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Cover image of Transitions from Authoritarian Rule
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Transitions from Authoritarian Rule

Tentative Conclusions about Uncertain Democracies

Guillermo O’Donnell and Philippe C. Schmitter
with a new foreword by Cynthia J. Arnson and Abraham F. Lowenthal

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The foundational text for democratization studies for over 25 years.

Political science scholars consider the four-volume work Transitions from Authoritarian Rule to be a foundational text for studying the process of democratization, specifically in those cases where an authoritarian regime is giving way to some form of democratic government. The most important of the four books is without a doubt the fourth volume, Tentative Conclusions about Uncertain Democracies, also known as "the little green book."

Transitions from Authoritarian Rule was the first book in any language to systematically...

The foundational text for democratization studies for over 25 years.

Political science scholars consider the four-volume work Transitions from Authoritarian Rule to be a foundational text for studying the process of democratization, specifically in those cases where an authoritarian regime is giving way to some form of democratic government. The most important of the four books is without a doubt the fourth volume, Tentative Conclusions about Uncertain Democracies, also known as "the little green book."

Transitions from Authoritarian Rule was the first book in any language to systematically compare the process of transition from authoritarianism across a broad range of countries. Political democracy is not the only possible outcome. Guillermo O’Donnell, Philippe C. Schmitter, and Laurence Whitehead emphasize that it's not the revolution but the transition that is critical to the growth of a democratic state. This ground-breaking insight remains highly relevant as the ramifications of the Arab Spring continue to play out.

This reissue features a new foreword by Cynthia J. Arnson, director of the Latin American Program at the Woodow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and Abraham F. Lowenthal, founding director of the Latin American Program, who wrote the original volume's foreword.

Reviews

Reviews

The essays appearing in the collection Transitions from Authoritarian Rule... will serve as reference points for students of redemocratization for years to come. Other essays will serve as classic case studies... The volumes deserve to be read time and again.

About

Book Details

Publication Date
Status
Available
Trim Size
6.125
x
9.25
Pages
120
ISBN
9781421410135
Table of Contents

Foreword by Cynthia J. Arnson and Abraham F. Lowenthal
Foreword to the 1986 edition by Abraham F. Lowenthal
Preface
Chapter 1. Introducing Uncertainty
Chapter 2. Defining Some Concepts (and Exposing Some

Foreword by Cynthia J. Arnson and Abraham F. Lowenthal
Foreword to the 1986 edition by Abraham F. Lowenthal
Preface
Chapter 1. Introducing Uncertainty
Chapter 2. Defining Some Concepts (and Exposing Some Assumptions)
Chapter 3. Opening (and Undermining) Authoritarian Regimes
Chapter 4. Negotiating (and Renegotiating) Pacts
Chapter 5. Resurrecting Civil Society (and Restructuring Public Space)
Chapter 6. Convoking Elections (and Provoking Parties)
Chapter 7. Concluding (but Not Capitulating) with a Metaphor
Notes
Index

Author Bios
Guillermo O’Donnell
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Guillermo O’Donnell

Guillermo O'Donnell was a prominent Argentine political scientist who served as president of the International Political Science Association (IPSA) from 1988 to 1991, and was vice-president of the American Political Science Association (APSA) from 1999–2000.
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Philippe C. Schmitter

Philippe C. Schmitter is an Emeritus Professor of the Department of Political and Social Sciences at the European University Institute.
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Laurence Whitehead

Laurence Whitehead is a senior research fellow at Nuffield College, Oxford University. He is the author of Democratization: Theory and Experience.
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Cynthia J. Arnson

Cynthia Arnson is Deputy Director of the Latin American Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.
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Abraham F. Lowenthal

Abraham F. Lowenthal is professor emeritus of the University of Southern California, president emeritus of the Pacific Council on International Policy, a nonresident senior fellow of the Brookings Institution, and an adjunct professor at Brown University. He was founding director of both the Inter-American Dialogue and the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Latin American Program.