Research Catalog

Title

The autocratic middle class : how state dependency reduces the demand for democracy / Bryn Rosenfeld.

Author

Rosenfeld, Bryn, 1981-

Publication

Princeton : Princeton University Press, [2021]

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

x, 276 pages : illustrations; 24 cm.

Summary

"The conventional wisdom is that a growing middle class will give rise to democracy. Yet the middle classes of the developing world have grown at a remarkable pace over the past two decades, and much of this growth has taken place in countries that remain nondemocratic. Rosenfeld explains this phenomenon by showing how modern autocracies secure support from key middle-class constituencies. Drawing on original surveys, interviews, archival documents, and secondary sources collected from nine months in the field, she compares the experiences of recent post-communist countries, including Russia, the Ukraine, and Kazakhstan, to show that under autocracy, state efforts weaken support for democracy, especially among the middle class. When autocratic states engage extensively in their economies - by offering state employment, offering perks to those to those who are loyal, and threatening dismissal to those who are disloyal - the middle classes become dependent on the state for economic opportunities and career advancement, and, ultimately, do not support a shift toward democratization. Her argument explains why popular support for Ukraine's Orange Revolution unraveled or why Russians did not protest evidence of massive electoral fraud. The author's research questions the assumption that a rising share of educated, white-collar workers always makes the conditions for democracy more favorable, and why dependence on the state has such pernicious consequences for democratization"--

Series Statement

Princeton studies in political behavior

Uniform Title

Princeton studies in political behavior.

Subject

• Civil service > Political activity > Former communist countries > Case studies
• Middle class > Political activity > Former communist countries > Case studies
• Authoritarianism > Former communist countries
• Democracy > Former communist countries
• Democratization > Former communist countries
• Authoritarianism
• Civil service > Political activity
• Democracy
• Democratization
• Economic history
• Middle class > Political activity
• Politics and government
• Former communist countries > Economic conditions
• Former communist countries > Politics and government
• Former communist countries

Genre/Form

• Case studies.
• Informational works.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contents

The autocratic middle class -- State dependence and middle class demand for democracy -- The post-communist middle classes, the state, and democratization -- Rethinking the middle class protest paradigm -- Choosing to work for the state -- Revolution, democratic retrenchment, and the middle class -- Aligning the middle class with autocracy : rhetoric and practice.

Call Number

JFE 21-1025

ISBN

• 9780691192192
• 0691192197
• 9780691192185
• 0691192189
• 9780691209777 (canceled/invalid)

LCCN

2020014695

OCLC

1163936085

Author

Rosenfeld, Bryn, 1981- author.

Title

The autocratic middle class : how state dependency reduces the demand for democracy / Bryn Rosenfeld.

Publisher

Princeton : Princeton University Press, [2021]

Type of Content

text

still image

Type of Medium

unmediated

Type of Carrier

volume

Series

Princeton studies in political behavior

Princeton studies in political behavior.

Bibliography

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Form:

Online version: Rosenfeld, Bryn, 1981- Autocratic middle class Princeton : Princeton University Press, [2021] 9780691209777 (DLC) 2020014696

Research Call Number

JFE 21-1025