The Third Wave of Democratization
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The Third Wave of Democratization is a term coined by Samuel P. Huntington to describe the global trend that has seen more than 60 countries experience democratic transitions since 1974.
Contents |
[edit] Transition
[edit] Causes
Five main causative factors are outlined for the Third Wave:
- Loss of legitimacy of authoritarian regimes
- Economic change
- Catholic church
- Snowball effect
- External factors
[edit] Processes
- Transformation - A top-down (elite-controlled) change from within government.
- Transplacement - Negotiated reform of regime and government.
- Replacement - Regime breakdown (ruptura) and the collapse of authoritarianism.
[edit] Characteristics
- Uncertainty
- Internal factors paramount - Especially important is role of elites and the ensuing split in the regime.
[edit] Consolidation
[edit] Problems
- Transitional problems (institution-building)
- Contextual problems.
- Systemic problems (performance of new regime)
Consolidation after "two-turnover test" (Huntington 1991)
[edit] Elites
Huntington believed in the importance of individual agents in the transition to democracy: “democracies are created not by causes but by causers” (Huntington 1991:107). To Huntington the transition was based on elite choice, perception, beliefs and actions, while subsequent consolidation was based on elite pacts and consensus.
[edit] Criticisms
[edit] Separation of political analysis from socio-economic environment
- Poverty, social exclusion and inequality
- Accusations of democracy without citizenship/ of disempowerment
- Role of IFIs
[edit] Relationship between structure and agent, institutions and process
[edit] Dichotomy between authoritarianism and democracy
- Enclaves of authoritarian power?
[edit] Ideological Bias
- Ethnocentric - "the United States is the premier democratic country of the modern world" and the “major promoter of democratization” (Huntington 1991:30 & 6)
- Endorsement of limited model of market democracy
- Lack of ecological validity in theory, as ethnocentrism means interpretation of third world is bias also.
[edit] Lack of analysis of external factors
General view - Contributory but insufficient condition for democratization US - “the major promoter of democratization” (Huntington 1991:6) or “much more effective at destabilizing democracies than at stabilizing popularly elected rulers” (Borón 1995:213) iii
