Although multiple theories suggest that economic development and inequality somehow affect democratization, these claims have received only limited empirical support. I contend that much of the confusion stems from the implicit assumption held by the literature that development and inequality affect democratization independently of one another. In this paper, I argue that the effect of income distribution on democratization is in fact contingent on the income level: in middle-income countries inequality fosters democratization; in rich countries, however, it harms democratization. Using a data set covering almost all autocracies between 1960 and 2007, I find evidence consistent with my hypothesis.
CITATION STYLE
Houle, C. (2016). Inequality, Economic Development, and Democratization. Studies in Comparative International Development, 51(4), 503–529. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12116-016-9220-z
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