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Post-Cold War autocratization: trends and patterns of regime change opposite to democratization

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 May 2019

Andrea Cassani Open the ORCID record for Andrea Cassani [Opens in a new window]  and
Luca Tomini
Andrea Cassani*
Affiliation:
Department of Social and Political Sciences, Università degli Studi di Milano, via Conservatorio 7, 20122 Milano, Italy
Luca Tomini
Affiliation:
Centre d'Etude de la Vie Politique, Faculté de Philosophie et Sciences Sociales, Université libre de Bruxelles, avenue Jeanne, 44, 1050 Bruxelles, Belgium, l.tomini@ulb.ac.be
*
*Corresponding author. E-mail: andrea.cassani@unimi.it
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Abstract

The so-called third wave of democratization is over and scholars are increasingly alert to the apparently growing number of regime changes in the opposite direction. However, there is little agreement concerning how many distinct forms these processes can take, and even less systematic cross-regional analysis of the phenomenon, which diminishes our ability to seize its actual import. Accordingly, this article pursues a twofold goal. First, we present a framework for the analysis of the processes opposite to democratization. Specifically, we build on the notion of ‘autocratization’, identify similarities and differences between the various forms it can take, and catalogue how it can happen. Second, we provide new data on post-Cold War cases across the world and use these data to map the prevailing trends. The analysis confirms the increasing empirical relevance of the phenomenon, and reveals the existence of a few geographical and historical patterns in the forms and modes of contemporary autocratization.

Keywords

Authoritarianismautocratizationdemocratizationregime change
Type
Research Article
Information
Italian Political Science Review / Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica , Volume 49 , Special Issue 2: Autocracy Strikes Back: Authoritarian Resurgence in the Early 21st Century , July 2019 , pp. 121 - 138
Copyright
Copyright © Società Italiana di Scienza Politica 2019 

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