What exactly is democracy, and how do we measure it? What constitutes a high-quality democracy, and what factors increase the risk of countries moving towards dictatorship? Does democracy matter for economic development, inequality, or education policy?

The study of democracy, democratisation, and autocratic politics is not only central to comparative politics, but also to other subfields of political science such as international relations and public administration as well as disciplines such as economics, sociology and history. Democracy and Dictatorship gives an updated account of the most pressing questions preoccupying democracy researchers.

This comprehensive book offers an introduction to the study of democracy and autocracy. It contains chapters on the conceptualisation and measurement of democracy and regime types, a chapter on the historical development of democracy, two chapters on proposed causes of regime stability and change, notably discussing both democratisation and autocratisation, and two chapters on several important developmental and other effects of democracy and autocracy.

The book is intended for a broad audience, notably including bachelor students being introduced to these important topics in introductory courses in comparative politics, as well as others who want an accessible and up-to-date introduction to what current research tells us about democracy and autocracy as well as their causes and consequences.