Problems of Democratization: Overextension and Consolidation

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Lecture by George Modelski, Professor of Political Science Emeritus at the University of Washington, Seattle. Polish-born, he was educated at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where he received a BSc in Economics, and earned a PhD in International Relations (University of London). His principal appointments were at in the Institute of Advanced Studies of the Australian National University, Canberra, and since 1967, at the University of Washington, where he taught International Relations and World Politics. His visiting and research appointments included those at the University of Chicago, Princeton University (Center of International Studies), Harvard University (Center for International Affairs), the Netherlands Institute of Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences, Stockholm University, and University of Catania. Among the books he authored, co-authored, edited or co-edited are Principles of World Politics, Long Cycles in World Politics, Sea Power in Global Politics, Documenting Global Leadership, A Theory of Foreign Policy, Leading Sectors and World Powers, World System History, and World Cities. His research interests include evolution of global politics, world system history, and democratization. The current project is "Globalization as an Evolutionary Process." An early member of the Committee for a Community of Democracies, he now resides in Washington DC and works closely with the Streit Council.

American University, SIS Building, Room 203, 4400 Massachusetts Avenue, NW Washington , DC 20016 - April 18, 2007

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Summary

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Prof. Modleski noted that democratization is one of the central phenomena of our times. Empirical evidence shows it to have been, over a century and a half, a trend that is both global in its reach and long-term in its trajectory. By the year 2000 it was "ahead of the learning curve" - implying an overextension that counsels patience. The prudent course for the present is to consolidate the great democratic achievements of the past two decades.

 

Read Prof. Modelski's article: "Problems of Democratization," published in Freedom & Union vol. no.1 Spring 2007. For further information regarding Prof. Modelski's current research project, visit the Evolutionary World Politics Homepage.

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