Indicators of Democracy and Good Governance as Measures of the Quality of Democracy in Africa: A Critical Appraisal

Author: Dirk Berg-Schlosser

Source: Acta Politica, Volume 39, Number 3, September 2004 , pp. 248-278(31)

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Abstract:

Current measures of levels of democratization, such as those by Freedom House, Jaggers and Gurr, or Vanhanen, for example, are often mistaken to be an indication of the ‘quality’ of democracy in a more comprehensive and normatively more demanding sense. The same is true for some of the current criteria and indicators of ‘good governance’. This paper points out some of the limitations and weaknesses of these indicators and shows how, in spite of such limitations, they can be used to provide more coherent and readily available information on the state of affairs and the ‘quality’ of democracy in African countries.Acta Politica (2004) 39, 248–278. doi:10.1057/palgrave.ap.5500065

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.ap.5500065

Affiliations: 1: aInstitut für Politikwissenschaft, Universität Marburg, 35032 Marburg, Germany., Email: bergschl@staff.uni-marburg.de

Publication date: 2004-09-01