POLSCI 140 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Social Complexity, Democracy Promotion, Critical Role
26 Oct 2017
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Document Summary
Structural factors are not enough to cause revolution. It will also make it harder to discern how fragile the regime was prior to the revolution. Structural changes and stagnation lowered east european revolutionary thresholds. Gorbachev"s statement that he would not use force lowered the costs. Mass protests in tunisia after mohamed bouazizi self-immolated to protest police. Protest spread to egypt, libya, syria, yemen, and bahrain. Information, twitter revolution , played a critical role in allowing for coordination. Successful revolutions and regime change did not lead to democratic consolidation. One of the most important and debated questions in comparative politics. Important because democracy is associated with other consequences, such as. Debated because it is difficult to demonstrate key aspects of the relationship, such as development, better governance, internal and external stability. Policy implications: is democracy promotion worth it? what should nation building . Development often measured by gdp per capita, but encompasses: Social complexity and need for compliance instead of coercion.
