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58702. A Sign of the Times: Television and Electoral Politics in Argentina, 1983-1989
- Author:
- Silvio Waisbord
- Publication Date:
- 01-1993
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- This paper examines the use of television as a political campaign tool in the 1983-1989 elections in Argentina. Campaigns were conducted against the background of a national television system that was subject to both commercial and political pressures. Initially, politicians' lack of experience in exploiting the medium led to a scramble for air time right before the election. Within a few years, television became the dominant form of political communication. Political candidates soon developed more sophisticated approaches to television campaigning, but failed to reach a deeper understanding of how television could facilitate the interaction between political parties and citizens in a democracy.
- Topic:
- Democratization, Elections, Media, Political Parties, and Political Behavior
- Political Geography:
- Argentina and South America
58703. Economic Policy Elites and Democratic Consolidation
- Author:
- Verónica Montecinos
- Publication Date:
- 05-1993
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- After being the last to join the wave of democratic transitions in the 1980s, Chile is posing intriguing questions for those interested in understanding the present phase of democratic consolidation, not least because of the country's economic accomplishments. This paper suggests that the future of Chile's distinctive transition may be nearer the democratic pole than other "hybrid" democratic-authoritarian regimes that emerged in Latin America in the past decade. The performance of technocratic roles may result in less authoritarian styles of policy-making, due to a unique pattern of interaction between economic and political elites, aided by favorable economic conditions and the legacy of Chile's democratic traditions.
- Topic:
- Development, Democracy, Economic Growth, and Elites
- Political Geography:
- South America and Chile
58704. On the State, Democratization, and Some Conceptual Problems (A Latin American View with Glances at Some Post-Communist Countries)
- Author:
- Guillermo O'Donnell
- Publication Date:
- 04-1993
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- The article argues that for proper understanding of many processes of democratization, current conceptions of the state must be revised, especially with reference to its legal dimension. On this basis several contrasts are drawn between representative, consolidated democracies and the democratic (i.e., polyarchical) forms that are emerging in most newly democratized countries, East and South. From this perspective, various phenomena not presently theorized (except as deviations from a presumed modal pattern of democratization) are discussed. Concepts such as delegative democracy, low intensity citizenship, and a state that combines strong democratic and authoritarian features are introduced for the purpose of that discussion.
- Topic:
- Democratization, Authoritarianism, State, and Post-Communism
- Political Geography:
- Latin America
58705. The Rational Basis of Wage Determination in Regimes of High Inflation
- Author:
- Edward J. Amadeo
- Publication Date:
- 05-1993
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- In this paper we address the logic of wage determination in a regime of high and accelerating inflation, and the rational basis of 'overindexation' of wages. We discuss the incentives and costs of wage overindexation to the workers, and the determination of the 'optimal' level of wage adjustment. We argue that the degree of overindexation is likely to increase as negotiations become more centralized at the industry level. However, at near-national levels of wage negotiation, the incentives to overindex become much smaller. We also argue that increasing uncertainty over the future path of inflation tends to increase the degree of indexation of wages.
- Topic:
- Development, Labor Issues, Economic Growth, Inflation, and Wages
- Political Geography:
- South America
58706. Contesting Authenticity: Battles over the Representation of History in Morelos, Mexico
- Author:
- JoAnn Martin
- Publication Date:
- 06-1993
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- The Mexican state's use of revolutionary history to invoke nationalistic sentiments nurtures a lively tradition of storytelling. Ironically, Buena Vista's storytellers criticize the inauthenticity of official representations of the past even as they draw on the images and ideals of 'official' history to weave their own tales. This paper explores the power of storytelling to create an aura of authenticity in a setting where the boundary between true and false, pure and impure, is contested.
- Topic:
- Development, History, Representation, and Storytelling
- Political Geography:
- Latin America, North America, and Mexico
58707. Modernization and Postmodernization: Theoretical Comments on India
- Author:
- Fred Dallmayr
- Publication Date:
- 06-1993
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- This paper offers a discussion of development theory, with special attention to its relevance in the context of India. Three successive models of development are distinguished in the paper: empirical (structural-functional) development theory; philosophical modernization theory (deriving from Enlightenment teachings); and 'postmodernization' theory, emphasizing cultural resistance to global standardization. In its first section, the paper reviews (once again) the developmental model articulated during the postwar years by social scientists under the aegis of the SSRC. As the author shows, this model gave rise to numerous challenges and rejoinders on both theoretical and political grounds, rejoinders that often, however, bypassed one of the model's central features: its narrowly empiricist outlook. It was chiefly this feature that motivated a new wave of (postempiricist) theorizing which-under the banners of phenomenology, hermeneutics, and critical theory-raised the developmental debate to a philosophical and quasi-transcendental level. This move intensified existing controversies by making modernization and modernity itself central topics of critical inquiry, thus triggering a confrontation between defenders of modernity and of 'postmodernity.' Throughout the presentation, room is given to arguments of Indian philosophers and social theorists, to counteract the conceit of a Western monopoly of the development debate. This focus on Indian thinkers forms the heart of the paper's concluding section which illustrates a loosely postmodern view of development by referring to a strand of argumentation stretching from Gandhi to Ashis Nandy and others.
- Topic:
- Development, Economic Growth, and Modernization
- Political Geography:
- South Asia and India
58708. The State, Markets, and Development: A Rapporteurs' Report
- Author:
- Enrique Dussel Peters and Matthew A. Verghis
- Publication Date:
- 06-1993
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- This report summarizes the papers and discussions from a conference held at the Kellogg Institute on "The State, Markets and Development." The first section addresses theoretical issues while the second presents the case studies discussed at the conference.
- Topic:
- Development, Markets, Economic Growth, and State
- Political Geography:
- Asia, South America, Central America, and Caribbean
58709. Venezuela: The Life and Times of the Party System
- Author:
- Miriam Kornblith and Daniel H. Levine
- Publication Date:
- 06-1993
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- Political parties have been at the center of modern Venezuelan democracy from the beginning. Strong, highly disciplined, and nationally organized parties have dominated political organization and action in the modern period. Parties have penetrated and controlled organized social life and effectively monopolized resources and channels of political action. Beginning in the 1980s, the political parties and the party system as a whole have experienced mounting criticism and challenge. In a time of growing economic, social, and political crisis, efforts have nonetheless been made to loosen national control and open new channels for citizen participation with the aim of 'democratizing Venezuelan democracy.' The ability of the parties to implement these reforms, and to reform themselves in the process, is central to the survival of effective democracy in Venezuela.
- Topic:
- Democratization, Governance, Economic Growth, and Political Parties
- Political Geography:
- South America and Venezuela
58710. Privatization: The Role of Domestic Business
- Author:
- Ernst Bartell
- Publication Date:
- 06-1993
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- A close examination of the links between privatization programs and domestic business, both in theory and in practice, suggests that the relationships are not nearly so vigorous, uniform, or predictable as conventional promotional arguments imply. It will be argued here that the nature of the relationships between privatization programs and the behavior of domestic business depends upon the goals, methods, and financing of specific national privatization programs as well as on the economic and social characteristics of the private sector in a given country and its macro- and microeconomic policy regime. Privatization programs in themselves are likely to be a secondary and transitory influence on the aggregate behavior of national business with somewhat differing effects and responses within individual sectors of those economies with relatively diverse domestic business communities. As a result, privatization programs are likely to be less important to the incorporation of domestic business into a market-driven development process than other components of economic restructuring and liberalization. These conclusions will be examined briefly in light of the historical record of privatization in Chile, Argentina, Mexico, and Brazil and of interview data with business leaders in Brazil and Chile before and after the installation of their current democratic governments.
- Topic:
- Development, Privatization, Business, and Economic Growth
- Political Geography:
- Brazil, Argentina, South America, Central America, Caribbean, Mexico, and Chile