Research Activities
Research Projects
Can Dictatorship Be Reformed? Mexico and the USSR in a Comparative Perspective （2021_1_40_002）
Outline
In recent years, the global influences of dictatorships, such as those of China and Russia, have increased, while at the same time those of democratic regimes have been on the ebb. However, there exist cases where dictators themselves initiate political reforms to introduce competitive elections. No comparative political scientists’ work focuses on and analyzes such political reforms. My aim is to fill this gap by presenting a novel theory of political reform under a dictatorship. By comparing the trajectory of political reforms in Mexico and the Soviet Union?countries that have been home to two of the world's most-prominent party dictatorships?I show how political reform under a dictatorship can be successful and how it fails. The reason that I compare Mexico and the Soviet Union is that these two dictatorships have been so distinct from each other such that the “Most Different Systems” design method can be applicable.
Period
April 2021 - March 2022
Leader of the Research Project
Toyoda Shin
Publications
Published by External Publisher (Japanese)