Leonardo Morlino | LUISS Guido Carli (original) (raw)
Books by Leonardo Morlino
Oxford University Press, 2020
-An open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence -Provides empiricall... more -An open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence
-Provides empirically grounded analysis for politicians and voters to understand the possibilities and limits of democracy
-Examines how and why the two traditional democratic values (freedom and equality) are implemented in the largest European countries
-This wide-ranging study examines how freedom and equality have developed across a thirty year period since 1990, particularly focusing on the impact of the 2008 Great Recession
Papers by Leonardo Morlino
A democratic regime is assumed to implement freedom and equality as the two critical and most imp... more A democratic regime is assumed to implement freedom and equality as the two critical and most important values. The question we intend to address here is: how and why has the actual implementation of freedom and equality been changing in the 1990–2020 period? Researching this topic, we cannot ignore the impact of the Great Recession since 2008. Thus, in this comparative research, we analyse France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, and the United Kingdom to detect the changes. As expected, the six largest European democracies have been differently affected by the crisis, as they also had different background factors. We address an additional question: what is the impact of the European Union on the two democratic values? Accordingly, we analyse economic inequality, social inequality, and ethnic inequality with the related changing trends and explanations. We also detect and analyse the trend of freedoms, and especially personal dignity, civil rights, and political rights. Thus, the rel...
Oxford University Press eBooks, Oct 26, 2020
As mentioned in Chapter 1, if any ideal has been widely recognized as the cornerstone of democrac... more As mentioned in Chapter 1, if any ideal has been widely recognized as the cornerstone of democracy, it is freedom. Beyond the different and diverging perspectives adopted to analyse the conditions that make possible a functioning democracy, liberal scholars have been united in saying that without freedom, democracy cannot exist. There is, therefore, a broad consensus that freedom is foundational to a democratic regime (see, e.g., Andersen et al., 2014). This core notion of liberal democracy has received little attention in the debate on the causes and effects of the economic crisis (European Council, 2016, 2017; Eurobarometer, 2015, 2016). Research into citizens' perception also fell short when it came to casting light upon the state of freedoms. The international debate during the first two decades of the twenty-first century, which refers to the economic crisis and the subsequent actions governments were expected to take, touches predominantly on the worsening of equality rather than the restriction of freedoms. In a way, the frame through which the crisis and all the remedies adopted to respond to it entered into the international narrative and into policy assessment exercises, focused on reducing inequalities and expanding the opportunities for inclusive growth (OECD, 2013, 2017; European Commission, 2009, 2014). Besides, citizens' perceptions seem to match the tones and topics of official political discourse. Therefore, if not overlooked, individual freedoms have certainly been considered as an 'acquis'. However, this affirmation has to be downplayed if we refer to the most recent years, specifically from 2015. Since then, the increasing alarm connected with the boost of international terrorism prioritized issues relating to the protection of public order and civilian safety as opposed to the protection of individual freedoms. The waves of migration experienced by the European Member States, with greater intensity by the ones facing the Mediterranean Sea, called for targeted measures as well. The interplay between anti-terrorism legislation and migration policies is far from being consensual and uncontended. However, the impact of the transformations on European democracies, as a result of the pressure of these two different and yet interacting phenomena, proved to be highly disruptive for the protection and scope of individual freedoms.
Oxford University Press eBooks, Oct 26, 2020
Links to third party websites are provided by Oxford in good faith and for information only. Oxfo... more Links to third party websites are provided by Oxford in good faith and for information only. Oxford disclaims any responsibility for the materials contained in any third party website referenced in this work.
The Impact of the Economic Crisis on South European Democracies, 2017
The chapter starts with an analysis of the channels of political representation within democracie... more The chapter starts with an analysis of the channels of political representation within democracies, by emphasizing its diversity and interdependence. At the same time, it shows that one of the main effects of the 2008 Great Recession has been the decline of all institutionalized channels, be they through elections and parties, or be they through interest groups and associations. Indeed, the crisis of interest associations, trade unions included, and of neo-corporatist arrangements has been a factor of weakness in the management of the crisis: the governments lost one of the main factors of regulations through the interest intermediate structures. This situation is clearly new with respect to what happened during the crisis of 1929, in post-war reconstruction, and in some respects, even during the stagflation of the 1970s. The crisis of functional channels favoured the formulation of selective austerity policies that have ended up aggravating the effects of the crisis and at the same time have fuelled the use of non-conventional channels of political expression with protest movements. The chapter also highlights the national characteristics of the relationships among the different channels of representation, while emphasizing the flexibility in their use by voters as a common factor in all four cases.
Routledge eBooks, Jul 25, 2008
Oxford University Press eBooks, Oct 26, 2020
What Equalities and Freedoms Does the EU Bring? 'More freedoms and equalities' are the promises o... more What Equalities and Freedoms Does the EU Bring? 'More freedoms and equalities' are the promises of European integration (Warlouzet, 2014). In a nutshell, this is the underlying narrative of the constitutional trajectories traced by EU laws (De Witte, 2001). This promising perspective refers both to the present and to the future, which means that the European influence equally guarantees all conditions ensuring freedoms and equalities. Entrenchment and consolidation of the related institutional conditions are in the scope of the EU. With different paces and paths, this has also been the narrative inspiring the bulk of the policies carried out by European institutions. Every significant dimension of the freedoms and equalities, as operationalized in chapters 2 and 3, falls into the scope of action of the EU. The Union impinges upon them with a wide range of policy tools, ranging from normative to cognitive inputs. On the 'demand-side' , i.e., on the side of the expectations of citizens and companies, the EU is expected to deliver more mobility, more opportunities and more homogeneous results among member States and regions (Ferrera, 2005; Caporaso, 2007). However, the gap between results achieved and outcomes promised represents slippery terrain for EU legitimacy, primarily if that legitimacy is assessed against an output-oriented set of criteria (Kriesi, 2013). This chapter takes a critical stance toward a top-down view of the European influence on domestic political systems: the significance of external factors in determining domestic processes of change is here considered together with the different types of domestic factors with which the external forces interact. In this respect, the patterns of influences that are invoked to explain the changes in freedoms and equalities are multi-level and principally pivot upon specific domestic procedural dimensions.1 This analytical approach is furthermore strengthened
Equality, Freedom, and Democracy
The most salient empirical results can be summed up in a few points. First, despite the complexit... more The most salient empirical results can be summed up in a few points. First, despite the complexities and necessary distinctions, the consensual democracies with coordinated economies tend to have redistributive policy solutions and to correct inequalities. Second, the salience of the migration issue derives either from the consequences of the economic crisis (Italy, Spain, and France) or from basic ideological orientations (Poland). Third, with the Great Recession, the presence of new parties and populist parties became a distinguishing aspect of our six countries. Greater dissatisfaction and the growth of the new protest parties pushed the incumbent leaders to be more responsive. Fourth, we distinguish between a revendicative populism (leftist or inclusionary) and an identitarian populism (rightist or exclusionary). Identitarian populism mainly prevailed in Poland—but has a specific salience also in other countries: from France, with the Front National, to Italy with the League of ...
Democratization
This chapter examines the role of political parties in the processes of democratization, that is,... more This chapter examines the role of political parties in the processes of democratization, that is, during transition, installation, and consolidation, and the possible phases of democratic crisis. It first considers the definition of a political party within the processes of democratization before discussing how parties can be indispensable for the actual working of democracy. It then explores the actual role of political parties during transitions to democracy and during democratic consolidation, and in different types of crises. It also describes basic patterns of transition to democracy as well as key elements of democratic consolidation, including electoral stabilization and emergence of recurring patterns of party competition. The chapter shows that parties are dominant in the process of transition, even if not always hegemonic.
International Actors, Democratization and the Rule of Law, 2008
When analysing transitions towards democracy during the last three decades of the 20th century an... more When analysing transitions towards democracy during the last three decades of the 20th century and the first decade of the 21st century, it is readily apparent that the variety of empirical processes is so wide that achieving meaningful theoretical results is extremely difficult, as the existing literature on the topic shows explicitly. This paper addresses the key theoretical questions that need to be dealt with by the empirical analysis of the transitional process. Are there key, recurring actors and factors that we should take into account when analysing all cases in depth? Why is a focus on installation (not only on transition) salient? Are there recurring patterns of successful transitions? Are there key recurring mechanisms that critically explain successful transitions? And are there obstacles that make it impossible to achieve a successful transition and doom such a process to failure? On the basis of existing knowledge in the subfield, an attempt is made to reply to these q...
International Actors, Democratization and the Rule of Law, 2008
Oxford University Press, 2020
-An open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence -Provides empiricall... more -An open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence
-Provides empirically grounded analysis for politicians and voters to understand the possibilities and limits of democracy
-Examines how and why the two traditional democratic values (freedom and equality) are implemented in the largest European countries
-This wide-ranging study examines how freedom and equality have developed across a thirty year period since 1990, particularly focusing on the impact of the 2008 Great Recession
A democratic regime is assumed to implement freedom and equality as the two critical and most imp... more A democratic regime is assumed to implement freedom and equality as the two critical and most important values. The question we intend to address here is: how and why has the actual implementation of freedom and equality been changing in the 1990–2020 period? Researching this topic, we cannot ignore the impact of the Great Recession since 2008. Thus, in this comparative research, we analyse France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, and the United Kingdom to detect the changes. As expected, the six largest European democracies have been differently affected by the crisis, as they also had different background factors. We address an additional question: what is the impact of the European Union on the two democratic values? Accordingly, we analyse economic inequality, social inequality, and ethnic inequality with the related changing trends and explanations. We also detect and analyse the trend of freedoms, and especially personal dignity, civil rights, and political rights. Thus, the rel...
Oxford University Press eBooks, Oct 26, 2020
As mentioned in Chapter 1, if any ideal has been widely recognized as the cornerstone of democrac... more As mentioned in Chapter 1, if any ideal has been widely recognized as the cornerstone of democracy, it is freedom. Beyond the different and diverging perspectives adopted to analyse the conditions that make possible a functioning democracy, liberal scholars have been united in saying that without freedom, democracy cannot exist. There is, therefore, a broad consensus that freedom is foundational to a democratic regime (see, e.g., Andersen et al., 2014). This core notion of liberal democracy has received little attention in the debate on the causes and effects of the economic crisis (European Council, 2016, 2017; Eurobarometer, 2015, 2016). Research into citizens' perception also fell short when it came to casting light upon the state of freedoms. The international debate during the first two decades of the twenty-first century, which refers to the economic crisis and the subsequent actions governments were expected to take, touches predominantly on the worsening of equality rather than the restriction of freedoms. In a way, the frame through which the crisis and all the remedies adopted to respond to it entered into the international narrative and into policy assessment exercises, focused on reducing inequalities and expanding the opportunities for inclusive growth (OECD, 2013, 2017; European Commission, 2009, 2014). Besides, citizens' perceptions seem to match the tones and topics of official political discourse. Therefore, if not overlooked, individual freedoms have certainly been considered as an 'acquis'. However, this affirmation has to be downplayed if we refer to the most recent years, specifically from 2015. Since then, the increasing alarm connected with the boost of international terrorism prioritized issues relating to the protection of public order and civilian safety as opposed to the protection of individual freedoms. The waves of migration experienced by the European Member States, with greater intensity by the ones facing the Mediterranean Sea, called for targeted measures as well. The interplay between anti-terrorism legislation and migration policies is far from being consensual and uncontended. However, the impact of the transformations on European democracies, as a result of the pressure of these two different and yet interacting phenomena, proved to be highly disruptive for the protection and scope of individual freedoms.
Oxford University Press eBooks, Oct 26, 2020
Links to third party websites are provided by Oxford in good faith and for information only. Oxfo... more Links to third party websites are provided by Oxford in good faith and for information only. Oxford disclaims any responsibility for the materials contained in any third party website referenced in this work.
The Impact of the Economic Crisis on South European Democracies, 2017
The chapter starts with an analysis of the channels of political representation within democracie... more The chapter starts with an analysis of the channels of political representation within democracies, by emphasizing its diversity and interdependence. At the same time, it shows that one of the main effects of the 2008 Great Recession has been the decline of all institutionalized channels, be they through elections and parties, or be they through interest groups and associations. Indeed, the crisis of interest associations, trade unions included, and of neo-corporatist arrangements has been a factor of weakness in the management of the crisis: the governments lost one of the main factors of regulations through the interest intermediate structures. This situation is clearly new with respect to what happened during the crisis of 1929, in post-war reconstruction, and in some respects, even during the stagflation of the 1970s. The crisis of functional channels favoured the formulation of selective austerity policies that have ended up aggravating the effects of the crisis and at the same time have fuelled the use of non-conventional channels of political expression with protest movements. The chapter also highlights the national characteristics of the relationships among the different channels of representation, while emphasizing the flexibility in their use by voters as a common factor in all four cases.
Routledge eBooks, Jul 25, 2008
Oxford University Press eBooks, Oct 26, 2020
What Equalities and Freedoms Does the EU Bring? 'More freedoms and equalities' are the promises o... more What Equalities and Freedoms Does the EU Bring? 'More freedoms and equalities' are the promises of European integration (Warlouzet, 2014). In a nutshell, this is the underlying narrative of the constitutional trajectories traced by EU laws (De Witte, 2001). This promising perspective refers both to the present and to the future, which means that the European influence equally guarantees all conditions ensuring freedoms and equalities. Entrenchment and consolidation of the related institutional conditions are in the scope of the EU. With different paces and paths, this has also been the narrative inspiring the bulk of the policies carried out by European institutions. Every significant dimension of the freedoms and equalities, as operationalized in chapters 2 and 3, falls into the scope of action of the EU. The Union impinges upon them with a wide range of policy tools, ranging from normative to cognitive inputs. On the 'demand-side' , i.e., on the side of the expectations of citizens and companies, the EU is expected to deliver more mobility, more opportunities and more homogeneous results among member States and regions (Ferrera, 2005; Caporaso, 2007). However, the gap between results achieved and outcomes promised represents slippery terrain for EU legitimacy, primarily if that legitimacy is assessed against an output-oriented set of criteria (Kriesi, 2013). This chapter takes a critical stance toward a top-down view of the European influence on domestic political systems: the significance of external factors in determining domestic processes of change is here considered together with the different types of domestic factors with which the external forces interact. In this respect, the patterns of influences that are invoked to explain the changes in freedoms and equalities are multi-level and principally pivot upon specific domestic procedural dimensions.1 This analytical approach is furthermore strengthened
Equality, Freedom, and Democracy
The most salient empirical results can be summed up in a few points. First, despite the complexit... more The most salient empirical results can be summed up in a few points. First, despite the complexities and necessary distinctions, the consensual democracies with coordinated economies tend to have redistributive policy solutions and to correct inequalities. Second, the salience of the migration issue derives either from the consequences of the economic crisis (Italy, Spain, and France) or from basic ideological orientations (Poland). Third, with the Great Recession, the presence of new parties and populist parties became a distinguishing aspect of our six countries. Greater dissatisfaction and the growth of the new protest parties pushed the incumbent leaders to be more responsive. Fourth, we distinguish between a revendicative populism (leftist or inclusionary) and an identitarian populism (rightist or exclusionary). Identitarian populism mainly prevailed in Poland—but has a specific salience also in other countries: from France, with the Front National, to Italy with the League of ...
Democratization
This chapter examines the role of political parties in the processes of democratization, that is,... more This chapter examines the role of political parties in the processes of democratization, that is, during transition, installation, and consolidation, and the possible phases of democratic crisis. It first considers the definition of a political party within the processes of democratization before discussing how parties can be indispensable for the actual working of democracy. It then explores the actual role of political parties during transitions to democracy and during democratic consolidation, and in different types of crises. It also describes basic patterns of transition to democracy as well as key elements of democratic consolidation, including electoral stabilization and emergence of recurring patterns of party competition. The chapter shows that parties are dominant in the process of transition, even if not always hegemonic.
International Actors, Democratization and the Rule of Law, 2008
When analysing transitions towards democracy during the last three decades of the 20th century an... more When analysing transitions towards democracy during the last three decades of the 20th century and the first decade of the 21st century, it is readily apparent that the variety of empirical processes is so wide that achieving meaningful theoretical results is extremely difficult, as the existing literature on the topic shows explicitly. This paper addresses the key theoretical questions that need to be dealt with by the empirical analysis of the transitional process. Are there key, recurring actors and factors that we should take into account when analysing all cases in depth? Why is a focus on installation (not only on transition) salient? Are there recurring patterns of successful transitions? Are there key recurring mechanisms that critically explain successful transitions? And are there obstacles that make it impossible to achieve a successful transition and doom such a process to failure? On the basis of existing knowledge in the subfield, an attempt is made to reply to these q...
International Actors, Democratization and the Rule of Law, 2008
In recent years the agenda of how to ‘deal with the past’ has become a central dimen- sion of the... more In recent years the agenda of how to ‘deal with the past’ has become a central dimen- sion of the quality of contemporary democracies. Many years after the process of authoritarian breakdown, consolidated democracies revisit the past either symbolically or to punish the elites associated with the previous authoritarian regimes. New factors, like international environment, conditionality, party cleavages, memory cycles and commemorations or politics of apologies, do sometimes bring the past back into the political arena. This book addresses such themes by dealing with two dimensions of authoritarian legacies in Southern European democracies: repressive institutions and human rights abuses. The thrust of this book is that we should view transitional justice as part of a broader ‘politics of the past’: an ongoing process in which elites and society under democratic rule revise the meaning of the past in terms of what they hope to achieve in the present.