In This Issue
| Date | 01 January 2006 |
| Published date | 01 January 2006 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0192512106058623 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
In This Issue
This issue of the International Political Science Review contains four articles that
engage with different areas of contemporary political scholarship. The first article
is Neal Jesse’s contribution entitled “Choosing to Go It Alone: Irish Neutrality in
Theoretical and Comparative Perspective.” The work deals with the curious case of
Irish neutrality, offering a comparison with other European states that have
adopted a neutral posture, and discussing the extent to which existing “liberal”
and “realist” theoretical perspectives can offer a plausible account of this
phenomenon. The next article, by Henry Milner and Andreas Ladner, deals with
the relative merits of proportional voting systems, particularly their resilience in
the face of the declining voter turnout which bedevils contemporary democratic
systems. “Can PR Voting Serve as a Shelter Against Declining Turnout? Evidence
from Swiss Municipal Elections” draws on a comparison of electoral participation
in Swiss municipalities that use different voting systems. The third contribution
takes up a long-standing concern of political analysts, the foundations of state
legitimacy. In his important article, “The Determinants of State Legitimacy:
Results for 72 Countries,” Bruce Gilley offers an empirically grounded assessment
of the sources of legitimacy, arguing that three factors form the most solid
foundation for a viable causal theory: “good governance,” “democratic rights,” and
“welfare gains.” We conclude this issue of the International Political Science Review
with a more speculative contribution – Adam K. Webb’s “The Calm Before the
Storm? Revolutionary Pressures and Global Governance.” In this provocative
article, Webb wonders whether the prevailing wisdom that the era of revolutions is
now behind us may prove mistaken. He considers the possibility that a
revolutionary crisis might emerge during the coming century, examines the
ideological complexion of the potential revolutionaries, and explores how such a
revolutionary challenge to the existing global order could mature. We are
convinced that each of these articles will offer significant insights to our readers.
James Meadowcroft
International Political Science Review (2006), Vol 27, No. 1, 5
DOI: 10.1177/0192512106058623 © 2006 International Political Science Association
SAGE Publications (London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New Delhi)
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