New Study: Does economic growth really promote democracy?

[Karmadillo]

Foreign Affairs magazine, in a study of about 150 nations covering a period from 1970 to 1999, concludes it's not necessarily so.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/08/16/news/edmesquita.php

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Economic growth has traditionally been thought to promote democratization by making strategic coordination easier, as communications technology improves, news media become more diverse and the citizenry more educated. But in recent years some savvy regimes have learned how to cut the cord between growth and strategic coordination, allowing the former without having to worry about the latter.

Their trick is to ration carefully the subset of public goods that facilitate political coordination, while investing in others that are essential to economic growth. The "coordination goods" that they need to worry about consist of things such as political and civil rights, press freedom and access to higher education. "Standard public goods" include public transportation, primary and secondary education, and public health; all of which contribute to economic growth and pose relatively little threat to the regime.

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What should Western governments make of these findings? First, they should recognize that promoting economic growth is not nearly as effective a way to promote democracy as was once believed. By limiting coordination goods, oppressive incumbents can have it all: a contented constituency of rich elites who benefit from economic growth; plenty of resources to cope with economic and political shocks; and a weak, dispirited political opposition.

Second, the World Bank and other donor organizations should broaden the set of conditions that they attach to loans to developing states, and start requiring that recipients increase basic civil liberties, political rights and other coordination goods. This does not mean placing less emphasis on economic growth or the provision of standard public goods. Both kinds of goods are necessary conditions for the realization of real democracy.

The third lesson concerns the Middle East. It is tempting to view the elections in Iraq, Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon and the subsequent elections, the announcement that local elections will be held in Saudi Arabia, and the promise of more competitive elections in Egypt as signaling a new democratic dawn in the region. But this is unrealistic.

more...

[izzybeans]

1. That's funny I always though economic growth brought imperialism

but I guess I wasn't figuring in gdp.:sarcasm:

I guess we can chalk that up as another "no duh" hypotheses.

[DBoon]

2. So this is why the right is always attacking university education

and why state-funded colleges are being defunded.

I think the strategy of investing in standard public goods while starving coordination goods is not just restricted to oppressive regimes in the developing world

On edit:

Note the following --

Policy makers seriously interested in measuring democratic progress in the region should focus on the availability of coordination goods: on the number and variety of truly independent media outlets, for example, or on how easy (and safe) it is to hold a large antigovernment demonstration

!!!!

[Mairead]

3. Not exactly a huge news-flash, is it. (nt)