Democracy under debate: evaluation of democratic performance and contemporary conceptual-methodological discussions

Abstract

Democracy is a controversial concept. The differentiation between democracies and non-democracies, and the assessment of democratic performance depend on the attributes considered as well as on the theoretical-methodological tradition supported by experts and organisations. In terms of methodological discussions, these have revolved around the advantages and disadvantages of qualifying democracy (as participatory, deliberative, electoral, etc.), of following a procedural approach versus a results-oriented approach to it, of understanding democracy in a dichotomous way (presence/absence) versus as a continuum as well as of using various methodological strategies for measuring democracy. This panel aims to deepen the debate on democracy as a phenomenon and as a concept. First, this panel examines the democratic performance in 117 countries by assessing the impact of foreign direct investment. Second, based on the contributions made by Hanna Arendt, it discusses the usefulness of the concept of Normative Power Europe. Finally, the panel opens the doors to a methodological discussion still in place: the measurement of democracy, focused on a proposal on which variables should be included in the measurement of local democracy.

Title	Details
Reconsider Normative Power Europe	View Paper Details
Does foreign direct investment (FDI) increase the quality of democracy or facilitate democratic backsliding? An instrumental variable analysis	View Paper Details
Measuring local democracy: A quantitative approach	View Paper Details