Argentina has most of the characteristics that various theories of democracy postulate as prerequisites for achieving liberal democracy: an urban industrial economy, key economic resources under domestic control, the absence of a peasantry, the absence of ethnic or religious cleavages, relatively high levels of education, strong interest groups, an
This collection of essays focuses on economic, political, and cultural aspects of the transition from military rule to liberal democracy in Argentina.
Introduction -- Politics, the Economy, and Society -- Political
Movements in Argentina: A Sketch from Past and Present -- Can Argentinas
Democracy Survive Economic Disaster? -- Toward an Analysis of the Structural
Basis of Coercion in Argentina: The Behavior of the Major Fractions of the
Bourgeoisie, 19761983 -- Changes in Argentine Society: The Heritage of the
Dictatorship -- The Legitimation of Democracy Under Adverse Conditions: The
Case of Argentina -- Politics and Culture -- The Culture of Fear in Civil
Society -- Technocracy and National Identity: Attitudes Toward Economic
Policy -- Culture, Ideology, and Science -- Elements for an Analysis of
Argentine Culture
Monica Peralta-Ramos is in charge of academic affairs at the Argentine Embassy in Washington. Carlos H. Waisman is an associate professor of sociology at the University of California, San Diego.
