Global instances of coups from 1950 to 2010: A new dataset
| Published date | 01 March 2011 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0022343310397436 |
| Author | Jonathan M Powell,Clayton L Thyne |
| Date | 01 March 2011 |
Special Data Feature
Global instances of coups from
1950 to 2010: A new dataset
Jonathan M Powell & Clayton L Thyne
Department of Political Science, University of Kentucky
Abstract
Once considered a ‘hot topic’ among scholars, research on coups d’e
´tat has waned in recent years. This decline is
surprising given that 7 coups have happened between January 2008 and December 2010, bringing the last decade’s
total to almost three dozen. One explanation for the lack of coup research is the absence of a temporally and spatially
comprehensive dataset to test theories. Also absent is a discussion of what makes coups distinct from other forms of
anti-regime activity. This article seeks to remedy these problems. The authors present a new dataset on coups from
1950 to 2010. They begin by explaining their theoretical definition and coding procedures. Next, they examine gen-
eral trends in the data across time and space. The authors conclude by explaining why scholars studying a variety of
topics, including civil wars, regime stability, and democratization, would benefit by paying closer attention to coups.
Keywords
civil wars, coding procedures, coup d’e
´tat, new dataset
Introduction
While research on violent forms of anti-regime activity
has flourished in recent years, the volume of cross-
national research on coups is relatively thin. Early efforts
to understand coups most often focused on specific
regions, Latin America and Africa in particular, while
recent studies have taken a more general approach.
1
Work from O’Kane (1987) and Londregan & Poole
(1990) were among the first to use global coup data, and
subsequent cross-national research offers more general
theory and comprehensive empirical tests (e.g. Alesina
et al., 1996; Galetovic & Sanhueza, 2000; Belkin &
Schofer, 2003). While this body of work provides a useful
starting point to understand the causes and effects of
coups, there has been surprisingly little discussion as to
what a coup actually is. We also continue to lack a basic
understanding of how coups might have a broad impact
on a range of topics. The recent coups in Thailand and
Mauritania, for example, suggest that coups can quickly
derail the process of democratic consolidation. Coups also
seem to be linked with civil wars, including the 1975 coup
that sparked 25 years of violence in the Bangladesh.
While these examples suggest that coups are relevant
for many areas of study, several barriers inhibit our abil-
ity to evaluate these questions empirically. The most
obvious barriers are the lack of a definition for a coup
that has been widely discussed and accepted by scholars,
and a discussion of what differentiates coups from other
forms of anti-regime activity. The purpose of this article
is to overcome these barriers.
A working definition
Welch (1970: 1) has claimed that ‘a coup d’e
´tat is a
sharp, clear event, easy to date and (if successful) possible
to document’. Subsequent research suggests that Welch
was perhaps too optimistic. While some agreement at the
conceptual level has emerged, a critical examination of
how scholars have operationalized coups reveals several
topics deserving of further conversation. We begin by
1
For work on specific regions, see Fossum, 1967; Dix, 1994;
Jackman, 1978; Kposowa & Jenkins, 1993; Lunde, 1991;
McGowan, 2003; Agyeman-Duah, 1990; Decalo, 1990.
Corresponding author:
clayton.thyne@uky.edu
Journal of Peace Research
48(2) 249–259
ªThe Author(s) 2011
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DOI: 10.1177/0022343310397436
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