Political scientists have long classified systems of government as parliamentary or
presidential, two-party or multiparty, and so on. But such distinctions often fail to provide …

This book develops a framework for analyzing the creation and consolidation of democracy.
Different social groups prefer different political institutions because of the way they allocate …

▪ Abstract In this essay, I review recent research on the effects of economic development on
democracy. On the theoretical side, for the first time there has been a systematic attempt to …

Paradigms and Sand Castles demonstrates the relationship between thoughtful research
design and the collection of persuasive evidence in support of theory. It teaches the craft of …

In this paper we revisit the relationship between democracy, redistribution, and inequality.
We first explain the theoretical reasons why democracy is expected to increase redistribution …

We develop a Bayesian procedure for estimation and inference for spatial models of roll call
voting. This approach is extremely flexible, applicable to any legislative setting, irrespective …

Bayesian methods are increasingly being used in the social sciences, as the problems
encountered lend themselves so naturally to the subjective qualities of Bayesian …

The development and elaboration of the spatial theory of voting has contributed greatly to
the study of legislative decision making and elections. Statistical models that estimate the …

Abortion, divorce, and the family: how did the state make policy decisions in these areas in
Argentina, Brazil, and Chile during the last third of the twentieth century? As the three …

Poverty relief programs are shaped by politics. The particular design which social programs
take is to a large extent determined by the existing institutional constraints and politicians' …