Deck 12: Democracies, Democratization and Authoritarian Regimes

Question 1

The Freedom House Index measures the extent of corruption in a country.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Name at least one factor that has contributed to the revival of authoritarianism since the 1990s.

Answer 2

a. Failed transitions in Iraq, Afghanistan, Russia, Libya, and Syria.
b. The increasing level of sophistication of many authoritarian regimes, for example in China.
c. The growing internationalization of the confrontation between democratic and authoritarian regimes, including the greater willingness of some authoritarian regimes to interfere in the internal affairs of others (for example, Saudi Arabia).

Question 3

Identify a key difference between authoritarian regimes and democracies.

Answer 3

a. Policy outcomes: authoritarian regimes tend to spend less on social programmes, wages, and environmental policies, than democracies.
b. Authoritarian regimes tend to attract less foreign investment than democracies, possibly because they are weaker on enforcing property rights.
c. Authoritarian regimes offer more opportunities for corruption than democracies.
d. Authoritarian regimes tend to have higher birth and death rates than democracies.

Question 4

Another example of a country where the label 'liberal democracy' may be problematic is… _______.