Concepts and Theories of Modern Democracy

Anthony H. Birch is Emeritus Professor at the University of Victoria, Canada. He has London degrees and pursued postdoctoral studies at Harvard and the University of Chicago. He has taught political science at universities in England, the United States, Australia and Canada, has published eight books and numerous articles, has served for three years as Vice-President of the International Political Science Association and is Fellow of the Royal Society in Canada.

"This new third edition of Tony Birch's The Concepts and Theories of Modern Democracy provides a lively, readable, and unfailingly interesting introduction to the problems and promises of modern democratic theory and practice. With its detailed discussion of terrorism and of the difficulties facing anyone who wishes to plant democratic seeds in alien soil, the text is as timely as today's headlines." -Terence Ball, Arizona State University, USA "The third edition of Professor Birch's book will be welcomed by the scholarly community. This is a mature, comprehensive and balanced reflection on the current state of democratic theory, which is sorely needed as we move rapidly into the 21st century. Professor Birch has been working on democratic theory for many years now and the present volume forms a rich and comprehensive introduction for contemporary students of politics. One major advantage it brings is that the study has far deeper intellectual roots in the discipline of politics, as it formed over the 20th century. This is a distinct advantage over the average introductory texts on democratic theory. The student will be able to grasp many of the key themes and issue of democratic theory in a much more intellectually satisfying disciplinary format. The third edition has been thoroughly updated to include comparative material on terrorism, multicultural and nationalist theory and the recent complex process of democratization." - Andrew Vincent, Sheffield University, UK

• 1. Introduction Part 1: Authority in the Modern State 2. Nationalism and the National State 3. Ethnic Cleavages, Multiculturalism and the National State 4. Globalization and the National State 5. Global Terrorism 6. Political Authority and Legitimacy Part 2: The Democratic State and the Citizen 7. Democracy 8. Political Representation 9. Political Participation 10. Liberty and Freedom 11. Rights Part 3: Political Power and Policy Making 12. Political Power 13. Pluralism 14. Elitism & Class Dominance 15. Corporatism Part 4: Styles of Political Analysis 16. Towards a Science of Politics: Positivism, Behaviouralism and Economic Models 17. Against a Science of Politics: Values, Historicism and Hermeutics