Henry E. Hale - Böcker

Russia poses a major puzzle for theorists of party development. Whereas virtually every classic work takes political parties to be inevitable and essential to democracy, Russia has been dominated by non-partisan politicians ever since communism collapsed. This book mobilizes public opinion surveys, interviews with leading Russian politicians, careful tracking of multiple campaigns, and analysis of national and regional voting patterns to show why Russia stands out. Russia's historically influenced combination of federalism and super-presidentialism, coupled with a post-communist redistribution of resources to regional political machines and oligarchic financial-industrial groups, produced and sustained powerful party-substitutes that have largely squeezed Russia's real parties out, damaging Russia's democratic development.

Despite implicating ethnicity in everything from civil war to economic failure, researchers seldom consult psychological research when addressing the most basic question: What is ethnicity? The result is a radical scholarly divide generating contradictory recommendations for solving ethnic conflict. Research into how the human brain actually works demands a revision of existing schools of thought. Hale argues ethnic identity is a cognitive uncertainty-reduction device with special capacity to exacerbate, but not cause, collective action problems. This produces a new general theory of ethnic conflict that can improve both understanding and practice. A deep study of separatism in the USSR and CIS demonstrates the theory's potential, mobilizing evidence from elite interviews, three local languages, and mass surveys. The outcome significantly reinterprets nationalism's role in CIS relations and the USSR's breakup, which turns out to have been a far more contingent event than commonly recognized.

Russia poses a major puzzle for theorists of party development. Whereas virtually every classic work takes political parties to be inevitable and essential to democracy, Russia has been dominated by non-partisan politicians ever since communism collapsed. This book mobilizes public opinion surveys, interviews with leading Russian politicians, careful tracking of multiple campaigns, and analysis of national and regional voting patterns to show why Russia stands out. Russia's historically influenced combination of federalism and super-presidentialism, coupled with a post-communist redistribution of resources to regional political machines and oligarchic financial-industrial groups, produced and sustained powerful party-substitutes that have largely squeezed Russia's real parties out, damaging Russia's democratic development.

Despite implicating ethnicity in everything from civil war to economic failure, researchers seldom consult psychological research when addressing the most basic question: What is ethnicity? The result is a radical scholarly divide generating contradictory recommendations for solving ethnic conflict. Research into how the human brain actually works demands a revision of existing schools of thought. Hale argues ethnic identity is a cognitive uncertainty-reduction device with special capacity to exacerbate, but not cause, collective action problems. This produces a new general theory of ethnic conflict that can improve both understanding and practice. A deep study of separatism in the USSR and CIS demonstrates the theory's potential, mobilizing evidence from elite interviews, three local languages, and mass surveys. The outcome significantly reinterprets nationalism's role in CIS relations and the USSR's breakup, which turns out to have been a far more contingent event than commonly recognized.

Beyond the Euromaidan examines the prospects for advancing reform in Ukraine in the wake of the February 2014 Euromaidan revolution and Russian invasion. It examines six crucial areas where reform is needed: deep internal identity divisions, corruption, the constitution, the judiciary, plutocratic "oligarchs," and the economy. On each of these topics, the book provides one chapter that focuses on Ukraine's own experience and one chapter that examines the issue in the broader context of international practice.Placing Ukraine in comparative perspective shows that many of the country's problems are not unique and that other countries have been able to address many of the issues currently confronting Ukraine. As with the constitution, there are no easy answers, but careful analysis shows that some solutions are better than others. Ultimately, the authors propose a series of reforms that can help Ukraine make the best of a bad situation. The book stresses the need to focus on reforms that might not have immediate effect, but that comparative experience shows can solve fundamental contextual challenges. Finally, the book shows that pressures from outside Ukraine can have a strong positive influence on reform efforts inside the country.

This book proposes a new way of understanding events throughout the world that are usually interpreted as democratization, rising authoritarianism, or revolution. Where the rule of law is weak and corruption pervasive, what may appear to be democratic or authoritarian breakthroughs are often just regular, predictable phases in longer-term cyclic dynamics - patronal politics. This is shown through in-depth narratives of the post-1991 political history of all post-Soviet polities that are not in the European Union. This book also includes chapters on czarist and Soviet history and on global patterns.

This book proposes a new way of understanding events throughout the world that are usually interpreted as democratization, rising authoritarianism, or revolution. Where the rule of law is weak and corruption pervasive, what may appear to be democratic or authoritarian breakthroughs are often just regular, predictable phases in longer-term cyclic dynamics - patronal politics. This is shown through in-depth narratives of the post-1991 political history of all post-Soviet polities that are not in the European Union. This book also includes chapters on czarist and Soviet history and on global patterns.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine presents a major challenge for Russian studies. It has demonstrated the imperative to search for better ways to understand Russia. At the same time, the war has spotlighted Russian imperial ambitions and colonial attitudes toward countries around it and ethnic minorities within it, raising uncomfortable questions about whether our own views of these countries and peoples reflect this biased Russian gaze.Understanding Russia is more important than ever and diverse perspectives are needed. With a stronger focus on informal institutions, marginalised voices and “de-centering” of Russian studies, Developments in Russian Politics 10 brings together a diverse author team to offer fresh viewpoints on a rapidly evolving subject. Discussing established topics such as executive leadership, parties and elections as well as newer issues of national identity, protest, and Russia and Greater Eurasia, this new edition analyses the political system in which Putin’s influence can be understood and covers frequently overlooked topics like the informal economy and climate change. Breaking with the tradition of organizing Russian Politics around formal institutions and instead emphasising the societal factors and informal structures and processes that underpin support for Russia’s political regime, this new edition offers:- Topical and theoretically informed coverage of major issues from top scholars- Analysis of how Russia’s past influences its contemporary politics in counterintuitive ways- Dedicated chapters on the Russia-Ukraine war, Russian Foreign Policy and Chechnya - Chapters on all of the key topics covered by typical courses on Russian politics, including protest movement and civil society, and gender. The politics of any country, especially Russia at this moment in time, are volatile. Developments in Russian Politics 10 provides readers with a conceptual toolkit for understanding the dynamism of Russian politics, whatever the future may bring.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine presents a major challenge for Russian studies. It has demonstrated the imperative to search for better ways to understand Russia. At the same time, the war has spotlighted Russian imperial ambitions and colonial attitudes toward countries around it and ethnic minorities within it, raising uncomfortable questions about whether our own views of these countries and peoples reflect this biased Russian gaze.Understanding Russia is more important than ever and diverse perspectives are needed. With a stronger focus on informal institutions, marginalised voices and “de-centering” of Russian studies, Developments in Russian Politics 10 brings together a diverse author team to offer fresh viewpoints on a rapidly evolving subject. Discussing established topics such as executive leadership, parties and elections as well as newer issues of national identity, protest, and Russia and Greater Eurasia, this new edition analyses the political system in which Putin’s influence can be understood and covers frequently overlooked topics like the informal economy and climate change. Breaking with the tradition of organizing Russian Politics around formal institutions and instead emphasising the societal factors and informal structures and processes that underpin support for Russia’s political regime, this new edition offers:- Topical and theoretically informed coverage of major issues from top scholars- Analysis of how Russia’s past influences its contemporary politics in counterintuitive ways- Dedicated chapters on the Russia-Ukraine war, Russian Foreign Policy and Chechnya - Chapters on all of the key topics covered by typical courses on Russian politics, including protest movement and civil society, and gender. The politics of any country, especially Russia at this moment in time, are volatile. Developments in Russian Politics 10 provides readers with a conceptual toolkit for understanding the dynamism of Russian politics, whatever the future may bring.

In Developments in Russian Politics 9 an international team of experts provide a comprehensive and critical discussion of the country's most recent developments, offering substantive coverage of the key areas in domestic and foreign Russian politics. All essays are either new or comprehensively rewritten for this volume and examine topics ranging from executive leadership, political parties, and elections to newer issues of national identity, protest, and Russia and greater Eurasia. They also address the military, parliamentary politics, the economy, social inequality, and media and political communication in the digital age. Reflecting the changing nature of Russian politics in a globalizing world defined by ever-shifting balances of power, Developments in Russian Politics remains the best introduction to the politics of the world's largest nation.Contributors. Samuel Charap, Valentina Feklyunina, Henry E. Hale, Philip Hanson, Kathryn Hendley, Marlene Laruelle, Ellen Mickiewicz, Ben Noble, Thomas F. Remington, Bettina Renz, Ora John Reuter, Graeme Robertson, Richard Sakwa, Darrell Slider, Stephen White, John P. Willerton

The tenth edition of this go-to text offers critical discussion of contemporary Russian politics and its fundamental principles. It covers established topics such as executive leadership, parties, and elections as well as newer issues of national identity, protest, and Russia and Greater Eurasia. Taking a bottom-up approach, Developments in Russian Politics 10 analyzes the political system in which Putin’s influence can be understood and covers frequently overlooked topics like the informal economy, climate change, and gender. The book is organized around the informal politics of hybrid regimes and authoritarianism and accounts for how Russian history impacts contemporary politics in counterintuitive ways, addressing notions of hybrid warfare, disinformation, and election meddling. The chapters have a modular quality and are designed to correspond to course teaching. Compiled by an international team of specialists and offering key questions, further reading suggestions, and a list of up-to-date repositories of video material, the edition will appeal to undergraduate and postgraduate students from across the world.

The tenth edition of this go-to text offers critical discussion of contemporary Russian politics and its fundamental principles. It covers established topics such as executive leadership, parties, and elections as well as newer issues of national identity, protest, and Russia and Greater Eurasia. Taking a bottom-up approach, Developments in Russian Politics 10 analyzes the political system in which Putin’s influence can be understood and covers frequently overlooked topics like the informal economy, climate change, and gender. The book is organized around the informal politics of hybrid regimes and authoritarianism and accounts for how Russian history impacts contemporary politics in counterintuitive ways, addressing notions of hybrid warfare, disinformation, and election meddling. The chapters have a modular quality and are designed to correspond to course teaching. Compiled by an international team of specialists and offering key questions, further reading suggestions, and a list of up-to-date repositories of video material, the edition will appeal to undergraduate and postgraduate students from across the world.

A compelling story of how ordinary Ukrainians saved their nation.With Russian shells raining on Kyiv and tanks closing in, American forces prepared to evacuate Ukraine’s leader. Just three years earlier, his apparent main qualification had been playing a president on TV. But Volodymyr Zelensky reportedly retorted, ‘I need ammunition, not a ride.’ Ukrainian forces won the battle for Kyiv, ensuring their country’s independence even as a longer war began for the southeast.You cannot understand the historic events of 2022 without understanding Zelensky. But the Zelensky effect is less about the man himself than about the civic nation he embodies: what makes Zelensky most extraordinary in war is his very ordinariness as a Ukrainian.The Zelensky Effect explains this paradox, exploring Ukraine’s national history to show how its now-iconic president reflects the hopes and frustrations of the country’s first ‘independence generation’. Interweaving social and political background with compelling episodes from Zelensky’s life and career, this is the story of Ukraine told through the journey of one man who has come to symbolise his country.