Principles of Comparative Politics - International Student Edition

William Roberts Clark is head of the Department of Political Science at Texas A&M University and a fellow at the Institute for the Study of Religion at Baylor University. He is the author of Capitalism, Not Globalism, and his articles have appeared in American Political Science Review, Comparative Political Studies, Political Analysis, and European Union Politics, among other journals. He has been teaching at a wide variety of public and private schools (William Paterson College, Rutgers University, Georgia Tech, Princeton, New York University, and the University of Michigan) for more than three decades. Matt Golder was previously assistant professor of political science at Florida State University. He is the author of articles which have appeared in the American Journal of Political Science, British Journal of Political Science, Comparative Political Studies, Electoral Studies, and Political Analysis among other journals. He has taught classes on comparative politics, advanced industrialized democracies, quantitative methods, and European politics at the University of Iowa, Florida State University, and the University of Essex. Sona Nadenichek Golder was previously assistant professor of political science at Florida State University. She is the author of The Logic of Pre-Electoral Coalition Formation, and has published articles in the British Journal of Political Science, Electoral Studies, and European Union Politics. She teaches courses on European politics, democracies and dictatorships, comparative institutions, game theory, and comparative politics at Florida State University and was a Mentor-in-Residence for the 2007 Empirical Implications of Theoretical Models Summer Program at UCLA .

• 1. IntroductionPolitical IdeologyOverview of the Book2. What Is Science?What Is Science?The Scientific MethodAn Introduction to LogicMyths about ScienceConclusion3. What Is Politics?The Exit, Voice, and Loyalty GameSolving the Exit, Voice, and Loyalty GameEvaluating the Exit, Voice, and Loyalty GameConclusionPreparation for the Problems4. The Origins of the Modern StateWhat Is the State?The Social Contract View of the StateThe Predatory View of the StateConclusionPreparation for the Problems5. Democracy and Dictatorship: Conceptualization and MeasurementEarly Democracy versus Modern DemocracyClassifying Democracies and DictatorshipsConclusion6. The Economic Determinants of Democracy and DictatorshipA Brief Overview of Modernization TheoryIncome and DemocracyModernization Theory and DemocracyThe Conditionality of Modernization TheoryInequality and DemocracyConclusion7. The Cultural Determinants of Democracy and DictatorshipClassical Cultural Arguments: Mill and MontesquieuDoes Democracy Require a Civic Culture?Are Some Religions Incompatible with Democracy?Theorizing about CultureConclusion8. Democratic TransitionsBottom-Up Transitions to DemocracyTop-Down Transitions to DemocracyConclusionPreparation for Problems Dealing with Incomplete Information Games9. Varieties of DictatorshipA Common Typology of Authoritarian RegimesThe Two Fundamental Problems of Authoritarian RuleSelectorate TheoryConclusion10. Problems with Group Decision MakingProblems with Group Decision MakingArrow’s TheoremConclusion11. Parliamentary, Presidential, and Semi-Presidential DemocraciesClassifying DemocraciesGovernments in Parliamentary DemocraciesGovernments in Presidential DemocraciesGovernments in Semi-Presidential DemocraciesA Unifying Framework: Principal-Agent and Delegation ProblemsConclusion12. Elections and Electoral SystemsElections and Electoral IntegrityElectoral SystemsLegislative Electoral System ChoiceConclusion13. Parties, Party Systems, and Party CompetitionPolitical Parties: What Are They, and What Do They Do?Party SystemsTypes of Political PartiesThe Number of Political PartiesParty CompetitionConclusion14. Institutional Veto PlayersFederalismBicameralismConstitutionalismVeto PlayersConclusion15. Consequences of Democratic InstitutionsMajoritarian or Consensus Democracy?The Effect of Political Institutions on Fiscal PolicyElectoral Laws, Federalism, and Ethnic ConflictPresidentialism and Democratic SurvivalConclusion

This book provides an excellent introduction to the science of comparative politics. The authors have expertly crafted a thematic arrangement of topics that provides students with a cutting-edge introduction to the state of our discipline. The book really has few peers in this regard.