Politics and Society in Western Europe is a comprehensive introduction for students of West European politics and of comparative politics. This new edition has been extensively revised and updated to meet with the new needs of undergraduate students as they come to terms with a changing social and political landscape in Europe.

This textbook provides a full analysis of the political systems of 18 Western European countries, their political parties, elections, and party systems, as well as the structures of government at local, regional, national and European Union levels.

Throughout the book, key theoretical ideas are accessibly introduced and examined against the very latest empirical data on civil society and the state.

Culture and Politics provides a comprehensive introduction to the enduring phenomenon of culture and its impact on contemporary society and politics. Combining a substantial theoretical overview with intricate comparative empirical research, it assesses the complex interplay of ethnicity, religion, history and values on macro- and micro-level outcomes. Striking a judicious balance between the use of global data on the topic and their selection of six key in-depth country studies, the book draws extensively on statistical material and 'hard data' rather than the literary evidence usual in studies of this kind. This second edition of a well-established text has been expanded and fully updated in line with new events. More student-friendly, this volume now contains useful references for further reading and new material on ethnicity and religion. Readers will find that the values section is now more lucid. This clearly structured book's stringent approach to the topic and its readable, accessible style make this book one that no serious scholar or student of political culture should be without.

What is democracy? Under what conditions does it thrive? What are the consequences of democracy?


This book aims to answer these questions and more by exploring different varieties of democracies around the world. It starts with definitions of democracy, and then divides the concept into three dimensions, which provide a framework for the study of democracy in all its forms. These dimensions form the three main sections of the book:

*constitutional democracy which explores political rights
*participatory democracy which focuses on participation of citizens
*egalitarian democracy which examines outcomes of democracy in terms of equality.


Democracy concludes by surveying the findings of this empirical study and a discussion on the meanings and consequences of democracy in a globalizing world

What is democracy? Under what conditions does it thrive? What are the consequences of democracy?


This book aims to answer these questions and more by exploring different varieties of democracies around the world. It starts with definitions of democracy, and then divides the concept into three dimensions, which provide a framework for the study of democracy in all its forms. These dimensions form the three main sections of the book:

*constitutional democracy which explores political rights
*participatory democracy which focuses on participation of citizens
*egalitarian democracy which examines outcomes of democracy in terms of equality.


Democracy concludes by surveying the findings of this empirical study and a discussion on the meanings and consequences of democracy in a globalizing world

This work is a comparative study of the impact of political institutions upon outcomes, and covers some of the major themes in the new institutionalism. It looks at various democratic institutions in order to examine whether some political institutions like Konkordanzdemokratie or corporatism promote better outcomes than Westminster institutions. The evaluation of the performance of political institutions covers the executive, the legislature and the judicial system. The book also looks at economic outcomes such as affluence and GDP growth as well as social ones like income distribution and quality of life. It examines the problems of institutional effects in democracies and dictatorships and provides analysis of some of the major models in political science. The book explores how political institutions matter for political, economic and social outcomes and estimates their impact in relation to other major factors such as culture and social structure.

The New Institutional Politics is a comparative study of the impact of political institutions upon outcomes, and covers some of the major themes in the new institutionalism. It looks at various democratic institutions in order to examine whether some political institutions like Konkordanzdemokratie or corporatism promote better outcomes than Westminster institutions.
The evaluation of the performance of political institutions covers the executive, the legislature and the judicial system. The book also looks at economic outcomes such as affluence and GDP growth as well as social ones like income distribution and quality of life. It examines the problems of institutional effects in democracies and dictatorships and provides analysis of some of the major models in political science.
This is an exploration of how political institutions matter for political, economic and social outcomes and estimates their impact in relation to other major factors such as culture and social structure. It is written for political scientists and graduates studying comparative politics.

eBook available with sample pages: HB:0415183200

This title was first published in 2002: Examining problems that have caused much debate within political science, this book seeks to identify a proper place for the analysis of culture and values within political science. It goes on to explore the impact of globalization upon society.

Globalization is a common theme in the discourse of post-industrial society, yet it is a process that is ill understood. Is it basically a technological phenomenon or does its immense impulse derive from economic factors? Should it be regulated by government, and at what level? Questions such as these are debated continuously in the mass media, yet there are no simple answers available, as globalization is not only an amporphous but also a contested phenomenon.Government and the Economy is a completely reworked edition of Jan-Erik Lane and Svante Ersson's popular text Comparative Political Economy, which the authors have updated for the twenty-first century. They present a profound analysis of how globalization changes the boundaries between state and market, public and private, and government and society. When the state retreats and markets expand, what are the major outcomes? And what is driving this process of redefining the roles of government and the tasks of society?The book offers a penetrating survey of the differences between the countries of the world in terms of their economy and polity, and a forceful critique of the prevailing models in political economy. Lane and Ersson look closely at Public Choice theories which emphasize the role of markets in accomplishing efficient solutions to human interaction while modeling governments as enhancing state failure. They argue that such accounts are misguided. The need for govenment in the global market economy is as strong as it is in relation to the domestic economy. They go on to suggest that the most efficient and equitable means of strengthening government in the global market place, without creating one-world government, is thereform and empowerment of IGOs.

This comprehensive textbook is the first to go beyond a West European perspective and provide a clear overview of the whole of European politics. Jan-Erik Lane and Svante Ersson address the similarities of key political features among states in Western, Central, Eastern, Northern and Southern Europe and look forward to political developments at the turn of the century. Traditionally, books have polarized Europe by focusing on points of divergence. European Politics provides a thoroughgoing analysis of several converging themes, including political culture, the nature of the state, party systems, and the formation of government and public policies. With this approach to economic, social and political aspects of politics in Europe this major text presents a Europe that, within the context of reform, transition and integration, has more in common in the early 1990s than ever before. With a clear thematic structure and helpful discussions of data drawn from some 30 countries European Politics offers both an accessible and genuinely comparative text which will be essential reading for student and researcher alike.

Politics and Society in Western Europe is a comprehensive introduction for students of West European politics and of comparative politics. This new edition has been extensively revised and updated to meet with the new needs of undergraduate students as they come to terms with a changing social and political landscape in Europe. This textbook provides a full analysis of the political systems of 18 Western European countries, their political parties, elections, and party systems, as well as the structures of government at local, regional, national and European Union levels. Throughout the book, key theoretical ideas are accessibly introduced and examined against the very latest empirical data on civil society and the state.