Date of Award

Spring 5-1-1986

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Sociology

First Advisor

Eugene V. Smith

Second Advisor

Stephen King

Third Advisor

Glenn Perry

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship of rapid economic development and democratization in the Third World. Studying societal development of the Third World, developrnentalists have explained how those countries have been democratized through economic development, while dependency theorists have showed the opposite trend. After we review the theoretical background in this area, we hypothesize that there is an inverse relationship between rate of economic development and democratization. Time periods studies are limited to 1970- 1982 for economic development, and to 1974-1985 for democratization. Thirty-six Third World countries are used for this study. The statistical technique is the Partial Correlation used on the data in order to determine the relationship between the two variables and the effect of two intervening variables, educational attainment and economic dependency,_on the relationship. The results show no significant correlacicn between the two variables statistically supported at the .05 level of ccnfidence, and the relationship is not affected by two control variables of educational attrd.nment and economic dependency. After excluding one negative growth case, Jamaica, however, we find that under. control conditions political democratization during the later 1979- 1984 period do have an inverse relationship with rapid economic development during 1970-1982 at the .05 level of confidence.

Download

Share

COinS