2008 Conference Program - Midwest Political Science Association

Friday, April 4-10:00 am
3-7 ETHNICITY AND CHALLENGES OF UNREST
Room Suite 15-150 on the 15th Floor, Fri at 10:00 am
Chair Alexander C. Tan, University of Canterbury
alex.tan@canterbury.ac.nz
Paper Mixed Effects of Diversity on Interethnic Trust: Ethnically
Divided States
Ethnic diversity does not always produce lower interethnic trust in
divided, democratizing states. The effect of ethnic homogeneity and
heterogeneity depends on ethnic group social status. Heterogeneity
can produce more trust than homogeneity.
Kimberly Shella, University of California, Irvine
kshella@uci.edu
Paper Assimilation and its Alternatives: Albanians in Serbian Kosovo,
1912-1940
Why were the Albanians in Kosovo targeted with exclusion in
1913, assimilation in 1918 and minority rights in the mid 1920s I
propose a theory of nation-building that highlights the importance of
interstate relations over domestic factors.
Harris Mylonas, Yale University
mylonas@yale.edu
Paper Does Ethnic Fractionalization Help Explain Corruption
This paper focuses on ethnic fractionalization as a potential
determinant of corruption. The OLS and WLS models show that
ethnic fractionalization, in interaction with GNP per capita and
regime-type has a strong on corruption.
Vagisha I. Gunasekara, Purdue University
vgunasek@purdue.edu
Paper Civil Society Organizations in Sierra Leone: Genesis and
Advocacy
This paper will examine to what degree the mode of genesis
(externally induced or organically "home grown") of civil society
organizations affects their ability to engage in advocacy. The
findings are based on survey research in Sierra Leone.
Fodei Batty, Western Michigan University
fjbatty@yahoo.com
Jim Butterfield, Western Michigan University
jim.butterfield@wmich.edu
3-19 SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND CIVIL SOCIETY
Room Suite 13-150 on the 13th Floor, Fri at 10:00 am
Chair Pramod K. Kantha, Wright State University, Dayton
pramod.kantha@wright.edu
Paper Resource Rebellion: Social Movements, Subsistence, and the
Bolivian Water Wars
In 2000, thousands of Cochabambans protested the privatization of
their water supply. I argue that to explain the origins and internal
dynamics of this movement we must pay systematic attention to the
subsistence nature of the grievance—water itself.
Erica S. Simmons, University of Chicago
ericas@uchicago.edu
Paper Power and Resistance: Between Social Movements and Covert
Resistance
What is the linkage if any between collective resistance in the form
of social movements and covert/everyday forms of resistance The
paper argues that the two have to be linked for structural changes to
happen.
Rabab El-Mahdi, American University in Cairo
relmahdi@aucegypt.edu
Sameh Naguib, American University in Cairo
Sameh_naguib@yahoo.com
4-7 INTERNATIONAL CAUSES OF
DEMOCRATIZATION
Room Cresthill on the 3rd Floor, Fri at 10:00 am
Chair Sarah E. Wilson Sokhey, Ohio State Univeristy
sokhey.3@osu.edu
Paper Trade, Economic Crisis, and Democratization
I examine how economic crisis and openness interact to affect
democratization. Crisis is less likely to spur democratization in
authoritarian regimes with open economies because because the
opposition members' exit option is less costly.
Joseph Wright, Princeton University
jw4@princeton.edu
Paper
Paper
Paper
Paper
Disc.
The Endogenous Impact of International Economic
Involvement on Democracy
This paper tries to answer the question "does a country's
involvement in the international economy facilitate the emergence
of democratic regimes in that country’s domestic politics”
Joseph Xi Chen, University of South Carolina
xichen@sc.edu
International Investment Factors of Democratization
Explores the affects of international investments on
democratization. Not all types of investments promote democracy,
some may actually hinder its prospects. Looks at trade, FDI
(horizontal and vertical) as well as portfolio investments.
Denese Brewer, Texas Tech University
brewer.n@sbcglobal.net
The Influence of International Factors in Aid to the Post-
Communist States
I explain the influence and impact that international factors have
on the consolidation of market economies and democracy in the
post-communist states by determining how these factors shape the
amount of aid from the IMF, the World Bank and the EBRD.
Jennifer Romine, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
jeromine@uiuc.edu
Election Observation and the Democratization of
Transformation States
Do election observations have an effect on the level of democracy in
transition states By using data from 109 transformation states and
approaching the data with a cross-sectional-time-series model, I will
investigate this causal link.
Michael Cemerin, University of Zurich
cemerin@pw.uzh.ch
Sarah E. Wilson Sokhey, Ohio State Univeristy
sokhey.3@osu.edu
4-20 TRANSITION POLITICS IN AFRICA
Room UEH 407 on the 4th Floor, Fri at 10:00 am
Chair Raphael Obi Ogom, DePaul University, Chicago
rogom@depaul.edu
Paper Civilian Control of the Military and Democratic Consolidation
in Africa
This paper addresses the complex relationship between the civilian
control of the military and the consolidation of democracy in coupfree
countries of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Joel Luc Raveloharimisy, Western Michigan University
joelluc.raveloharimisy@wmich.edu
Paper Political Parties, the 2007 Elections and the Challenge to
Democratization in Nigeria
The 2007 election in Nigeria underscored the country's recurring
crisis of leadership, weak institutions and the very shifty
commitment of its elites to the core principles of democracy.
N.Oluwafemi Oluwafemi Mimiko, Obafemi Awolowo University,
Nigeria
mimikofemi@yahoo.com
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