Too Much Development or Not Enough Democracy? Exploring an Anomaly in the Democratization of Post-Communist Countries

Abstract

This study of 28 post-communist regimes distinguishes a group of countries significantly less democratic than predicted by its very high Human Development Index score: Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus. It also appears that, contrary to theoretical assumptions, such ‘developed dictatorships’ convert their economic growth into human development remarkably well. To measure such conversion, a new tool, the Growth Conversion Index is introduced. Considering these results, the explanatory power of several theories is briefly examined. While some theories imply possible explanations (e.g., the concept of patronal politics and the conditional approach to resource dependence), none of them discloses sufficiently the actual workings of such conversion mechanism, implying the need for more in-depth studies.