2007 Conference Program - Midwest Political Science Association

7-3 MISSION IMPOSSIBLE? A COMMON FOREIGN
POLICY FOR EUROPE
Room Sandburg 7, 7 th Floor, Thur at 12:45 pm
Chair Madeleine O. Hosli, Leiden University
Paper Civilian Power or EUtopia? An Analysis of the EU's Foreign
Policy Discourse
Christian Burckhardt, Oxford University
Overview: The European Union's foreign policy is frequently
portrayed in the literature as driven by ideational dynamics. The
paper conducts a discourse analysis to find out whether this view
is actually shared by EU officials.
Paper Institutional Failure or Commitment Mechanism? EU Foreign
Policy and Russia
Irina M. Busygina, MGIMO
Overview: The paper argues that unanimity with “constructive
abstention” is a method of preserving commitment of all members
of the EU when they deal with the most important challenges of
foreign policy. The EU policy toward Russia illustrates the
argument.
Paper Member State Preferences Matter: Foreign Policy Gridlock in
the EU
Matthew P. Cherry, University of Iowa
Overview: This research systematically addresses the question of
why the EU has found it difficult to develop a common foreign
policy.
Paper Causes of Consensus in CFSP: Preference Convergence or
Strategic Selection?
Leanne C. Powner, University of Michigan
Overview: Is the lack of dissensus in EU foreign policy
cooperation the result of preference convergence, as
constructivists suggest, or a rationalist selection mechanism?
Paper News Framing and Public Support for a Common Foreign and
Security Policy
Claes H. DeVreese, University of Amsterdam
Anna Kandyla, University of Amsterdam
Overview: A study of how news media framing can affect public
support for a CFSP. Results are discussed in the light of the EU’s
legitimacy problems.
Disc. Claes H. DeVreese, University of Amsterdam
8-3 INSTITUTIONAL INSTABILITY IN LATIN
AMERICA
Room Sandburg 6, 7 th Floor, Thur at 12:45 pm
Chair Gretchen Helmke, University of Rochester
Paper Presidential Crises and Popular Protest in Latin America
Anibal Perez-linan, University of Pittsburg
Overview: An analysis of executive-legislative crises after the
third wave of democratization shows that popular mobilization has
consistently tipped the balance against the Executive branch.
Paper The Durability of Constitutions in Changing Environments: A
Study on Constitutional Stability in Latin America
Gabriel L. Negretto, CIDE, Mexico
Overview: A survival model of the determinants of constitutional
durability in Latin America from 1946 to 2000 shows that
institutional design and political conflict are the most important
factors affecting the lifespan of constitutions.
Paper The Institutional Instability Trap: A Game Theoretic
Approach to Inter-Branch Conflict in Latin America
Gretchen Helmke, University of Rochester
Overview: A fundamental feature of institutional instability is that
tends to recur. To explain this apparent institutional instability
“trap,” the paper develops and tests a game theoretic model of
inter-branch crisis.
Paper Veto Players, the Policymaking Process, and Policy Stability in
Latin America
Carlos Pereira, Michigan State University
Shane P. Singh, Michigan State University
Overview: This study builds a model that predicts policy stability
as a function of veto players' tenure in office. While the existence
of certain veto players leads to stability the duration of veto
players also negatively affects the level of policy stability.
Disc. Mark Jones, Rice University
Barbara Geddes, University of California, Los Angeles
Page | 94
9-301 POSTER SESSION: FRONTIERS OF ASIAN
POLITICAL RESEARCH
Room Exhibit Hall, 4 th Floor, Thur at 12:45 pm
Presenter South Korea’s New Passion for Free Trade Agreements
(Board 15)
Jung In Jo, Lee University
Overview: This paper investigates how different factors contribute
to South Korea’s rush to conclude Free Trade Agreements.
Presenter China's Political Participation Decline and Institutional
Transformation
(Board 16)
Diqing Lou, Texas A&M University
Overview: This paper examines the decline in China’s urban
political participation in the past decade, and we found this
participation decline can be explained by the institutional
transformation brought by current economic reform and
development.
Presenter Muslim Participation in Indian Democracy
(Board 17)
Jane Menon, University of Michigan
Overview: Are Islam and democracy compatible? Given recent
events on the world stage, the willingness of Muslims to embrace
democracy has been openly challenged. To answer this question
more fully, I propose a study of Muslim participation in Indian
democracy.
10-1 AFRICA'S INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Room Sandburg 5, 7 th Floor, Thur at 12:45 pm
Chair Leslie O. Omoruyi, East Carolina University
Paper The Horn of Africa: Laboratory for Regressive Political
Choices
Tseggai Isaac, University of Missouri, Rolla
Overview: For more than thirty years, the Horn of Africa has
experienced political violence claiming millions of lives. The
worrisome aspect of this violence is that it seems to grow worse at
every decade. Sustained intervention by such powers as the
European Union.
Paper Characteristics of Least Developed Country Investment
Ryan J. Gibb, University of Kansas
Overview: My project investigates the characteristics of firms
investing in Least Developed Countries within the regions of
South and East Africa. Using firm-level analysis, I examine the
qualities of LDC public and private ownership.
Paper U.S.-African Energy Security: The Impact of Human Security
and Governance
Joshua D. Swartsel, United States Military Academy
Overview: How will African human security and political
governance issues impact the U.S.’s ability to gain access to
African energy resources? What strategy should the U.S.
implement to ameliorate these factors that could threaten U.S.
energy access?
Paper Environmental Critics of Globalization and Local Processes in
Africa
Ngeta Kabiri, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Overview: This study uses local level case studies to examine the
proposition that globalization has aided biodiversity conservation
in more ways than it has undermined the same (the question of
whether this has been by default or design notwithstanding).
Disc. Sue J. Nahm, Columbia University
11-1 AUTHORITARIAN RULE AND PROSPECTS FOR
DEMOCRACY IN THE MIDDLE EAST
Room Sandburg 4,7 th Floor, Thur at 12:45 pm
Chair Debra L. Shulman, Yale University
Paper Why do Authoritarians Hold Elections?: Theory and
Evidence from Egypt
Lisa Blaydes, University of California, Los Angeles
Overview: I argue that semi-competitive elections in Egypt
provide a myriad of functions for the authoritarian regime, only
some of which have been previously described and many of which
have been underemphasized or empirically untested.