Search results

FOR THE PURPOSE OF DETERMINING THE RELATIVE INFLUENCE OF THREE IMPORTANT SOCIAL AND DEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS ON PARTY CHOICE - SOCIAL CLASS, RELIGION, & LANGUAGE - A COMPARISON OF BELGIUM, CANADA, SOUTH AFRICA, AND SWITZERLAND IS USEFUL BECAUSE THE THREE VARIABLES ARE SIMULTANEOUSLY PRESENT IN ALL FOUR COUNTRIES. RELIGION IS FOUND TO BE THE STRONGEST.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1968

While it may be difficult to achieve and maintain stable democratic governments in countries with deep religious, ideological, linguistic, cultural, or ethnic cleavages, Lijphart argues that it is not at all impossible. Through the analysis of political systems in six continents, he demonstrates that what he calls consociational democracy can be successful in severely divided or plural societies."Here, once again, Arend Lijphart is directing our attention to matters which will surely engage much of the attention of students of comparative politics in the next decade." G. Bingham Powell, Jr., American Political Science Review"A study which can speak to such a wide audience in political science deserves a warm welcome from the profession." Government and Opposition"A copybook example of the comparative method of political analysis, as well as indispensable reading for all who have an interest in the nature and prospects of representative democracy, whether in Europe or beyond."—The Times Higher Education Supplement"This well-written work, containing a wealth of information on politics of many diverse nations, is highly recommended."—Library Journal

Cover -- Contents -- Preface to the Second Edition -- Preface to the First Edition -- 1: Introduction -- 2: The Westminster Model of Democracy -- 3: The Consensus Model of Democracy -- 4: Thirty-Six Democracies -- 5: Party Systems: Two-Party and Multiparty Patterns -- 6: Cabinets: Concentration Versus Sharing of Executive Power -- 7: Executive-Legislative Relations: Patterns of Dominance and Balance of Power -- 8: Electoral Systems: Majority and Plurality Methods Versus Proportional Representation -- 9: Interest Groups: Pluralism Versus Corporatism -- 10: Division of Power: The Federal-Unitary and Centralized-Decentralized Contrasts -- 11: Parliaments and Congresses: Concentration Versus Division of Legislative Power -- 12: Constitutions: Amendment Procedures and Judicial Review -- 13: Central Banks: Independence Versus Dependence -- 14: The Two-Dimensional Conceptual Map of Democracy -- 15: Effective Government and Policy-Making: Does Consensus Democracy Make a Difference? -- 16: The Quality of Democracy and a "Kinder, Gentler" Democracy: Consensus Democracy Makes a Difference -- 17: Conclusions and Recommendations -- Appendix: Two Dimensions and Ten Basic Variables, 1945-2010 and 1981-2010 -- References -- Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- K -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- R -- S -- T -- U -- V -- W -- Y.

Introduction : developments in power sharing theory -- Consociational democracy (1969) -- The puzzle of Indian democracy : a consociational interpretation (1996) -- Self-determination versus pre-determination of ethnic minorities in power sharing systems (1991) -- Constitutional design for divided societies (2004) -- The quality of democracy : consensus democracy makes a difference (1999) -- Majority rule in theory and practice : the tenacity of a flawed paradigm (1991) -- Back to democratic basics : who really practices majority rule? (1997) -- Presidentialism and majoritarian democracy : theoretical observations (1994) -- Europe, the European Union, and democracy (2002) -- Constitutional choices for new democracies (1991) -- Double-checking the evidence (1991) -- The alternative vote : a realistic alternative for South Africa? (1991) -- Five exemplary devices for electoral reform (1994) -- Unequal participation : democracy's unresolved dilemma (1997) -- Types of democracy and generosity with foreign aid : an indirect test of the democratic peace proposition (1999) -- Comparative politics and the comparative method (1971) -- Conclusion : power sharing, evidence, and logic.

Menigeen kent het begrip 'verzuiling' en weet hoezeer dat verschijnsel bepalend is geweest voor de inrichting en werkwijze van de Nederlandse politiek, vakbonden, omroep, dagbladpers, etc. in de afgelopen honderd jaar.Weinigen realiseren zich hoe die verzuiling precies is ontstaan en op welke wijze en met welke gevolgen de 'verzuildheid' Nederland gedurende een groot deel van de twintigste eeuw heeft bepaald. In zijn klassiek geworden studie Verzuiling, pacificatie en kentering in de Nederlandse politiek uit 1967 geeft Dr. A. Lijphart een uniek politiek portret van ons land sinds 1917