Over the past decade, a large number of developing countries have made the transition from authoritarian rule to democracy. The rebirth of civil societies, the achievement of new freedoms and liberties have all been celebrated with due enthusiasm. But now that the euphoria of these transitions has passed, we are beginning to pose the sobering question of what difference democracy makes to devel...

Synopsis: Many theorists have long emphasized the importance of civic society and voluntary associations as vital to the lifeblood of democracy. Interest in this perennial topic has been revived by Putnam’s theory of social capital claiming that rich and dense associational networks facilitate the underlying conditions of interpersonal trust, tolerance and cooperation, providing the social foun...

The following is a speech delivered at the conference on “Social Activism and SocioEconomic Rights: Deepening Democracy in South Africa, convened by the Institute for Democracy in South Africa, Cape Town, August 11-13, 2003, on the occasion of ten years since the defeat of apartheid. The speech was delivered on August 11 before some 100 South African government and ANC officials, trade unionist...

Theoretical arguments and empirical evidence are advanced to bolster the claim that direct political participation via referenda and initiatives constitutes an advanced form of democracy with beneficial effects on Transition Countries. Direct democracy raises trust and honesty and improves social outcomes. Per capita incomes and subjective well-being are raised. Standard arguments against direc...

justice demonstrates in behavior of any person with another person and in government behavior with the people of the society. social justice is a kind of justice that expresses this concept in society. selecting the slogan of justice from modernity1 by marxism caused the social justice be the main idea in the governance of communist cities. the idea that it is different concept based of marxist...

The field of technoethics explores the ethical challenges that technology poses to the different spheres of society. Recently, scholars have begun to explore the ethical implications of new digital technologies and social media, particularly in the realms of society and politics. A qualitative case study was conducted on Barack Obama’s campaign social networking site, my.barackobama.com, in ord...