and arguments in the literature on democratization. Second, to give students a comparative perspective on some of the major cases of recent transitions from authoritarian rule. Third, to engage the current literature on the "quality of democracy," and assess the performance of democracy in a comparative way, that is, looking at new and old democracies together.