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Civil Society & Economic Reform Plan for Today:

Civil Society & Economic Reform Plan for Today:. Considering structure of civil society and debate on how it relates to democratization. Assessing whether or not civil society is a universalizable component of democracy. Introducing the challenges of economic reform for new democracies.

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Civil Society & Economic Reform Plan for Today:

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  1. Civil Society & Economic ReformPlan for Today: • Considering structure of civil society and debate on how it relates to democratization. • Assessing whether or not civil society is a universalizable component of democracy. • Introducing the challenges of economic reform for new democracies.

  2. Structure of Civil Society How much can/ should the state be involved in civil society?

  3. Pluralist vs. Corporatist Civil Society (Schmitter)

  4. Two types of corporatism • “State corporatism”: state defines and controls organizations in society. • Mainly mechanisms for state to control & restrict public participation. • State coopts, guides, dominates interest groups.

  5. Two types of corporatism • “Democratic corporatism”: interests formed from societal level up & aggregated at top level to negotiate with government. • e.g. Sweden

  6. Pro-Pluralist Arguments (Diamond) • Civil society’s fundamental nature is diversity; monopoly contradicts this. • Pluralism works to minimize social conflict. • Corporatist arrangements especially dangerous for new democracies.

  7. Pro-Corporatist Arguments (Schmitter, Black) • Is pluralism even plausible in many countries? • Pluralist civil society can descend into factionalism with little civic trust. • State can be compromised by pluralist civil society. • Infiltration by selfish private interests. • Incoherence from acting as a “cash register.”

  8. Is civil society a universal or culturally specific concept?

  9. Potentially unique conditions in early American republic (Seligman) • Belief in absolute autonomy of the individual. • Ethical public sphere of interconnectedness among citizens.

  10. Potentially unique conditions in early American republic (Seligman) • Belief in absolute autonomy of the individual (from radical liberal ideas) • Ethical public sphere of interconnectedness among citizens (from Puritan religious morality)

  11. Potentially unique conditions in early American republic (Seligman) • American-style liberal civil society not likely in new democracies.

  12. Prospects of civil society where no history of it? • Very difficult where civil society highly repressed under authoritarianism (e.g. post-Communist states).

  13. Post-Communist Organizational Membership (Howard)

  14. Is civil society universalizable? • Will be very difficult to achieve in some circumstances (e.g. post-Soviet). • Will look different in different places.

  15. Important democracy-promoting (and universalizable) characteristics • Autonomy from the state. • Connection to societal concerns. • Citizen participation.

  16. Democratization & Economic Reform

  17. Dangers for democratic regime • Economic deterioration may erode people’s attachment to democracy. • Leaders may seek to abandon democratic decisionmaking to break political logjams.

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