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Richard Rose - Democracy and Its Alternatives: Understanding Post-communist Societies - 9780745619279 - V9780745619279
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Democracy and Its Alternatives: Understanding Post-communist Societies

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Description for Democracy and Its Alternatives: Understanding Post-communist Societies Paperback. The collapse of communism has created the opportunity for democracy to spread from Prague to the Baltic and the Black seas. But the alternatives -- dictatorship or totalitarian rule -- are more in keeping with the traditions of Central and Eastern Europe. Num Pages: 288 pages, 0. BIC Classification: 1DV; JPHV. Category: (P) Professional & Vocational; (UP) Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly; (UU) Undergraduate. Dimension: 228 x 154 x 21. Weight in Grams: 422.
The collapse of communism has created the opportunity for democracy to spread from Prague to the Baltic and the Black seas. But the alternatives - dictatorship or totalitarian rule - are more in keeping with the traditions of Central and Eastern Europe.

Will people put up with new democracies which are associated with inflation, unemployment, crime and corruption? Or will they return to some form of authoritarian regime? Half a century ago, Winston Churchill predicted that people will accept democracy with all its faults - because it is better than anything else that has ever been tried. To find ... Read more

The authors find that there is widespread popular support for democracy compared to communism, dictatorship and military rule. People who have been denied democratic freedoms value new political rights more highly. Economic concerns are second in importance. If democracy fails, it will be because political elites have abused their power, not because the public does not want democracy.

Looking at post-communist Europe makes us think again about democracy in countries where it is taken for granted. The abrupt transition to democracy in post-communist countries is normal; gradual evolution in the Anglo-American style is the exception to the rule. Complaints in Western countries about democracy being less than ideal reflect confidence that there is no alternative. Post-communist citizens do not have this luxury: they must make the most of what they have.

This important book makes an important contribution to current debates about democratization and democratic theory and to the growing literature on the social and political changes taking place in post-communist societies. It will be of particular interest to students and scholars in politics and sociology.

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Product Details

Format
Paperback
Publication date
1998
Publisher
John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Number of pages
288
Condition
New
Number of Pages
288
Place of Publication
Oxford, United Kingdom
ISBN
9780745619279
SKU
V9780745619279
Shipping Time
Usually ships in 7 to 11 working days
Ref
99-1

About Richard Rose
Richard Rose is Director, Centre for the Study of Public Policy, at the University of Strathclyde. William Mishler is Professor of Political Science, at the University of Arizona. Christian Haerpfer is Scientific Director, at the Paul Lazarsfeld Society, Vienna.

Reviews for Democracy and Its Alternatives: Understanding Post-communist Societies
"No challenge is more important to the democratic stability after the transition than building public support for democracy, and no recent study better illuminates the determinants of that support than this engaging, pathbreaking and methodologically innovative book. This is not just a book for specialists in public opinion or post-communist states: it should be read by anyone concerned with the ... Read more

Goodreads reviews for Democracy and Its Alternatives: Understanding Post-communist Societies


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