Alan Siaroff
Biographic Data
| ID | 3495666 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Alan Siaroff |
| GIVEN NAMES | Alan |
| FAMILY NAME | Siaroff |
| SIGNATURE | SIAROFF A |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Lethbridge |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 23 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 603 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 23 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1986 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2013 |
| H-INDEX | 8 |
Comparing Political Regimes: A Thematic Introduction to Comparative Politics, Third Edition
Comparing Political Regimes provides a comprehensive assessment of the world’s political systems by outlining and contrasting the aspects of four different regime types: liberal democracies, electoral democracies, semi-liberal autocracies, and closed autocracies
The Kingmaker is Dead, Long Live the Kingmaker: Examining the Degree of Influence of Small Parties in the Coalition-formation Process in Germany
This article examines the role of small parties in the German party system. It thus attempts to make a contribution to a largely under-researched topic in the existing literature. The goal is to determine the influence and ultimately the pivotal role of small parties over time both federally and in each Land (1949–2010). For that purpose we develop a five-point ‘opportunity structure’ scale. During the heyday of West Germany's two-and-a-half-part…
How Barack Obama's Votes Beat Hillary Clinton's Votes in the 2008 Democratic Presidential Contest: Not Malapportionment, But Turnout Variation and the Florida Effect
The long-lasting race between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton for the Democratic Presidential nomination finished with Obama winning a clear majority of the pledged delegates. Yet he did not win a majority of all votes cast, and indeed the popular vote total was extremely close. This article assesses how a close vote total translated into a delegate victory for Obama. Three factors are assessed: malapportionment in terms of delegates per state, …
Creating European Citizens, Willem Maas, Lanham MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007, pp. 179
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Spurious majorities, electoral systems and electoral system change
Although there have been many analyses of the phenomenon of 'manufactured majorities', that is, those where a party wins a majority of seats on a minority of the popular vote, there has been much less analysis of situations where this party in fact comes in second in the popular vote. This article analyses such 'spurious majorities' by assessing all such outcomes in democratic parliamentary elections. Spurious majorities have essentially been a p…
Two-and-a-Half-Party Systems and the Comparative Role of the `Half
In this article, the concept of the `two-and-a-half-party system' is re-examined, with particular focus on the role of the `half'. The analysis is on longer-term parliamentary democracies since 1945 or democratization. First, various ways of measuring a party system are outlined, and a new alternative is proposed. Based on this, 10 countries are seen to qualify (at least for certain time periods) as two-and-a-half-party systems: Australia, Austri…
Varieties of Parliamentarianism in the Advanced Industrial Democracies
This article outlines what is meant by a parliamentary form of government and analyzes how such regimes vary in the postwar advanced industrial democracies. A wide range of variables are discussed and measured annually. Factor analysis is used to produce eight different aspects of parliamentarianism. The first two of these yield a twodimensional analysis. Based on these two key factors, it is argued that there are three main types of parliamentar…
Comparative presidencies: The inadequacy of the presidential, semi‐presidential and parliamentary distinction
The role of the president is presumed to vary amongst presidential, semi‐presidential and parliamentary systems. However, there are a variety of subtypes within semi‐presidential systems. Debate often hinges on the prime minister and government, and to whom they are more accountable. However, the accountability of prime ministers and governments to presidents can be rather ‘fuzzy’. This article looks through the prism of the president rather than…
Parliamentary Election Turnout in Europe since 1990
This article examines the cross-national variations in turnout for parliamentary elections in Europe since 1990 – a continent with a vast range in turnout levels and some clear subregional patterns, especially that of low turnout in East-Central Europe. A full range of socio-economic, mobilizational, party system, institutional, and contextual factors are examined for bivariate relationships with turnout. A multivariate model then indicates that …
Elections to the European parliament: Testing alternative models of what they indicate in the member nations
The conventional analysis of European Parliament elections is that they have little to do with ‘Europe’ in the sense of pan‐European issues or mandates. This article will assess two contrasting hypotheses about such elections. The first approach is the classic model of these elections being second‐order elections with the expectation of an anti‐government swing vote. The second, alternative hypothesis is that these elections demonstrate the expre…
And Now 2000: Decisive small state bias in the US Electoral College
British AMS versus German ‘Personalised PR: Not so different
Alan Siaroff compares party proportionality under the German Additional Member voting system with a similar system used to elect the Scottish Parliament and Welsh National Assembly
Women’s Representation in Legislatures and Cabinets in Industrial Democracies
Across the advanced industrial polities, there exists a wide range in the percentage of women in national parliaments. However, the range is in fact wider still for women in cabinets. Moreover, whereas the literature on comparative female representation in parliament is now well established, comparative analysis of women in cabinets is rather limited. This article will examine both phenomena, using the most recent national elections (through the …
The Fate of Centrifugal Democracies: Lessons from Consociational Theory and System Performance
Corporatism in 24 industrial democracies: Meaning and measurement
The ongoing use of the concept of ‘corporatism’ in industrial democracies has been stretched to include overlapping but still distinctive realities, which in turn often produce different ‘lists’ of corporatist economies. Consequently, this analysis sets out to disentangle the concept of corporatism and to suggest a replacement. It includes a comparative classification of 24 long–term industrial democracies in terms of the corporatism scores given…
Premature democracies, the promotion of development and political-cultural factors
Given the strong relationship between development and democracy, it has been argued that 'premature' democracies will survive mainly if they successfully promote socioeconomic development. This analysis examines all cases of democratisation up to 1980, measures development in terms of the achievement of four thresholds, and contrasts surviving with failing premature democracies. It is found that the successful promotion of development aids democr…
The mirror has broken: Increasing divergence between national and land elections in Austria
Austrian party politics has involved increasing dissimilarity between national and Länder voting, with the ÖVP now doing much better in Land elections than in national elections, and the SPÖ showing a reverse pattern. This analysis measures dissimilarity and related values both over time and across the Länder. It is shown that there have been three phases in terms of overall dissimilarity. Moreover, the nine Länder are grouped into four clusters …
Corporatism in 24 industrial democracies: Meaning and measurement
The ongoing use of the concept of ‘corporatism’ in industrial democracies has been stretched to include overlapping but still distinctive realities, which in turn often produce different ‘lists’of corporatist economies. Consequently, this analysis sets out to disentangle the concept of corporatism and to suggest a replacement. It includes a comparative classification of 24 long–term industrial democracies in terms of the corporatism scores given …
Democratic Breakdown and Democratic Stability: A Comparison of Interwar Estonia and Finland
Two of the new states of interwar Europe were Estonia and Finland. Both arose out of the Russian Empire and both were literate, Protestant nations. Yet democracy broke down in Estonia but survived in Finland. These outcomes would seem ironic, given that Finnish independence involved a brutal civil war and Finland was linguistically divided—factors not present in Estonia. This study, however, examines not just the nature of independence but also t…
Recent Views on the History of and Prospects for Democracy in Latin America
Democratization and democratic stability are issues that are increasingly important, if not indeed trendy, within social sciences such as political science, sociology and even economics. Not only are there now specific journals devoted to these themes, but in recent years there has been a proliferation of books as well. Perhaps not surprisingly, many of these books have focused on cases within Latin America, given the long-term problems with demo…
The State and Industrial Followers: Japanese Versus French Computer Strategy, 1960s–1980s
Within the advanced capitalist world, Japan and France have normally been the main examples of strong, interventionist states. From the 1960s onwards, government policy in each nation attempted to cultivate a domestically based computer industry in response to American dominance. This seemed to be parallel cases of strong states attempting to target an industry in order to catch up. However, by the start of the 1980s it was clear that French poli…
Work, Welfare and Gender Equality: A New Typology
Postindustrial Politics in Germany and the Origins of the Greens
The 1983 German federal election marks the first time since the establishment of the three-party system in the 1950s that a new party has gained sufficient votes to enter the Bundestag. More important, the party that achieved this, the Greens, is one that poses a fundamental challenge to the established structure of political elites in the Federal Republic. The combination of a successful breakthrough by a protest movement, often labeled an antip…
Corporatism in 24 industrial democracies: Meaning and measurement
The ongoing use of the concept of ‘corporatism’ in industrial democracies has been stretched to include overlapping but still distinctive realities, which in turn often produce different ‘lists’of corporatist economies. Consequently, this analysis sets out to disentangle the concept of corporatism and to suggest a replacement. It includes a comparative classification of 24 long–term industrial democracies in terms of the corporatism scores given …
Comparative presidencies: The inadequacy of the presidential, semi‐presidential and parliamentary distinction
The role of the president is presumed to vary amongst presidential, semi‐presidential and parliamentary systems. However, there are a variety of subtypes within semi‐presidential systems. Debate often hinges on the prime minister and government, and to whom they are more accountable. However, the accountability of prime ministers and governments to presidents can be rather ‘fuzzy’. This article looks through the prism of the president rather than…
Women’s Representation in Legislatures and Cabinets in Industrial Democracies
Across the advanced industrial polities, there exists a wide range in the percentage of women in national parliaments. However, the range is in fact wider still for women in cabinets. Moreover, whereas the literature on comparative female representation in parliament is now well established, comparative analysis of women in cabinets is rather limited. This article will examine both phenomena, using the most recent national elections (through the …
Parliamentary Election Turnout in Europe since 1990
This article examines the cross-national variations in turnout for parliamentary elections in Europe since 1990 – a continent with a vast range in turnout levels and some clear subregional patterns, especially that of low turnout in East-Central Europe. A full range of socio-economic, mobilizational, party system, institutional, and contextual factors are examined for bivariate relationships with turnout. A multivariate model then indicates that …
Varieties of Parliamentarianism in the Advanced Industrial Democracies
This article outlines what is meant by a parliamentary form of government and analyzes how such regimes vary in the postwar advanced industrial democracies. A wide range of variables are discussed and measured annually. Factor analysis is used to produce eight different aspects of parliamentarianism. The first two of these yield a twodimensional analysis. Based on these two key factors, it is argued that there are three main types of parliamentar…
Two-and-a-Half-Party Systems and the Comparative Role of the `Half
In this article, the concept of the `two-and-a-half-party system' is re-examined, with particular focus on the role of the `half'. The analysis is on longer-term parliamentary democracies since 1945 or democratization. First, various ways of measuring a party system are outlined, and a new alternative is proposed. Based on this, 10 countries are seen to qualify (at least for certain time periods) as two-and-a-half-party systems: Australia, Austri…
Postindustrial Politics in Germany and the Origins of the Greens
The 1983 German federal election marks the first time since the establishment of the three-party system in the 1950s that a new party has gained sufficient votes to enter the Bundestag. More important, the party that achieved this, the Greens, is one that poses a fundamental challenge to the established structure of political elites in the Federal Republic. The combination of a successful breakthrough by a protest movement, often labeled an antip…
The mirror has broken: Increasing divergence between national and land elections in Austria
Austrian party politics has involved increasing dissimilarity between national and Länder voting, with the ÖVP now doing much better in Land elections than in national elections, and the SPÖ showing a reverse pattern. This analysis measures dissimilarity and related values both over time and across the Länder. It is shown that there have been three phases in terms of overall dissimilarity. Moreover, the nine Länder are grouped into four clusters …
Spurious majorities, electoral systems and electoral system change
Although there have been many analyses of the phenomenon of 'manufactured majorities', that is, those where a party wins a majority of seats on a minority of the popular vote, there has been much less analysis of situations where this party in fact comes in second in the popular vote. This article analyses such 'spurious majorities' by assessing all such outcomes in democratic parliamentary elections. Spurious majorities have essentially been a p…
British AMS versus German ‘Personalised PR: Not so different
Alan Siaroff compares party proportionality under the German Additional Member voting system with a similar system used to elect the Scottish Parliament and Welsh National Assembly
Democratic Breakdown and Democratic Stability: A Comparison of Interwar Estonia and Finland
Two of the new states of interwar Europe were Estonia and Finland. Both arose out of the Russian Empire and both were literate, Protestant nations. Yet democracy broke down in Estonia but survived in Finland. These outcomes would seem ironic, given that Finnish independence involved a brutal civil war and Finland was linguistically divided—factors not present in Estonia. This study, however, examines not just the nature of independence but also t…
The Kingmaker is Dead, Long Live the Kingmaker: Examining the Degree of Influence of Small Parties in the Coalition-formation Process in Germany
This article examines the role of small parties in the German party system. It thus attempts to make a contribution to a largely under-researched topic in the existing literature. The goal is to determine the influence and ultimately the pivotal role of small parties over time both federally and in each Land (1949–2010). For that purpose we develop a five-point ‘opportunity structure’ scale. During the heyday of West Germany's two-and-a-half-part…
The Fate of Centrifugal Democracies: Lessons from Consociational Theory and System Performance
Elections to the European parliament: Testing alternative models of what they indicate in the member nations
The conventional analysis of European Parliament elections is that they have little to do with ‘Europe’ in the sense of pan‐European issues or mandates. This article will assess two contrasting hypotheses about such elections. The first approach is the classic model of these elections being second‐order elections with the expectation of an anti‐government swing vote. The second, alternative hypothesis is that these elections demonstrate the expre…
Premature democracies, the promotion of development and political-cultural factors
Given the strong relationship between development and democracy, it has been argued that 'premature' democracies will survive mainly if they successfully promote socioeconomic development. This analysis examines all cases of democratisation up to 1980, measures development in terms of the achievement of four thresholds, and contrasts surviving with failing premature democracies. It is found that the successful promotion of development aids democr…
Recent Views on the History of and Prospects for Democracy in Latin America
Democratization and democratic stability are issues that are increasingly important, if not indeed trendy, within social sciences such as political science, sociology and even economics. Not only are there now specific journals devoted to these themes, but in recent years there has been a proliferation of books as well. Perhaps not surprisingly, many of these books have focused on cases within Latin America, given the long-term problems with demo…
The State and Industrial Followers: Japanese Versus French Computer Strategy, 1960s–1980s
Within the advanced capitalist world, Japan and France have normally been the main examples of strong, interventionist states. From the 1960s onwards, government policy in each nation attempted to cultivate a domestically based computer industry in response to American dominance. This seemed to be parallel cases of strong states attempting to target an industry in order to catch up. However, by the start of the 1980s it was clear that French poli…
Postindustrial Politics in Germany and the Origins of the Greens
The 1983 German federal election marks the first time since the establishment of the three-party system in the 1950s that a new party has gained sufficient votes to enter the Bundestag. More important, the party that achieved this, the Greens, is one that poses a fundamental challenge to the established structure of political elites in the Federal Republic. The combination of a successful breakthrough by a protest movement, often labeled an antip…
Work, Welfare and Gender Equality: A New Typology
The State and Industrial Followers: Japanese Versus French Computer Strategy, 1960s–1980s
Within the advanced capitalist world, Japan and France have normally been the main examples of strong, interventionist states. From the 1960s onwards, government policy in each nation attempted to cultivate a domestically based computer industry in response to American dominance. This seemed to be parallel cases of strong states attempting to target an industry in order to catch up. However, by the start of the 1980s it was clear that French poli…
Recent Views on the History of and Prospects for Democracy in Latin America
Democratization and democratic stability are issues that are increasingly important, if not indeed trendy, within social sciences such as political science, sociology and even economics. Not only are there now specific journals devoted to these themes, but in recent years there has been a proliferation of books as well. Perhaps not surprisingly, many of these books have focused on cases within Latin America, given the long-term problems with demo…
Corporatism in 24 industrial democracies: Meaning and measurement
The ongoing use of the concept of ‘corporatism’ in industrial democracies has been stretched to include overlapping but still distinctive realities, which in turn often produce different ‘lists’ of corporatist economies. Consequently, this analysis sets out to disentangle the concept of corporatism and to suggest a replacement. It includes a comparative classification of 24 long–term industrial democracies in terms of the corporatism scores given…
Premature democracies, the promotion of development and political-cultural factors
Given the strong relationship between development and democracy, it has been argued that 'premature' democracies will survive mainly if they successfully promote socioeconomic development. This analysis examines all cases of democratisation up to 1980, measures development in terms of the achievement of four thresholds, and contrasts surviving with failing premature democracies. It is found that the successful promotion of development aids democr…
The mirror has broken: Increasing divergence between national and land elections in Austria
Austrian party politics has involved increasing dissimilarity between national and Länder voting, with the ÖVP now doing much better in Land elections than in national elections, and the SPÖ showing a reverse pattern. This analysis measures dissimilarity and related values both over time and across the Länder. It is shown that there have been three phases in terms of overall dissimilarity. Moreover, the nine Länder are grouped into four clusters …
Corporatism in 24 industrial democracies: Meaning and measurement
The ongoing use of the concept of ‘corporatism’ in industrial democracies has been stretched to include overlapping but still distinctive realities, which in turn often produce different ‘lists’of corporatist economies. Consequently, this analysis sets out to disentangle the concept of corporatism and to suggest a replacement. It includes a comparative classification of 24 long–term industrial democracies in terms of the corporatism scores given …
Democratic Breakdown and Democratic Stability: A Comparison of Interwar Estonia and Finland
Two of the new states of interwar Europe were Estonia and Finland. Both arose out of the Russian Empire and both were literate, Protestant nations. Yet democracy broke down in Estonia but survived in Finland. These outcomes would seem ironic, given that Finnish independence involved a brutal civil war and Finland was linguistically divided—factors not present in Estonia. This study, however, examines not just the nature of independence but also t…
British AMS versus German ‘Personalised PR: Not so different
Alan Siaroff compares party proportionality under the German Additional Member voting system with a similar system used to elect the Scottish Parliament and Welsh National Assembly
Women’s Representation in Legislatures and Cabinets in Industrial Democracies
Across the advanced industrial polities, there exists a wide range in the percentage of women in national parliaments. However, the range is in fact wider still for women in cabinets. Moreover, whereas the literature on comparative female representation in parliament is now well established, comparative analysis of women in cabinets is rather limited. This article will examine both phenomena, using the most recent national elections (through the …
The Fate of Centrifugal Democracies: Lessons from Consociational Theory and System Performance
Elections to the European parliament: Testing alternative models of what they indicate in the member nations
The conventional analysis of European Parliament elections is that they have little to do with ‘Europe’ in the sense of pan‐European issues or mandates. This article will assess two contrasting hypotheses about such elections. The first approach is the classic model of these elections being second‐order elections with the expectation of an anti‐government swing vote. The second, alternative hypothesis is that these elections demonstrate the expre…
And Now 2000: Decisive small state bias in the US Electoral College
Parliamentary Election Turnout in Europe since 1990
This article examines the cross-national variations in turnout for parliamentary elections in Europe since 1990 – a continent with a vast range in turnout levels and some clear subregional patterns, especially that of low turnout in East-Central Europe. A full range of socio-economic, mobilizational, party system, institutional, and contextual factors are examined for bivariate relationships with turnout. A multivariate model then indicates that …
Spurious majorities, electoral systems and electoral system change
Although there have been many analyses of the phenomenon of 'manufactured majorities', that is, those where a party wins a majority of seats on a minority of the popular vote, there has been much less analysis of situations where this party in fact comes in second in the popular vote. This article analyses such 'spurious majorities' by assessing all such outcomes in democratic parliamentary elections. Spurious majorities have essentially been a p…
Two-and-a-Half-Party Systems and the Comparative Role of the `Half
In this article, the concept of the `two-and-a-half-party system' is re-examined, with particular focus on the role of the `half'. The analysis is on longer-term parliamentary democracies since 1945 or democratization. First, various ways of measuring a party system are outlined, and a new alternative is proposed. Based on this, 10 countries are seen to qualify (at least for certain time periods) as two-and-a-half-party systems: Australia, Austri…
Varieties of Parliamentarianism in the Advanced Industrial Democracies
This article outlines what is meant by a parliamentary form of government and analyzes how such regimes vary in the postwar advanced industrial democracies. A wide range of variables are discussed and measured annually. Factor analysis is used to produce eight different aspects of parliamentarianism. The first two of these yield a twodimensional analysis. Based on these two key factors, it is argued that there are three main types of parliamentar…
Comparative presidencies: The inadequacy of the presidential, semi‐presidential and parliamentary distinction
The role of the president is presumed to vary amongst presidential, semi‐presidential and parliamentary systems. However, there are a variety of subtypes within semi‐presidential systems. Debate often hinges on the prime minister and government, and to whom they are more accountable. However, the accountability of prime ministers and governments to presidents can be rather ‘fuzzy’. This article looks through the prism of the president rather than…
How Barack Obama's Votes Beat Hillary Clinton's Votes in the 2008 Democratic Presidential Contest: Not Malapportionment, But Turnout Variation and the Florida Effect
The long-lasting race between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton for the Democratic Presidential nomination finished with Obama winning a clear majority of the pledged delegates. Yet he did not win a majority of all votes cast, and indeed the popular vote total was extremely close. This article assesses how a close vote total translated into a delegate victory for Obama. Three factors are assessed: malapportionment in terms of delegates per state, …
Creating European Citizens, Willem Maas, Lanham MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007, pp. 179
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
The Kingmaker is Dead, Long Live the Kingmaker: Examining the Degree of Influence of Small Parties in the Coalition-formation Process in Germany
This article examines the role of small parties in the German party system. It thus attempts to make a contribution to a largely under-researched topic in the existing literature. The goal is to determine the influence and ultimately the pivotal role of small parties over time both federally and in each Land (1949–2010). For that purpose we develop a five-point ‘opportunity structure’ scale. During the heyday of West Germany's two-and-a-half-part…
Comparing Political Regimes: A Thematic Introduction to Comparative Politics, Third Edition
Comparing Political Regimes provides a comprehensive assessment of the world’s political systems by outlining and contrasting the aspects of four different regime types: liberal democracies, electoral democracies, semi-liberal autocracies, and closed autocracies
Political science (23 works) · Law (19 works) · Politics (19 works) · Law (17 works) · Political economy (16 works) · Economics (15 works) · Electoral Systems and Political Participation (10 works) · Sociology (9 works) · Public Administration (8 works) · Public Administration (8 works)