Social Democracy Research Articles

Daryl Leeworthy. Causes in Common: Welsh Women and the Struggle for Social Democracy Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 2022. Pp. 192. £11.99 (paper).

Daryl Leeworthy. Causes in Common: Welsh Women and the Struggle for Social Democracy Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 2022. Pp. 192. £11.99 (paper).

Taking the Right Lessons from Lenin and the Russian Revolution

Eric Blanc's article, “Taking the Right Lessons from Lenin and the Russian Revolution,” critically examines the enduring influence of Lenin and the Bolshevik Revolution on socialist movements, highlighting the challenges of applying revolutionary strategies in parliamentary contexts. Blanc argues that while Leninist parties have played significant roles in advancing working-class interests, their revolutionary approach has been less effective in advanced capitalist democracies. He emphasizes that the Russian Revolution demonstrated the potential to overthrow capitalism but warns against overgeneralizing its strategies. Blanc critiques the myth of Bolshevik exceptionalism and the rigid organizational discipline often associated with Leninism, proposing instead a more flexible and inclusive approach to building socialist movements. By analyzing the experiences of socialist parties across the Russian Empire, particularly in Finland and Latvia, Blanc illustrates the effectiveness of uniting radical and moderate socialists within broader workers' parties. He argues that a strategy rooted in democratic socialism, adaptable to varying political contexts, offers a more viable path to socialist transformation than the insurrectionary models promoted by early Leninists. Blanc concludes that the key to advancing socialism lies in scaling up working-class and socialist organization through transformative reforms and democratic engagement, rather than adhering to prescriptive revolutionary strategies.

Transdisciplinary and systemic construction of a framework for assessing the sustainability of alternative food networks in Mexico City

ABSTRACT This paper describes and analyzes the process and results of the construction of a framework to assess the sustainability of alternative food networks in Mexico City, using a transdisciplinary and systemic approach. We generated a practical tool with twenty-two evaluation criteria linked to five themes: “care for nature and waste reduction;” “equity and economic viability;” “quality, diversity and local products;” “social equity, transparency and democracy,” and “learning and collaboration.” Our method allowed us to develop common languages and context-appropriate tools for sustainability assessment; identify trade-offs and leverage points; and promote collective learning in alternative food networks.

Democratic Socialism of BP and its Imperatives in Nepal's Politics and Development: A Critical Outlook

This paper explores Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala’s interpretation of democratic socialism and its influence on Nepal’s political and developmental trajectory. Adopting a review-based methodology within a critical framework, the research delves into BP’s principles of democratic socialism, which aim to blend democratic governance with social fairness and economic equity. The study evaluates how these principles were reflected in development policies during the Nepali Congress leadership, noting both positive outcomes and limitations. Additionally, it addresses the substantial obstacles encountered in applying democratic socialism in Nepal, such as political instability, leadership crisis, economic constraints, and societal challenges. In conclusion, the paper assesses the ongoing significance and future prospects of democratic socialism in Nepal, advocating for its effective theorization and application through development strategies centered on the people, improved governance practices, and reinforced institutional structures to promote political morality and sustainable development.

A Study of the Influence of Religious and Nationalist-Based Political Parties in the Compilation of Legal Products Based on Legal Regulations

The ideology of political parties is divided into four categories: parties with Islamic ideology, secular nationalist ideology, religious nationalist ideology, and parties with Christian ideology. The regeneration process will bring out prospective leaders who have been tested in carrying out organisational work or society, and then the emerging decisions will be directed at achieving the goals of the country. These party cadres make a reflection of political parties related to ideology, which is expected to make policies in accordance with ideology, through being regional leaders. The research method used is sociological juridical with a qualitative descriptive analysis approach to obtain the answers to the problems studied, supported by secondary data and other data. When referring to the party principles owned by each political party, in general, political parties are based on three ideologies: Islam, Nationalism and Democratic Socialism. Political parties have an obligation to be able to build their own capacity; therefore, they have sufficient capability to fulfill what has been mandated by law. The fading of ideology has weakened the ties between political parties and their members, which in turn has resulted in the weakness of organisational networks. This condition leads the political parties to face an extreme dilemma. The way to collect party funds is by making policies that benefit certain parties. However, with transactional politics, the policies taken are not pro-people. The importance of the party's stand in policymaking is marked by their close relationship with elected and appointed political officials. For this reason, the party can see its role and influence in public policy using organisational theory. This fact shows that political parties are a more powerful element in the policy-making process than they should be.

Socio, Economic And Infrastructural Impact Of MGNREGA: Lessons From Two Decades Of Public Policy

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) also famously known as the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) is an Indian Laboure’s law which was exceedingly recognised as the social safety net in the post independent era. Since its inception 2005, the scheme has been providing employment to the rural households during vulnerable situations particularly in the lean seasons. The objectives of directive principle of state policy (DPSP) have been fulfilled through this scheme to establish economic and social democracy in the country. Over the years, the cumulative total exceeds 50 billion persondays since the program's inception. The present paper attempts analyse the MGNREGA’s impact on the different sectors

Welfare regimes of European countries and their development in the context of membership in the European Union

Welfare regimes represent potential approaches to the implementation of redistributive policies worldwide. In European countries, several significant regimes have been identified, including the Conservative, Southern, Social Democratic, Liberal model, the Post-Communist European model, and the Model of the Former USSR. The present study focused on identifying the welfare regimes of EU members and candidate countries and examining whether shifts between these regimes occur over time. The k-means method was employed, generating a different number of clusters for two observed periods: 2013 and 2022 on the sample of 27 member and 4 candidate countries and 2023 on the sample of 27 member countries of EU. The input variables consisted of redistributive indicators focusing on income inequality and the risk of poverty. The analysis results confirmed that countries transitioned between regimes in all observed periods. In the mixed group of member and candidate countries, the number of clusters decreased from five to two. For member countries in 2023, the number of clusters was three, mainly due to the worsening risk of poverty in some countries. Notably, none of the clusters represented a pure form of the originally defined welfare regimes. A significant finding of the study was that all observed EU candidate countries have shifted towards the redistributive policies of EU member states. This shift was noted towards regimes of geographically proximate countries. Within the member countries, however, the adopted measures have also lead to the negative phenomenon of mutual distancing of social regimes.

From Manichaeism to Politics: an Ideological Instrumentalization of Mykhailo Drahomanov’s Social Anthropology by the Ukrainian Leftists

In the history of Ukrainian sociology, the legacy of Mykhailo Drahomanov (1841-1895) is primarily analyzed in terms of his socio-political writings or early methodological ones. However, when considering Drahomanov's long-term and internationally recognized contribution to social sciences and humanities, it is his works at the intersection of folklore studies and social anthropology that are much less often in the focus of sociologists' attention. An important component of these works was Drahomanov's prolonged interest in dualistic heresies and the views on social reality as divided between truth and falsehood, transmitted by the. This interest, which guided the scholar’s research interests for twenty years, had far-reaching consequences for the politicization of the Ukrainian national movement at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. The author argues that Drahomanov's folklore and social-anthropological writings, which attracted the attention of researchers of Gnosticism and dualism like C.-G. Jung, as well as contemporary anthropologists, led him to the conviction that the traditional Ukrainian folk worldview tends towards a dualistic, Bogomil-Manichaean, origin-based perspective on the world. He used this conviction for political purposes, and the younger generation of activists of the Ukrainian national movement, who gave rise to radicals, socialist revolutionaries, and social democrats, widely exploited this socio-anthropological discovery for their own political agitation. The conclusions of the study lay the groundwork for further movement in several possible directions: research of the left-wing press to identify specific strategies for the application of the dualistic myth in propaganda, providing a more general historical-cultural context for contemporary studies of populism in Ukraine, as well as a general revaluation of different components in Drahomanov's legacy in the contemporary history of Ukrainian sociology.

The concept of the Republic of the Working People: the history of its emergence, scientific-theoretical and political capacity

Revolutionary era 1917–1920 became a period of revival of the Ukrainian nation. One of the most important factors in this process was the implementation of projects to create their own national statehood. The intellectual forces of the nation put forward and, taking into account the circumstances, tried to theoretically substantiate several different models of the state structure of the revived Ukraine. Revolutionary practice and the development of international relations have not confirmed the rationalism and expediency of the initial calculations of implementing decentralization and democratization of the former Russian Empire, in which Ukraine would have acquired the status of broad national-territorial autonomy. From the beginning of 1918, the leaders of the Ukrainian Revolution took a course towards creating an independent, independent, sovereign state. However, the Austro-German occupation interrupted the process of creating a popular political and legal model of Ukraine. The liquidation of the occupation-hetman regime that followed by the end of the year, the return of society to the path of revolutionary steps, and the proclamation of the revival of the Ukrainian People’s Republic determined the promotion and justification of plans for its further development in the changed conditions. The head of the UPR Directory, Social Democrat V. Vinnychenko, took on this task. He proposed the concept of creating a Republic of the Working People, according to which only the labor elements of society would be participants in the political process — peasants, workers, employees, intelligentsia, who would not resort to the exploitation of other people’s labor. The remaining strata — entrepreneurs, bankers, large landowners - were excluded from participation in political life. To implement the plan, it was planned to create labor councils that would differ from the existing Councils of Workers’, Soldiers’ and Peasants’ Deputies in the equality of representation and participation in their functioning of all citizens constituting the creative (labor) majority of the nation. In this case, V. Vinnychenko took advantage of the ideas of the left elements of the Ukrainian political parties that were born in the crucible of the revolution and were already actively publicly pulsating, included in the USDRP, UPSR, etc., who sought to find a way to organically combine national interests and aspirations with the theoretical tenets of Marxism, the triumph of which was seen in the then achievements of the socialist revolution. The concept of the Republic of the Working People turned out to be attractive, rational, capable of resolving in the future difficult issues of relations with Soviet Russia and the Entente countries. It was approved by the leading national political parties and the Labor Congress of Ukraine (January 23–28, 1919). However, the implementation of the agreed constructive course turned out to be impossible due to sharply complicated international conditions (armed interventions), the escalation of the Civil War and contradictions within the Ukrainian political leadership. The concept of the Republic of the Working People remained an interesting, meaningful, vibrant fruit and monument of the intellectual creativity of patriotic political forces that fought for a progressive, civilized path of development of the Ukrainian nation. Key words: Ukrainian revolution, UNR, Directory, V. Vynnychenko, Republic of the Labor People, Labor Councils, Labor Congress.

Managing the Discontent of the Losers Redux: A Future of Authoritarian Neoliberalism or Social Capitalism?

ABSTRACT: Neoliberalism eviscerated the value-sharing ethos of the postwar golden age (1945–1973), seeking to maintain social cohesion in civil society by "managing the discontent of the losers": reconciling working households to the realities of the neoliberal labor market by means of coercion, distraction, and debt accumulation (the last serving to limit the growth of consumption inequality in the face of burgeoning income inequality). The global financial crisis undermined the process of household debt accumulation, creating a crisis of neoliberal accumulation. Key to the institutional renewal required to address this crisis is managing the discontent of the losers inherited from the neoliberal era. One possibility is authoritarian neoliberalism, which involves amplification of the "coerce and distract" elements inherited from the previous regime. The alternative is social capitalism: a renewal of social democracy that eliminates the discontent of the losers and so reduces both the need and desire for illiberalism.

SINGAPORE: A SOCIAL DEMOCRACY FOR THE 21ST CENTURY?

One of the key challenges that globalization poses to the project of social democracy is that, by allowing capital to move production anywhere that suits its interests, the ability of labor to organise in opposition to capital is threatened, as capital can simply move production to other places as soon as labor starts making uncomfortable demands. In this article, I argue that Singapore is best understood as a social democracy adapted to the conditions of globalization. As such, Singapore's form of social democracy looks very different from most traditional/Western social democracies. Nevertheless, I argue, Singapore's form of social democracy is based on the same underlying principle of class compromise as traditional social democracy, only applied to very different circumstances. To make this argument, I begin by outlining what I mean by the term “social democracy”, and why we should care about whether Singapore fits that label. I then describe the nature of Singapore's class compromise, as well as its underlying social contract, which I argue has a distinctly corporate character — one that is based on getting the citizens to invest as shareholders in the state-as-a-corporation, rather than on accepting high taxes in exchange for a generous public sector in which goods and services are offered in a “de-commodified” form. Lastly, I address the question of why it makes sense to view Singapore as a social democracy, given that the country is not very “socialistic”, nor very “democratic”.

Competing narratives in the Swedish 1929 deposit insurance-debate

In early April 1929, eight Swedish savings banks were declared insolvent and closed due to economic crimes committed by some of their founders. After the crash, the Swedish parliament entered into a month-long debate over whether the state should cover some, all, or none of the losses of the 88,000 depositors of the failed banks. The two main parties, the Right Party, in government, and the Social Democrats, the largest party in parliament, developed competing narratives about the causes of the crash, the motives for state intervention, which depositors should be helped, and with how much public money. This paper provides the first account and analysis of this political debate, which ended with a decision for the state to provide an informal, partial, one-time deposit guarantee. The case is unique in Swedish banking history and demonstrates the importance of analysing policy makers’ narratives to understand state intervention in banking crises.

Speaking Truth to a Foreign Power: Anti-Bolshevism and Truth in the Early Cold War, 1945–53

Analysis of the periodical press allows historians to further their understanding of the turn against the Soviet Union in the West after the Second World War, and delineate how anti-Bolshevism was constructed to repudiate wartime partnership between 1941 and 1945. Right-wing periodicals such as Truth were active proponents of opposition towards Communism in early Cold War Britain, articulating concerns about the perversion of democratic values and the threat to liberal societies. The nature of Truth's anti-Bolshevism was reactionary but also reflective, highlighting unease on the Right around the postwar consensus, Labour's domestic programme of state intervention in the planning and management of economic activity, and the general eclipse in Britain's international standing. Truth's attempts to conflate the Communist threat with Labour's democratic socialism also frame the paper as an embryonic staging point in a wider chronology of neo-liberal challenges to the postwar political order. Anti-Bolshevism was therefore multifaceted and could speak to many different constituencies and agendas beyond a commentary on the actual basis of Soviet rule, Communist subversion, and the polarization of postwar Europe.

A path forward: social democratic strategies and responses to far-right populist challenges

ABSTRACT Social Democratic parties have been in crisis across Europe in recent decades. The once dominant party family has struggled to adapt to the structural challenges of post-industrialization, changes in its core constituency, and increased political competition from alternative parties. This article analyzes the welfare chauvinist shift embraced by some Social Democratic parties to assess its viability as an electoral strategy in response to this changing political landscape and far-right party challenges. The article analyzes individual-level data from 26 European countries from successive European Voter Survey rounds for 2014 and 2019. This article tests the relationship between voter positions on government intervention, redistribution, and immigration and support for Social Democratic parties. Issue salience data is also examined to identify the importance granted by the public to different concerns over time. Despite claims that welfare chauvinist approaches represent a path forward for Social Democrats, this research finds that this strategy is not a broad winning formula. Rather there are incentives for Social Democrats to return to their egalitarian and progressive roots on key socioeconomic and sociocultural issues.

Social Policy, Development and Democracy in Africa: Reconnoitering Thandika Mkandawire’s Philosophy

Social Policy, Development and Democracy in Africa: Reconnoitering Thandika Mkandawire’s Philosophy

Social Democracy As Conceived by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar under Indian Constitution

Social Democracy As Conceived by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar under Indian Constitution

French Social Democracy in Turmoil

AbstractFor decades, the Parti socialiste (PS) was the major party of the French left. It elected a president three times and was a ruling party on several occasions between 1981 and 2017, at which point it suffered crushing defeats in the 2017 presidential and legislative elections. Since then, the PS has been between a rock and a hard place: on the left, it is dominated by Jean‐Luc Mélenchon's La France Insoumise (LFI, Unbowed France) and on the right by Macron's Renaissance party. The success of both parties has a lot to do with the PS's own setbacks. Emmanuel Macron's election in 2017 was rendered possible by internal conflicts in the PS during François Hollande's term. Those who thought that Benoît Hamon's candidacy was too left‐wing that year, or those who now regard an alliance with Mélenchon as ‘illegitimate’, found refuge in Macron's party. This article aims to explain the reasons for the PS's dramatic setbacks and to explore its prospects for recovery.

Between the democratization of housing and the neoliberal responsibilization of citizens: The proliferation of co-housing in Viennese city planning

In contemporary city planning, self-organized collaborative forms of housing are flourishing. However, in the literature, the increasing incorporation of citizens in housing and planning has been interpreted in very different ways. The research on urban planning has understood the proliferation of co-housing groups as indicating changing participatory demands of citizens on one hand, and as an effort to organize social change on an everyday level on the other. In contrast, critical social researchers have interpreted the rise of collaborative housing not as a democratization, but as a shift of urban governance towards the responsibilization of citizens. In this article, we use these two theoretical perspectives for making sense of the political values that are present in the contemporary proliferation of co-housing groups in Viennese urban planning. The empirical base of our endeavor is a series of qualitative interviews with different stakeholders (city planners, administrators, architects, developers, and neighbors) and members of co-housing groups in the city development area Wildgarten in the South of the city. We conclude that in the Wildgarten, the self-empowerment of citizens goes hand-in-hand with an increasing top-down steering by a neoliberal entrepreneurial city. Furthermore, we found that the co-housing groups tend to willingly accept the hierarchy between planning bodies and themselves, which contradicts the political marketing strategies of social transformation and democratization attached to Wildgarten. Simultaneously, possibly as a consequence from top-down citizen responsibilization, our findings show that co-housing groups often focus more on a democratized group interior than on transforming society at large.

The Education Myth—How Human Capital Trumped Social Democracy by Jon Shelton

The Education Myth—How Human Capital Trumped Social Democracy by <i>Jon Shelton</i>

Apuntes para una historia intelectual de la Fundación Friedrich Ebert en América Latina

The promotion of democracy was from its origins one of the banners of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES), ideologically linked to the German Social Democratic Party (SPD) and which disembarked in Latin America in the 1960s. It is this transnationalization that we are interested in exploring from the perspective of intellectual history (Altamirano, 2005, Palti, 2004-2005), breaking with a unidirectional idea of transfers and circulations, in order to understand the exchange and connections between regions, ideas and people. The article first focuses on explaining the particularity of the German Political Foundations and the functioning of the FES in Latin America and then goes on to explore three intellectual projects of the Foundation, such as the Latin American Institutes for Social Science Research (ILDIS), the Center for Democratic Studies of Latin America (CEDAL) and the New Society Journal (NUSO). Based on the premise that ideas are important insofar as they conveyed meanings and representations in the region, this paper seeks to map the little known but strong presence of the FES in Latin America during the Cold War years. And how it became an important platform capable of connecting people, ideas and regions. In this framework, the FES, and this is our bet, can be thought of as an intellectual network that, while participating in and promoting debates on development, dependence, anti-imperialism, revolution and democracy, was building a space for indigenous social democracy.