Why are some regimes democratic while others are not? Specifically, how have Spain and Italy managed to become democratic while Turkey, which shares many similar characteristics, has not? Spain, Italy and Turkey have shared common historical features which would have been disruptive to any new democracy; however they represent a wide array of democratization experiences. Providing a comparative case study analysis, this book offers some clues as to the reasons for successful transitions to democracy. This is done through a range of variables which include: the degree of 'stateness' problems learning from previous experiences with democracy and authoritarianism economic development the procedures used for designing the new rules of the regime the existence or absence of 'civil society' and the connection between society and political institutions the democratic rules themselves the professionalization of the military the influence of external factors on democratic consolidation. By examining these variables across the three countries, Lauren McLaren narrows the range of possible explanations for differences in democratic consolidation. The book will be of particular interest to students and researchers of European Politics and Democratization Studies.

This book offers an introduction to politics in three Southern European countries, providing a comparative case study analysis of why democratization outcomes vary across them.

One of the important questions that social scientists continue to struggle to answer is the question of why some countries manage to convert themselves from authoritarian rule to stable, fully functioning democracies and others do not. The three countries chosen for analysis represent a wide array of democratization experiences: Italy, with its slow, uncertain start at democratizing after the Second World War; Spain with its remarkably speedy conversion from a seemingly stable authoritarian to stable democratic regime; and Turkey with its extremely slow and - as of yet - still incomplete democratic transition. In contrast to the different types of outcomes these regimes have all experienced, they have shared many common features.

Democratization in Southern Europe examines potential variables, including: problems with stateness, previous experience with democracy, the process of creating constitutions and other important rules, and the structure and functioning of institutions within these countries - with a focus on explaining differences in democratic consolidation and providing an analysis of the likely impact of each.