Thesis (M.A.)--Eastern Illinois University, 1990. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 69-73).

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Innsbruck, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 296-321).

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Innsbruck, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 296-321).

This study is about the vicissitudes of democratisation in the context of neo-patrimonialism. It examines the aborted transition to democracy in Nigeria (1985--1993) by critically adopting the arguments proffered in the 'new institutionalism' literature. The key insight of the 'new institutionalism' approaches is that they neither privilege structures nor human agency. Instead they seek to explicate how pre-existing institutions and rules shape the choices of political actors. To this end, the 'new institutionalism' approaches lend themselves to a more comprehensive understanding of the processes of regime change. / The annulment of 1993, and the country's continuous failure to establish a viable democratic regime, can be attributed to the underlying political process in Nigeria, which puts an emphasis on capturing power for personal and sectional gains. Given this situation, political competition becomes a struggle of the survival of the fittest between those with power and those without. Thus, this study contends that the constitutive rules of a polity, while not determining the outcome of regime transitions, shapes actors' behavior towards specific goals and interests. The breakdown of the Babangida-initiated transition programme is an interesting example of this dynamic. The challenge to regime transitions therefore is understanding how inherited rules and institutions structure the political actors' choices. To meet this challenge an integrative approach is required for the study of regime transitions.

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