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Based on recent survey data from 20 countries, this article examines the 'contagion' thesis -- lack of support among the electorate at one level of the political system may spread to other levels. The levels examined are political parties & the party system. The results demonstrate that the degree to which people are attached to a party is related to how they view the need for parties in their country. In countries with widely different democratic systems, people who identify strongly with a party tend to be much more supportive of the idea that parties are necessary to the functioning of the political system than people without strong party attachments. Hence, party identification, a concept originating with the 'Michigan Four,' is not only a very useful tool in analyzing voting behavior. It can also be applied to studying support for party-based democratic political systems. 3 Tables, 20 References. Adapted from the source document.

In all societies, the quality of government institutions is of the utmost importance for the well-being of its citizens. Problems like high infant mortality, lack of access to safe water, unhappiness and poverty are not primarily caused by a lack of technical equipment, effective medicines or other types of knowledge generated by the natural or engineering sciences. Instead, the critical problem is that the majority of the world's population live in societies that have dysfunctional government institutions. Central issues discussed in the book include: how can good government be conceptualized

This study focuses on how citizens' satisfaction with democracy is affected by system factors related to the input side of the democratic system, i.e. the electoral dimension, as well as to factors related to the output side, i.e. the quality of government. The study investigates the extent to which different election system characteristics and degrees of policy representation (in terms of ideological congruence between voters and representatives) and the presence of effective, professional and impartial governmental institutions are related to citizens' satisfaction with the way democracy works. The study uses data from CSES on individual voters and party system characteristics together with data on governmental institutions from the QoG Institute. Overall, the results indicate that factors such as government effectiveness are of greater importance for citizens' satisfaction with the way democracy functions, compared to factors like ideological congruence on the input side. Impartial and effective bureaucracies matter more than representational devices. Adapted from the source document.

Research has shown that the greatest obstacle to economic development is often not so much a lack of entrepreneurship or capital but the low quality of government institutions responsible for implementing laws and policies. Such quality can also affect non-economic phenomena, ranging from peace and security to public health. Advancing the premise that trustworthy, reliable and competent government institutions are a crucial asset for societies, this article discusses the challenges raised by attempting to reform government institutions of low quality. While patterns of incompetence and corruption can easily become self-perpetuating, reforms can be successfully carried out from above, as in the cases of Hong Kong and Singapore. While research has taken up the question of how to combat corruption, more work is needed. The Quality of Government Institute, established at Goteborg University in 2004, is working to advance knowledge on this issue. Toward that end, it has begun building a database, organized an international conference and seminars, and presented research findings. Its program, designed to encompass eight research projects, is slated to last for six years. Adapted from the source document.

Objective. The purpose of this article was to test the generality of wishful thinking by comparing mass & elite beliefs concerning the future of nuclear power in Sweden. Methods. Data from 11 (1986-1996) surveys of the public & a 1988 survey of the Swedish Parliament that included questions concerning preference & expectation regarding nuclear power were examined. Results. A tendency toward wishful thinking occurred consistently across years among the masses, but was considerably stronger among the political elite (members of parliament). The anti-nuclear segment of the public showed a weakened tendency to expect a preferred outcome. Conclusion. Ambiguity of the future outcome, involvement, & knowledge are discussed as key factors in determining the level of wishful thinking in a given context. 1 Table, 13 References. Adapted from the source document.

A panel of the Swedish electorate in 1985 and 1988, and a comparable panel comprised of members of the Swedish parliament, were analyzed for constraint and stability of attitudes. It was found that members of parliament showed considerably more constraint among attitudes and more attitude stability than the public. Among the public, members of political parties showed more constraint and stability than other voters who, in turn, showed more constraint and stability than nonvoters. A similar ordering was found in the link between specific issue attitudes and an abstract left-right dimension. Societal elites responding to the same questions showed more attitudinal constraint than the public but less than members of parliament. Thus, even at the elite level politics matters in the sense that involvement in politics enhances the degree of constraint between attitudes on contemporary issues. (European Journal of Political Research / FUB)