Suchergebnisse

Political actors derive influence both from their official position and from their own personal standing. However, political science has proven to be better equipped to study formal powers and institutions. The study of informal arrangements, where actors rely on personal connections and authority, is more challenging. This has arguably led to the predominance of an institutional focus in research. We argue for the study of informal sources of power as an equally important area of research. Drawing from historical and contemporary examples, we reintroduce the concepts of auctoritas and potestas to underline the difference between individual and institutional sources of influence. We discuss the various obstacles to measurement and outline attempts proposed to date in the literature.

A well-established line of academic inquiry argues that state capture emerges in contexts of weak governance institutions. However, Panama is an outlier case featuring high levels of state capture despite strong governance institutions. To better understand state capture in Panama, this paper investigates the sources from which business elites draw their power-income control, business cohesion, political campaign contributions and revolving doors. Results show that state capture arose in Panama along with high income concentration among top elites, cohesion among a small cluster of family business groups, big businesses coordinating their electoral contributions, and appointments of businesspeople to strategic government positions. In closing, we suggest possible avenues of research to continue deciphering state capture, and provide some policy recommendations to reduce state capture in Panama.

Established in 2006, the Chickasaw Press is the first tribally owned and operated publishing house in the United States. This article recounts the history of this innovative Indigenous enterprise, explores its decolonized practices and publications, and connects the press to national initiatives for American Indian cultural revitalization. In doing so, I reveal how the press serves as an active agent in the movement for Indigenous cultural and intellectual sovereignty and showcase how this outlet brings together traditional knowledge and cutting-edge technologies to decenter colonial narratives about the Chickasaw people and, thus, to reinstate Chickasaw tribal knowledge and perspectives.