European Democracies

by Steiner, Jurg; Crepaz, Markus

• ISBN13: 9780321077738
• ISBN10: 0321077733
• Edition: 5th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-01-01
• Publisher: Longman

Summary

With his new co-author, Markus Crepaz, Jurg Steiner has brought this best-selling text completely up-to-date. Using a comparative approach, the text crosses national and political boundaries in its coverage of Europe. Starting with detailed coverage of the basic differences between Europe and the United States in a new introductory chapter, the revision puts Europe in a global perspective and no longer divides its coverage between Western and Eastern Europe: Europe is now treated as a single entity.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Becoming Modern in Europe and America: Different History, Different Politics	1	(15)
How Do We Know That Europe Is Different?	1	(6)
Explaining Differences: The Impact of History, Geography, and Culture	7	(5)
Structure of the Book	12	(4)
Political Parties	16	(33)
Political Parties---The ``Children of Democracy''	16	(1)
Functions of Political Parties	17	(1)
Differences Between Political Parties and Interest Groups	18	(1)
Socialists	19	(6)
Liberals	25	(2)
Conservatives	27	(4)
Christian Democrats	31	(1)
New Radical Right	31	(5)
Greens	36	(3)
Regional Parties	39	(2)
A Multidimensional Political Space	41	(3)
Membership in Political Parties	44	(1)
Stability and Change of Parties and Party Systems	45	(4)
Parliamentary Election Systems	49	(29)
Winner-Take-All: Great Britain	50	(5)
Party List Proportional Representation: The Netherlands	55	(2)
Personalized Proportional Representation: Switzerland, Ireland, and Germany	57	(6)
Switzerland	57	(2)
Ireland	59	(2)
Germany	61	(2)
Changing the Electoral System: France and Italy	63	(13)
France	63	(5)
Italy	68	(8)
Voter Turnout	76	(2)
Cabinet Formation and Heads of State	78	(33)
Single-Party Majority Cabinets	80	(6)
How Are Cabinet Decisions Usually Made in Great Britain?	83	(3)
Minimal-Winning Cabinets	86	(4)
Oversized Cabinets	90	(2)
Minority Cabinets	92	(2)
Cabinet Instability	94	(5)
The Semipresidential System of France	99	(4)
Advantages and Disadvantages of Parliamentary and Presidential Systems	103	(2)
Advantages and Disadvantages of Presidentialism	103	(1)
Advantages and Disadvantages of Parliamentarism	104	(1)
Heads of State	105	(6)
Monarchial Head of State	105	(3)
Elected Heads of State	108	(3)
Courts	111	(8)
Great Britain	112	(2)
Switzerland	114	(1)
Germany	115	(2)
France	117	(2)
Federalism and Referendum	119	(11)
Switzerland: Prototypical Case of a Federalist Country with a Strong Referendum	119	(5)
European Trend Toward Federalism and Referenda	124	(3)
Arguments Against Federalism and Referenda	127	(3)
Social Movements	130	(14)
Environmental Movement	130	(3)
Peace and Third-World Movement	133	(1)
Women's Movement	134	(3)
Youth Movement	137	(7)
The State and Economic Interest Groups	144	(15)
The State as a Political Actor	144	(2)
Economic Interest Groups	146	(2)
Pluralism and Corporatism	148	(3)
The Theory of Corporatism	151	(8)
The Future of Corporatism	154	(5)
Policy Outcomes	159	(17)
Explaining Policy Outcomes	161	(15)
The End of the Cold War	176	(18)
Classical Marxism	177	(2)
Neo-Marxism	179	(4)
Communism in Western Europe	183	(3)
Communism in Eastern Europe	186	(8)
Hungary	187	(1)
Poland	188	(1)
East Germany	189	(5)
Transitions to Democracy	194	(15)
The Federal Republic of Germany After 1945	194	(2)
Italy After 1945	196	(1)
Spain After 1975	197	(1)
Hungary After 1989	198	(2)
Poland After 1989	200	(4)
Ukraine in 2004	204	(2)
Explanations	206	(3)
Nationalism and Ethnicity	209	(20)
War in Former Yugoslavia	210	(8)
Northern Ireland	218	(2)
Basque Country	220	(2)
Immigration	222	(1)
Sport Events	223	(2)
More Benign Aspects	225	(4)
Power Sharing in Deeply Divided Societies	229	(31)
Development of the Theory of Power Sharing	229	(4)
Critique of the Theory of Power Sharing	233	(6)
Northern Ireland	239	(8)
Former Czechoslovakia	247	(3)
Former Yugoslavia	250	(6)
Normative Evaluation of Power Sharing	256	(4)
The European Union	260	(29)
History of European Integration	260	(3)
Council of Ministers	263	(4)
European Council	267	(1)
European Commission	268	(1)
European Parliament	269	(6)
European Court of Justice	275	(3)
European Bureaucracy	278	(1)
What Does the European Union Do?	278	(3)
Agricultural Policy	278	(1)
Regional and Development Policy	279	(1)
Common Currency---the Euro	279	(1)
Continued Expansion: Where Does ``Europe'' End?	280	(1)
Outlook	281	(2)
A Constitution for Europe: ``Non'' and ``Nee''	283	(6)
Globalization and European Democracies	289	(22)
What Is Globalization?	290	(4)
How Should Globalization Be Measured?	294	(2)
The Challenges of Globalization for European Democracies	296	(11)
The Welfare State and Globalization	297	(3)
Immigration and Globalization	300	(5)
Globalization and the Fragility of Community	305	(2)
Is Globalization a Threat or an Opportunity for European Democracies?	307	(4)
Index	311