How to Assess Democracy
The word democracy derives from the Greek words demos (people) and kratia (power or authority). It is a system of government whereby lawmaking and major decisions affecting society are directly decided by the people, or at least by the majority of those governed. It has been implemented in the past through peaceful or violent democratic revolutions and is today the dominant form of governance worldwide, although there are also a number of non-democratic states.
A central feature of democracy is that the people are able to express their opinions on public issues through free and fair elections in order to make decisions. However, there are many other ways that people can participate in democracy outside of voting, such as through the work they do for trade unions and cooperatives, through community organisations and associations, through schools or other educational institutions based on a democratic structure, and so on.
Democracy is a complex and often contested concept. As a result, it can be difficult to measure, and different methods are used to capture different aspects of democracy. Some measures are based on theoretical concepts of democracy such as the rule of law, the freedoms of expression and association, or citizenship. These are important, but they are not the whole story. Other measures are based on more concrete aspects of democracy such as the rights to freedom of speech and belief, or voting rights. Some measures are based on the degree to which laws are unbiased and transparent, or on the extent to which citizens feel protected from unwarranted governmental deprivation of their rights.
While it is not easy to measure democracy, surveys of a country’s citizens can provide useful information about how well the democratic process is working. Surveys can also provide insight into how to improve democracy in a particular country or region.
When assessing democracy, it is important not to ask overly general questions. This is because the dimensions of democracy are interrelated and can be defined in a variety of ways. For example, if a person does not feel they can freely express their opinion, this will have an impact on his or her satisfaction with democracy, even though it is a necessary precondition for the functioning of that system.
In addition, it is also important to be clear about what aspects of democracy are being measured. For example, some measures of democracy focus on the political process itself, including the transparency and impartiality of election processes, and on the ability to access government information and decision making. Others, such as those on the economic dimension of democracy, examine more specific aspects of democracy, such as whether a country has a strong market economy and how well its citizens are doing.
A Bayesian factor analysis shows that most of the indicators are strongly loaded onto their respective attribute, and that three items on the economic dimension of democracy-party financing, public participation in decision making, and the secret ballot-have weaker loadings. As a result, it might be better to consider incorporating these three elements of democracy into a single measurement rather than trying to construct a multidimensional index that encompasses all the attributes of democracy.
The word democracy derives from the Greek words demos (people) and kratia (power or authority). It is a system of government whereby lawmaking and major decisions affecting society are directly decided by the people, or at least by the majority of those governed. It has been implemented in the past through peaceful or violent democratic revolutions and is today the dominant form of governance worldwide, although there are also a number of non-democratic states. A central feature of democracy is that the people are able to express their opinions on public issues through free and fair elections in order to make decisions. However, there are many other ways that people can participate in democracy outside of voting, such as through the work they do for trade unions and cooperatives, through community organisations and associations, through schools or other educational institutions based on a democratic structure, and so on. Democracy is a complex and often contested concept. As a result, it can be difficult to measure, and different methods are used to capture different aspects of democracy. Some measures are based on theoretical concepts of democracy such as the rule of law, the freedoms of expression and association, or citizenship. These are important, but they are not the whole story. Other measures are based on more concrete aspects of democracy such as the rights to freedom of speech and belief, or voting rights. Some measures are based on the degree to which laws are unbiased and transparent, or on the extent to which citizens feel protected from unwarranted governmental deprivation of their rights. While it is not easy to measure democracy, surveys of a country’s citizens can provide useful information about how well the democratic process is working. Surveys can also provide insight into how to improve democracy in a particular country or region. When assessing democracy, it is important not to ask overly general questions. This is because the dimensions of democracy are interrelated and can be defined in a variety of ways. For example, if a person does not feel they can freely express their opinion, this will have an impact on his or her satisfaction with democracy, even though it is a necessary precondition for the functioning of that system. In addition, it is also important to be clear about what aspects of democracy are being measured. For example, some measures of democracy focus on the political process itself, including the transparency and impartiality of election processes, and on the ability to access government information and decision making. Others, such as those on the economic dimension of democracy, examine more specific aspects of democracy, such as whether a country has a strong market economy and how well its citizens are doing. A Bayesian factor analysis shows that most of the indicators are strongly loaded onto their respective attribute, and that three items on the economic dimension of democracy-party financing, public participation in decision making, and the secret ballot-have weaker loadings. As a result, it might be better to consider incorporating these three elements of democracy into a single measurement rather than trying to construct a multidimensional index that encompasses all the attributes of democracy.