Level Of Democratic Development Research Articles

Electronic parliament as a factor of sustainable development: History and prospects

The relevance and significance of the study of the history and prospects of electronic parliamentarism as a factor of sustainable development is conditioned upon the anthropocentric vision of the idea of digitalization of the parliament. For the purpose, the authors chose to consider the system of digital tools that make up the e-parliament in the context of its role in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals “Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions”. The main methods of scientific cognition, which were used when drafting the study, were the methods of content analysis, analogy, and comparison. The levels of the multi-level system of information and data security as a key element of the security of digitalization of the parliament were defined, challenges related to the legal, economic, social, and technological aspects of the process were outlined. Based on the analysis of legal acts and directly on the websites of the parliaments of countries with different democracy indices (Great Britain, Iceland, Sweden, Poland, the Czech Republic, the Baltic countries), global trends in the specified area were formulated. The author emphasized the inherent nature of certain features and the uncertainty of the consequences of digitalization of the parliament in states with various levels of democratic development and different economic indicators. It was established that the transition of parliamentarians in communication with voters from conventional communication in an offline format to an online format contributes to the implementation of openness, inclusiveness, cooperation, and participation in the political sphere. The results of the study were designed to update the issue of the need to introduce new electronic parliamentary tools for the implementation of digital democracy mechanisms in society

Stateness and democratic backsliding in the former Yugoslavia: How political actors subvert democracy in the name of the nation

AbstractWith respect to the relationship between the state and democracy, the scholarly research thus far has mainly oscillated between two perspectives: ‘no state, no democracy’ versus ‘no democracy, no state’. Using the example of former Yugoslav republics and based on Mill's method of difference that is complemented with process tracing, we offer an alternative approach. We posit that a democracy can emerge within the context of unresolved matters of state and nation but it is unlikely that it will flourish. Furthermore, we argue that stateness problem creates conditions that facilitate democratic backsliding even if a country achieves a considerable level of democratic development: a fertile ground for ethno‐political entrepreneurship and national identity‐based political divisions that promote polarization. Accordingly, besides facilitating democratization, a resolved stateness problem should be regarded as a condition that fosters democratic resilience as well. The article contributes to a better understanding of the relationship between the state and democracy and reveals the mechanisms that are behind a successful subversion of democracy in the name of the nation.

Central Asian States in the International Rankings of Democracy Development

Since gaining independence, Central Asian states declared their commitment to democratization and development of a market economy, building their political systems based on the uncontested Western liberal-democratic model. Leaving behind the Soviet legacy, the political elites of Central Asian states strive to build an effective strategy for national and state development and to form effective democratic institutions. However, after several decades, the political regimes in the countries of the region have become more authoritarian than democratic. In the process of democratic transition, the countries face serious threats in the form of political instability and socio-economic problems. The renaissance of traditional national features made them an integral element of the political life of the sovereign states. The development of democracy in the states of the region is influenced by informal institutions - tribal relations, regionalism and the clan structure of society. In fact, the introduction of the basic elements of democracy into the political process of Central Asian states is formal or declarative, and the participation of the masses in politics is limited. Using various methods and criteria, international democracy development ratings assess the level of democratic development in transition states. Western countries set their own norms and rules for the democratization of transition countries based on the ratings of political transformation. As a result, international ratings are used as a tool for achieving the interests of Western countries that seek to reformat the political regimes of non-democratic countries, regardless of their socio-cultural characteristics. Each Central Asian state has its own features and dynamics/statics of democratic transit, but they are all united by the personification of power and loyalty to the autocrat rather than to the political institutions. The author attempts to trace the current state of the political systems of Central Asian states, highlighting the positive and negative trends in their democratization.

Issues of Democratization and Intercultural Dialogue in Turkey of 21st Century

There can be no peace without democratization and intercultural dialogue, which due to their importance lead to the ultimate result of what is called the union of civilizations among nations. In this regard, it is interesting to consider the issues of democratization and intercultural dialogue in Turkey in 21st century.In order to reach a high level of democratic development, any state needs a strong society and political will. At the beginning of the 20th century, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (1881-1938), the founder of the Turkish Republic, took the course of state development of the country to the West and declared the path of Europeanization as the main principle of unchanging domestic and foreign policy.The current events in Turkey in the first decade of 21st century have shown that the country is developing as a strong state. So, it is interesting to observe how the Republican Turkey will continue to pursue democratic and European values and to support the state rule of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.For Turkey and its leader, Islam is a tool that helps to stabilize the political system and transform Turkey into a traditional, conservative society with fewer opportunities to generate protests related to social, ethnic and other civil rights.The coming decades will show whether the country with a Muslim culture will be able to adapt to a democratic Western civilization and what the consequences will be.

Digital Intervention in National Political Systems in the Conditions of Contemporary Information Society

The article analyzes the phenomenon of digital interference with national political systems in the conditions of the modern information society and the evolution of the Internet as a space of political communications. It is shown that digital intervention is relevant but at the same time a complex multidimensional phenomenon of contemporary politics. In many respects, the potential of the digital interference phenomenon is closely related to the substantive and functional features of the functioning and transformation of the contemporary Internet, which has been actively used when changing political regimes in many countries. The initiatives of countries to form the sovereign national segments of the Internet space are, on the one hand, an attempt to protect their political systems from external influence and invasion, to ensure their own political stability, and on the other hand, they pose risks to the democratic potential of the Internet. The article substantiates the thesis that the phenomenon of interference with elections in actual practice often becomes not so much an objective process as an instrument of information warfare, mass political propaganda and discredit of political opponents, a manipulative tool that can be actively used not only by authoritarian regimes with a low level of democratic development. It is noted that differences in understanding and defining the essence of the Internet by various countries give rise to a significant potential for political conflicts on a global scale. This leads the author to conclude that it is necessary to form institutions that are able to prevent and regu- late information conflicts in the Internet space, as well as reduce global political risks (including risks associated with potential interference in the electoral process of sovereign states), forming a collective responsibility in the functioning of the global Internet.

THE IMPACT OF CORRUPTION ON THE EFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC SPENDING ACROSS COUNTRIES WITH DIFFERENT LEVELS OF DEMOCRACY

Corruption, being linked to institutions of power, affects the efficiency of using public funds in a country. This happens, in particular, due to distortions in the structure of public expenditure, worsening quality and decreasing accessibility of public services, and overpricing of public services. The consequences of corruption that arise in different areas of human activity often become subject of scientific investigations performed by reputable scientists. However, the issue of the impact of corruption on public spending efficiency in the countries with different levels of democratic development has not been researched. The aim of this study is to determine the impact of corruption on the efficiency of public spending across the world (in 166 countries for the period from 2004 until 2017). The research is carried out by applying regression analysis to indicators characterizing the level of corruption and the efficiency of public spending obtained from large-scale survey data collected by major international organizations and aggregated in the World Bank’s “World Development Indicators” database. The analysis is also performed by using k-means clustering method to group countries into 4 clusters by the level of democracy and to build refined one-factor econometric models for each of them.The study revealed strong correlation relationship between corruption and public spending efficiency. It has been determined that a unit increase in corruption perceptions (a decrease in corruption) leads to a marginal increase in the efficiency of public spending by 0.931 units in the simple linear regression model and by 0.807 units in the multiple regression model. The study also showed that the impact of corruption on public spending varies depending on the level of democracy in a country. In the countries with low democracy levels, a unit decrease in corruption increases the efficiency of public spending by 0.923 units, whereas a similar decrease in corruption in the countries with high democracy levels will increase public spending efficiency only by 0.701 units. The findings of this study allow us to determine with higher accuracy the effects of corruption reduction measures on the efficiency of public spending.

A Study on the Relationship Between Mean Years of Schooling, Literacy Skills Level of the Countries, and Their Level of Democratic Development

This study’s objective is to examine the relationship between the mean years of schooling, level of adult literacyskills, and democratic development levels. The study was designed as a relational survey model. The analyticsemployed is the path analysis, which tests the existence of causal relationship between the variables. The statisticalanalysis indicates that a significant and strong relationship exists between the mean years of schooling and adultliteracy skills and further that a significant, medium level, relationship is present between the countries’ adult literacyskills and their democratic development levels. Moreover, literacy skills create a significant mediation impact on therelationship between the mean years of schooling and democratic development level. Also significant is the indirectimpact of the nations’ mean years of schooling on their democratic development levels. Countries seeking to sustainand protect participative and deep democracy may need to review their formal and informal education policies.Therefore, it may be especially necessary to attach greater importance to cognitive-verbal processes in formaleducation institutions as a departure point of action.

Reflection on Legal Issues and Approach of Political Bodies toward Central Election Commission in Albania

The electoral legislation regarding the Albanian Central Election Commission (CEC) has been subject to changes on the eve of every election. CEC as a constitutional institution where the contribution of the political representation principle was minimal resulted in a legislative product that did not correspond to the level of democratic development of the Albanian political parties. The entire process of development of the Albanian electoral legislation, in establishing CEC, has been prevailed by the implementation of the principle of political representation and bipartisan balance. The attitude of political parties toward CEC has been motivated by their electoral interests. Political pressure on this institution has produced unconstitutional interventions. The establishment and operation of CEC as an independent institution and politically neutral according to the principles of public adminiatration is an option that should be considered by the Albanian legislative body. Political parties can be represented in this institution by deploing ex-officio members or observers. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v4n1p347

A Cross-Country Study of the Relationship between Weberian Bureaucracy and Government Performance

This paper challenges the long-term criticism of the efficiency of the Weberian model of bureaucracy, on the hypothesis that its performance or competitiveness might be context specific, as what works best in some bureaucratic settings is unlikely to work to the same degree in others. To perform this assessment, this study analyzes relationships between characteristics of the Weberian model of bureaucracy and government performance in nations possessing different levels of democratic development. The key finding of this research is that the Weberian characteristic of bureaucratic professionalism is most strongly and positively associated with good government performance in nations where democracy is less developed. This can have special implications for developing countries, where democracy is usually not well established and furnishing good governance with a well-functioning bureaucracy is an urgent goal for effective implementation of development programs.

Democracy Assistance in Asia and the Role of China

The promotion of democracy began with the urgent need to stave off the spread of communism after World War II. The imperative to prevent countries from faUing into the communist bloc had a significant impact on the geopolitical landscape into which the fledgling nations of Asia emerged after gaining their independence in the 1940s and onward. This geopolitical reality changed over time but the countries ofthe region were nonetheless caught between two competing political systems: democracy and autocracy. The emergence of democracies in countries that have made the transition from some form of authoritarianism, such as Taiwan, South Korea, Indonesia, Mongolia, and the Phuippines, testifies to the success and value of democracy promotion. In other countries - Malaysia, Thauand, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh - the ebb and flow of democratization caUs for both optimism and support. There are yet others - Burma, North Korea, Laos, and Cambodia - that remain closed and isolated, and that demand outside assistance. Then there are cases such as China, Singapore, Vietnam, and Malaysia that have emerged as resuient, semi-authoritarian regimes; they have developed economicaUy on par with their democratic neighbours but have not liberalized politically. While there is no uniform model for democratic development, the disparity in the level of democratic development and the close economic relations between democratic and semi-authoritarian and authoritarian neighbours underscores the unique challenges that the region presents for promoting democracy and defining an end-goal of democracy assistance in Asia.For decades following their independence, many Asian countries were recipients of foreign assistance. Assistance in many cases came in the form of development aid or, more commonly, direct financial and military support to the regimes. As a result, these countries transformed a great deal. It is important to point out, however, that the type of the assistance varied and changed substantially over time. Yet changes in the type of foreign assistance were slow in keeping pace with the transformative aspect of democratization from within. While financial and military support did rebuff communist encroachment, it had the effect of strengthening autocracies rather than promoting democracies in Asia.As the communist bloc fractured from within and China opened economically to the west, the threat of communist expansion receded. Political opposition simmering in Asian countries found willing advocates in the outside world. Information seeped through the cracks of state censorship - a tool used by many closed regimes for controlling information and public opinion. Regulations were put in place to limit the ability of the communists to organize but these blanketed all types of opposition to the regime. Reports about egregious human rights abuses and oppressive and corrupt rule reached the outside world, and the United States in particular, which was also under the influence of the winds of social change.As state control over the media weakened, dissenting voices found an audience, and calls for democracy in these countries were beginning to be heard not only by their countrymen but also abroad. These calls mobilized public opinion in the United States and elsewhere, which prompted politicians in the US congress to push for greater American support for democracy in the region. The pressure applied by external actors, particularly the United States, played a pivotal role in promoting popular dissent against some forms of autocratic rule in the region. Pressure from external actors forced the authorities to open public space for debate and to liberalize regulations against political opposition. Democracy assistance also helped shape the internal conditions that allowed reformers and democrats from within to push for change from a position of strength versus the ruling elites.DEMOCRACY ASSISTANCEDemocracy assistance is a set of foreign policy instruments exercised by both governmental and nongovernmental actors in the forms of monetary and technical support for strengthening democratic rule and norms. …

Language policy in post-Soviet Azerbaijan: political aspects

This article addresses the politics of language planning in post-Soviet Azerbaijan by reflecting upon the trends and challenges inherent in the “language movements” in developing nations. Language policy in general tends to reflect the stages of national priority formation, the level of democratic development in a nation, the vulnerability of national identity feelings, and external factors impacting national language policy formulation. In developing nations, language policy and politics are so inseparably interwoven that language policy can often be relied upon as a mirror reflecting political and social tendencies occurring within these nations. From this point of view, language policy programs of developing nations reveal, in many cases, common aspects of nation-building aspirations as well as possible mistakes involved.

Measuring the Dissemination of Volatility across Levels of Development

Using levels of democratic development as a proxy for economic development, and using a 2SLS GMM dynamic panel estimation methodology, we investigate the degree and direction of dissemination in the volatility of economic growth. Our findings indicate two essential points. First, there are differences along the democratic continuum of the ability of a countrys economic growth volatility to affect other countries. Thus, an economic recession for example in one country, does not affect all countries equally across regime type. Second, growth volatility is not simply a North-South phenomenon, but a South-South phenomenon as well. In fact, the empirical patterns found here call into question the usefulness of relying on even these simple, dichotomous views of the world.

The Internet and Democracy: Global Catalyst or Democratic Dud?

In this study we explore the global effect of the Internet on democracy over the period of 1992 to 2002 by observing the relationships between measures related to democracy and Internet prevalence. Our results show a significant correlation between Internet penetration (measured as the estimated number of Internet users per 1,000 people) and a common indicator of a nation's level of democratization provided by the Freedom House. With a multivariate linear regression model, we show that this correlation maintains even when we control for a nation's geographic region, economic level, and social development. Our findings suggest that a 25% increase in Internet penetration links to a one point jump on the 14 point Freedom House democracy index while still accounting for regional and socio-economic development. Indeed, we find that Internet penetration explains more variation in the level of democratic development within a country than does literacy rates and some of the regional categories. We employ Lessig's framework of regulation to examine the cause of this Internet-democracy correlation. Lessig defines four classes of regulators, forces that control and define systems such as the Internet. They are markets, architectures, norms, and laws. We argue that a democratic regulator is a force that serves to enhance civil or political liberties. And we argue by example that there are democratic (and, indeed, anti-democratic) regulators which control aspects of cyberspace.

Constructing a Cardinal Measure of Democratic Development in a Transition Polity: The Nigerian Example

In the last decade, the political institutions and practices under which economic decisions are made have received increasing attention in the analysis of the responsibility for economic underperformance. This attention has in turn led to a questioning of the issues of conceptualization and measurement of the variables involved. While economic variables are easily conceptualized and measured, political institutional factors present some difficulty. Although the aim of a democratic system is to assure the rights and freedoms for the citizens of a polity, for those polities in transition, the processes that drive societies towards or away from higher rights and freedoms for their citizens are more important. This paper attempts to cover the following topics: first, to construct measurable variables of democratization that can be used to determine the level of democratic development in a transition polity; and second, to apply these variables to determine the level and patterns of democratization in Nigeria. Section two highlights significant past research which has measured the levels of democracy across different countries. In section three Nigeriaxi' s political history is summarized to show a polity in continuing political transition. Section four identifies relevant dimensions of democratization in a transition polity. Section five applies the dimensions to derive indices to measure the level of democratization in Nigeria. In section six the pattern of the democratization process in Nigeria is established. Section seven justifies the measures for transition polities and suggests the use to which they may be put.

“A community of democracies in the Americas” – instilling substance into a wondrous phrase

The OAS Charter declared the hemisphere's support for democracy, but Article 18 of the Charter, barring interference of any kind, effectively left the declaration toothless. With the spread of democracy and the end of the Cold War, the hemisphere moved in 1991 to build a network of democratic solidarity. The Inter‐American Democratic Charter, affirmed in Lima on September 11, 2001, represented a major step in the direction of building a “community of democracies in the Americas”. This paper describes the strengths and flaws in the Charter, beginning with its bloated and imprecise definition of democracy. It outlines the threats and challenges to democracy at three different levels of democratic development, and proposes a set of collective responses and a mechanism for judging the state of democracy in the Americas and deciding on the most effective collective response that could really instill substance in the phrase – if accepted by the states of the Americas.