The project understands a ‘developmental state’ as one where political elites intervene in economic activities with the overarching goal of improving the international market competitiveness of their domestic production. There is no necessary connection between authoritarianism and the developmental state. Key characteristics are a developmental mindset among policymakers, the emergence of governed interdependence between local firms and political elites, and creation of the state capacity required to implement industrial policies in collaboration with firms. Major issues confronting both scholars and practitioners include identifying the conditions under which developmental states emerge, inquiring into how to catalyze those conditions within democratic polities, and examining developmental states’ transitions and trajectories from authoritarianism to democracy.
This theme directly relates to the overarching theme of “Democracy and Development” by examining the breakdown of democratic principles and how this affects development. It investigates the rise of regimes that, while often democratically elected, govern in an autocratic and exclusionary manner, which can lead to unequal development and resource distribution—a critical issue at the heart of the broader research initiative.
Over the past decade, the rise of populist parties and movements in wealthy, established democracies has raised scholarly concerns about the impact of populism on democracy. Populism can undermine democratic institutions and foster societal polarization that erodes conditions for peaceful political discourse and cohesion. However, populism and its consequences pose even greater challenges in Global South nations. There, legacies of colonialism and weak governance give rise to populist movements with more radical platforms and greater electoral success. The resulting polarization is linked to heightened political violence and democratic instability.
This research axis under the OSUN Democracy and Development project seeks to enrich the scholarly discourse on populism and polarization between Global South and Global North scholars. Our overarching goals are to generate improved theories about the causes and effects of populism and to develop policies that can dampen demand for populism and mitigate its impacts. Fellows can pursue research in three related areas: (1) empirical study of populism and affiliated ideologies like nationalism and pluralism to hone conceptual understanding and measurement tools; (2) Global South case studies that test theories of populism’s origins and outcomes; and (3) research into affective and pernicious polarization, especially in the Global South context. In addition, Fellows should explore the policy implications of their work, emphasizing strategies to reduce populism’s negative societal repercussions.
Preference will be given to interdisciplinary and cross-regional comparative proposals, particularly those linked thematically to other research axes within the OSUN Democracy and Development project: democratizing the developmental state, exclusionary regimes and autocratization, and democracy’s discontents: new forms of social, political, and economic mobilization.
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