For security or sustainability? Investigating the global nexus of nuclear power, democracies, and civil society

Abstract

Although studies have analyzed concerns regarding the reliance on nuclear power, prior comparative studies have focused on sociopolitical conditions determining the phase-in of nuclear energy. To evaluate the dynamics of both phase-in and phase-out, we used the Heckman model to address the methodological difficulty of a limited dependent variable representing both the users and nonusers of nuclear power from 154 countries in 1995–2014. We determined that a power nexus, consisting of national security and electoral democracy, increases the dependence on nuclear power, whereas the empowerment of civil society participation and deliberative democracy reduces this dependence. These findings contribute to the elaboration of how diverse democratic practices may have distinct effects on the dependence on nuclear power: conventional electoral democracies favor the maintenance of nuclear dependence, whereas civil society participation and deliberative democracy are potential mechanisms that reduce the reliance on nuclear energy.