The effect of civilian control on democracy

Abstract

Abstract This chapter addresses the question whether the degree of civilian control is correlated with the survival and breakdown of democracy and democratic quality in the third wave. Multivariate statistical analyses confirm that democratic survival is more likely if civilian authorities achieve a high degree of civilian control of the military. In contrast, where democratic governments lack the effective capacity to rein in the armed forces, the likelihood for a democratic breakdown remains high. To account for effects of weak or declining degree of civilian control on the quality of democracy, we statistically evaluate the relationship between civilian control and different partial regimes of the “embedded democracy.” We find that the overall degree of civilian control is a crucial determinant of political rights and civil liberties. Findings suggest that countries in which the military does not enjoy much political influence and is under the control of the democratically elected authorities do better in ensuring the political rights and civil liberties of their citizens. In contrast, the overall degree of civilian control had no effect on horizontal accountability and electoral integrity, though civilian control over Elite Recruitment has a strong, positive effect on democratic quality of the electoral regime of an embedded democracy. As suggested by extant literature on democratic quality and consolidation, socioeconomic development, measured by the GDP p.c., is the single most powerful predictor of democratic quality across all four partial regimes.