The aim of this thesis is to understand and explain ‘deviant autocracies’, which are an overlooked and under-researched theme in the democratisation literature. Two major approaches, i.e. structural and process-driven explanations, have dominated the debate on and studies of democratisation. However, over the past few decades, there have been an increasing number of cases that have not made the transition to democracy. These cases, which I refer to as ‘deviant autocracies’, are the primary focus of this thesis. Deviant autocracies are countries that have a high level of economic development but are still governed by non-democratic regimes. Based on a large-N analysis of a dataset from 1960 to 2011, this thesis shows that since the 1970s, increasing numbers of high income countries have not made the transition to democracy. To understand the emergence and consolidation of deviant autocracies, an analytical framework, the neo actor-based approach, is developed. This approach synergies with the lens of existing actor-based approach, elite theory, models of the elite bargaining process and the elite-structure paradigm to examine the interactions of international actors, local elites and state capacity. Based on this analytical framework, two small-N case studies were conducted to examine the identified deviant autocracies, Singapore and Hong Kong, to understand why they have not made the transition to democracy. At the analytical level, this thesis aims to offer an explanation of the non-transition of deviant autocracies based on a middle-range theory that focuses on elite interactions during the transitional period. At the empirical level, it contributes to our empirical knowledge of why Hong Kong and Singapore have not made the transition to democracy despite favourable circumstances and structural factors. By focusing on understanding why these cases remain stable deviant autocracies, I hope to open up a new research agenda for scholars of democratisation.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:731309 |
| Date | January 2016 |
| Creators | Fung, Sai-fu |
| Publisher | University of Warwick |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/94354/ |
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