If you'd like to print out this page, click the Print button above. Alternatively, you may click the printer icon on your browser's toolbar, or choose File>Print from the menu.     Industrialized Democracies 1 The study of industrialized democracies is an important component of comparative politics. Let’s begin our examination of democracies by identifying their numbers and relative geographic location. CLICK DATA FILE: GLOBAL04 CLICK TASK: Univariate SELECT PRIMARY VARIABLE: Government CLICK: [Continue] 1. How many countries were included in the survey, overall? (Correct Answer: 172) 2. How many established multi-party democracies were identified? (Correct Answer: 66) 3. What percentage of the countries in the survey were classified as "established, multi-party democracies?" (Correct Answer: 38.4%) 4. True or False: The majority of the world’s countries are democracies, i.e, either old or newly-established. (Correct Answer: True) The world’s established multi-party democracies tend to be concentrated in particular regions. Let’s examine some patterns CLICK: TASKS CLICK TASK: Mapping SELECT VARIABLE 1: Government CLICK VIEW: Map CLICK: [Continue] 5. True or False: There are more established multi-party democracies (i.e., "old demos") in Europe than in Asia. (Correct Answer: True) 6. True or False: There are more established multi-party democracies (i.e, "old demos") in Africa than in South America. (Correct Answer: False) Industrial democracies share a number of important characteristics, including a commitment to free and fair elections. However, there is some variety in the electoral systems used by democracies to select leaders. Let’s explore this in more detail. CLICK: TASKS CLICK TASK: Univariate SELECT PRIMARY VARIABLE: ELECTSYSTM CLICK: [Continue] Many countries, such as the United States and United Kingdom, use single-member-plurality-district systems, or first-past-the-post systems. Candidates in these systems "run" for election (or "stand," e.g., the United Kingdom) in a specific district and the candidate receiving the highest percentage of the vote wins. 7. What percentage of countries in the world use first-past-the-post systems? (Correct Answer: 26.1 percent) 8. True or False: More countries use first-past-the-post systems than any other single type of electoral system. (Correct Answer: False) An alternative to "first-past-the-post" systems is the use of two-stage voting, or "two-round" systems. Various forms of two-stage voting exist but for illustrative purposes let’s consider the type used for France’s presidential elections. French voters cast ballots for individual candidates, and if a candidate receives a majority (50 percent plus one) the election is over. If no candidate receives a majority, a second election occurs with only the top two candidates from the first stage on the ballot. 9. What percentage of countries use "two-round" election systems? (Correct Answer: 13.9 percent) Another alternative to "first-past-the-post" is the use of proportional representation systems. In these systems, voters typically cast their ballot for a party, instead of an individual candidate. Before the election, the parties create a ranked list of the members they hope to place in the Parliament. Then, the percentage of the vote received by each party determines the percentage of seats it is awarded in the parliament. For instance, if "Party A" received 10 percent of the vote and there are 50 seats in the parliament, it will be awarded five seats (50 seats * 10 percent). Then, the party’s "list" of rank-ordered candidates is used to determine who will represent the party in the parliament. In the case of "Party A," the top five people will be chosen because the party was awarded five seats. Anyone ranked "six" or lower would not be chosen. 10. What percentage of the world’s countries rely upon List Proportional Representation systems? (Correct Answer: 35.8 percent) Another important characteristic of industrial democracies is their commitment to individual rights and freedoms. Let’s explore this issue. CLICK: TASKS CLICK TASK: Mapping SELECT VARIABLE 1: DEMOCRACY CLICK VIEW: Map CLICK: [Continue] 11. Which continent has the greatest concentration of countries rated as the "Most Democratic?" (Correct Answer: Europe) 12. True or False: Central and South America, combined, have more countries rated "Least Democratic" than Africa. (Correct Answer: False) Many scholars believe that countries with stronger economies are more likely to foster democracies and stronger commitments to individual rights. Let’s explore the argument that commitments to individual rights are related to economic wealth. CLICK: BACK (use your browser’s back button) SELECT VARIABLE 1: DEMOCRACY CLICK VIEW: Alphabetical Table CLICK: [Continue] 13. For each of the following countries identify its level of commitment to individual rights (1-142). Country "Democracy" rank: 1-142 Answers Angola 142 Chile 38 Germany 1 Syria 142 United States 1 CLICK: VARIABLES     SELECT VARIABLE 1: GDP/CAP CLICK VIEW: Alphabetical Table CLICK: [Continue] 14. For each of the following countries identify its gross domestic per capita (GDP) ranking. Country GDP/CAP rank: 1-171 Answers Angola 145 Chile 35 Germany 14 Syria 100 United States 2 15. What factors might explain the relationship between economic well-being and the degree of commitment to individual rights? Another key issue concerning industrial democracies is the extent to which resources are distributed evenly among the member of society. Anytime a government makes a policy choice to tax or spend, it is redistributing resources. One measure used to evaluate inequality is the GINI index. In a country with complete income equality (if everyone earned the same amount) the GINI index would be zero. The greater the GINI index, the more unequal the income distribution. Let’s examine income inequality in the world’s liberal democracies. CLICK: VARIABLES SELECT VARIABLE 1: INEQUALITY CLICK VIEW: Map CLICK: [Continue] 16. Which continent has the greatest concentration of countries with low GINI scores? (i.e., 31.2 or less) (Correct Answer: Europe) CLICK: VARIABLES SELECT VARIABLE 1: DEM-INEQ CLICK VIEW: Rank Table CLICK: [Continue] 17. Which liberal democracy has the highest level of income inequality (i.e., the highest GINI score)? (Correct Answer: United States) 18. Which liberal democracy has the lowest level of income inequality? (Correct Answer: Austria) 19. True or False: Japan has a lower level of income inequality than Germany. (Correct Answer: True) 20. In your opinion, explain either why greater income equality indicates that a country’s democracy is "working more effectively" than those with less income equality, or vice-versa.