country report finland … · middle- and upper class, where finnish speakers dominated the red...

I N S T I T U T E

COUNTRY BRIEFFINLAND

Frida Andersson

Country BriefSERIES 2016:07

THE VARIETIES OF DEMOCRACY INSTITUTE

May 2016

Please address comments and/or queries for information to:

V-Dem Institute

Department of Political Science

University of Gothenburg

Sprängkullsgatan 19, PO Box 711

SE 40530 Gothenburg

Sweden

E-mail: [email protected]

V-Dem Country Briefs are available in electronic format at www.v-dem.net.

Copyright © 2016 University of Gothenburg, V-Dem Institute. All rights reserved.

V-Dem Data Brief Finland

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About V-Dem VarietiesofDemocracy (V-Dem) is anewapproach to conceptualizing andmeasuringdemocracy. V-Dem’smultidimensional and disaggregated approach acknowledges thecomplexityof theconceptofdemocracy. TheV-Demprojectdistinguishesamongfivehigh-level principles of democracy: electoral, liberal, participatory, deliberative, andegalitarian, which are disaggregated into lower-level components and specificindicators.

KeyfeaturesofV-Dem:

• Provides reliable data on five high-level principles and 22 lower-levelcomponents of democracy such as regular elections, judicial independence,directdemocracy,andgenderequality,consistingofmorethan400distinctandpreciseindicators;

• Covers all countries and dependent territories from 1900 to the present andprovidesanestimateofmeasurementreliabilityforeachrating;

• Makesallratingspublic,freeofcharge,throughauser-friendlyinterface.

With four Principal Investigators, two Project Coordinators, fifteen ProjectManagers,more than thirty Regional Managers, almost 200 Country Coordinators, severalAssistantResearchers,andapproximately2,600CountryExperts,theV-Demprojectisoneofthelargest-eversocialsciencedatacollectionprojectswithadatabaseofover15milliondatapoints.Thedatabasemakeshighlydetailedanalysisofvirtuallyallaspectsof democracy in a country, while also allowing for summary comparisons betweencountries based on aggregated indices for different dimensions of democracy. UsersfromanywhereareabletousetheV-Demonlineanalysistoolswhichcanbefoundattheproject’swebsite.Governments,developmentagencies,andNGOscanbenefitfromthenuancedcomparativeandhistoricaldatawheninformingcriticaldecisionssuchasselecting country program priorities, informing program designs and monitoringimpactoftheirprograms.

Methodology:Unlikeextantdatacollectionprojects,whichtypicallyuseasmallgroupofexpertswhorate all countries or ask a single expert to code one country, the V-Dem project hasrecruitedover2,600localandcross-nationalexpertstoprovidejudgmentsonvariousindicators about democracy. The V-Dem dataset is created by combining factualinformation from existing data sources about constitutional regulations and de juresituationwithexpertcodingforquestions that require evaluation.Experts’ratingsareaggregated through an advanced statistical model that takes into account thepossibilities that expertsmaymakemistakes andhavedifferent scales inmindwhencoding.Inaddition,bridge-coders-expertswhocodemultiplecountries-arerecruitedtocalibratethescalesofestimatescross-nationally1.

1ForfurtherdetailsandinformationabouttheV-Demmethodology,seehttp://v-dem.net.


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Finland

Introduction ThisV-Demdata brief illustrates the democratic development of Finland from1900 to 2014.ThepurposeistoprovideaconciseoverviewoftheV-DemdatacollectedforcountryFinland.The historical development of the five V-Dem principles of democracy - electoral, liberal,egalitarian, deliberative and participatory – is analyzed, accompanied by an overview of thefemale rights index. In addition, the brief delves further into the different components anddetailedindicatorsofthemainprinciplesofdemocracy2.Weanticipatethatthisbriefwillbeausefulresourceforpolicy-makers,practitionersandcitizen-leddemocracyassessments.Historically, Finland has been part of both the Swedish Kingdom and the Russian Empire.Following the Russian Revolution and the Finnish general strike in 1905, the Parliament ofFinland replaced the Diet (i.e. the Legislative Assembly of the Grand Duchy of Finland thatexisted from 1809 to 1906). In 1906 Finland introduced universal suffrage and became thesecondcountryintheworldtodoso.TheOctoberRevolutionin1917causedpoliticalturmoilandeventually led to theParliamentadoptingaproposalof independence inDecember1917,onwhichtheSovietagreedtothesamemonth.As a consequence of social division between socialist workers and conservative farmers andmiddle- and upper class, where Finnish speakers dominated the red group and Swedishspeakersweremostlypartofthewhitegroupthecountryexperiencedacivilwarwhichlastedforfivemonthsin1918,withover30000liveslost.In1918Finlandbecamearepublicandthecountry’sfirstpresidentwaselectedin1919.Despitethecivilwarandbeingplaguedbyfascismover thedecades that followed, the country remainedademocracywith a strong ruleof law.ThecountryfoughtagainsttheSovietUnionduringWorldWarII,spanningtheperiodof1939to 1944, and managed to successfully defend its sovereignty against the Soviet attempts ofcontrol.ThecountryattainedaneutralpositionduringtheColdWarwithanintactdemocraticconstitution.Sincethen,Finlandhasbeenconsideredoneofthemoststabledemocraciesintheworld.

Principles of Democracy Theradarchart inFigure1providesaquickoverviewof the fiveV-Demhigh-level indicesofdemocracyinFinlandatfourdifferentpointsintime:1907,1950,1995and2014.Allindicesinthe figure range from 0 to 1, where a score of 0 suggests that a country did not evince thecharacteristics of democracy relevant to this particular index at this point in time, while 1correspondstothebestpossiblesituationforthisindex,accordingtotheV-Demmeasures.In the V-Dem conceptual scheme, the electoral component of democracy is fundamental andunderstood as an essential element of the other principles of representative democracy –liberal, participatory, deliberative, and egalitarian; without it, we cannot call a regime“democratic”. However,we recognize that countries can have “democratic qualities”,withoutbeing democracies. As a result, the aggregation formulae for all high-level principles ofdemocracy include the measure of electoral democracy. Thus, for example, “ParticipatoryDemocracy”isacompositescoreoftheelectoralandtheparticipatorycomponents.Figure 1. Principles of Democracy Indices

2AllindicatorsandindicescanbefoundinGlossaryofTermsinAppendixI.Foranoverviewofthestructureofthe

indices,pleaseseeAppendixII.


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The line for 1907 shows that, at that time, democracy in Finland was limited. The largest

advancementat thatpoint in timetakesplace intermsofelectoraldemocracy,withascoreofaround .3. However, this score still suggests that rulerswere only being held responsible by

citizens to a limited extent through electoral competition and that political and civil society

organizations were not able to operate completely independently. In terms of the liberal,participatory,deliberativeandegalitarianindices,thecountryreachesascoreofonlyaround.2.

Lateron,asthedatafor1950demonstrates,thecountry’sdemocracywentthroughsubstantial

improvements in all aspects captured in the figure. At this point, the country experienced

democratic advancement following the Russian Revolution and the Finnish general strike,

independenceandrecoveryfromthetwoworldwars.Thecountryreachesalevelof.8orabove

inallprinciplesbuttheparticipatory,withascoreof.6.Yet,reachingtheupperhalfofthescaleshownforparticipatorydemocracy,whichmeasuresdirectruleandcitizenparticipationinthepolitical process, electoral and non-electoral, could be interpreted as suggesting that the

countryismoredemocraticthannotonthisprincipleandhasachievedmoderatelyhighlevels

ofdevelopment.

Thelevelofdemocracythenremainsatapproximatelythesamelevelin2014withthehighest

scoresreflectedinelectoraldemocracy.Finlandexhibitsquitestrongdevelopmentintermsof

liberal,egalitariananddeliberativeaspectsofdemocracy,aswell,withscoresabove .8.These

three indicesofdemocracy focuson theprotectionof individualandminority rights, equality

among social groups in terms of representation, agenda-setting power, protection under the

law,influenceoverpolicymaking,andfinally,breadthanddepthofdeliberationwhenimportant

policy-changesarebeingconsidered.

InFigure2below,welookfurtherintotheaforementionedindicesandgraphthecomponentsthat go into the five higher level principles indices of democracy: the electoral, liberal,

egalitarian,participatoryanddeliberativeaspects. In the figure, thedevelopmentof the lower

levelcomponentsinFinlandovermorethanahundredyearsisdisplayed,accompaniedbythe

femalerightsindex3.

3Thescaleofeachindexandindicatorisspecifiedwithinparenthesesinthelegendofeachfigure.Inall indicators

and indices graphed, a lower score corresponds to a less democratic level, while a higher score suggests amore

democraticlevel.Pleaseseetheappendixformoreinformationoneachofthevariables.

00,20,40,60,81

ElectoralDemocracy

LiberalDemocracy

ParticipatoryDemocracy

DeliberativeDemocracy

EgalitarianDemocracy

1907

1950

1995

2014


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In the very beginning of the century, Finland receives scores below .6 on all democracycomponents. An increased level of development occurs in all components around 1905,reflecting the general strike in the country, theRussianRevolution of 1905, and possibly thetemporaryhaltoftheRussificationpolicy.

At this point, female rights is the aspect inwhich the country experiences the highest score.Hence, the previously mentioned events have a positive effect on women’s ability to openlydiscuss political issues, participate in civil society organizations, enjoy the freedom ofmovementandfreedomfromforcedlabor,receivetherighttoprivateproperty,accessjustice,and obtain an equal share in the overall distribution of power. Following these initialimprovements, thedevelopmentof therightsofFinnishwomen ismoregradual.Thecountryreachestopscorescloseto1in1970.

Finland experiences a similar development in terms of egalitarian and liberal democracy.Although thedevelopmentsof theseaspectsarealsogradual, thepositive impactof the1905events and the country’s independence are reflected in the indices. However, the ideal of allsocial groups having approximately equal participation, representation, and protection underthe law is not fully reacheduntil the70s.The samegoes for theprotectionof individual andminorityrightsagainstthetyrannyofthestateandthetyrannyofthemajority,asmeasuredbytheliberalcomponent.

Themostvolatiledevelopmentovertimeiscapturedwithinbythedeliberativecomponent, inwhichthecountryexperienceslargeimprovementsin1905andinconnectiontoindependence,butalsosignificantdropsin1930andduringWorldWarII.Therecoveryofpublicdeliberationafter the war is not immediate and, not until the 1980s does the level of the deliberativecomponentsmatchtheothers,withascorecloseto1.

Followingindependence,thecountry’slevelofelectoraldemocracyincreasedfromunder.4to.8.Afteraperiodofnopositivechange,butratherastableifsomewhatnegativetrend,theendoftheWorldWarIIleadstoanincreaseinthequalityofFinland’selectoraldemocracy.TheleastdevelopedaspectofdemocracyinFinlandistheparticipatorydemocracydimension.Ithasbeenonapproximatelythesamelevelsincethe1920sandachievesonlyascorecloseto.6as of 2014.


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Interestingly,WorldWarIIdoesnotseemtohavehadasignificantnegativeimpactonthelevelof democracy in Finland, with the exceptions of decreasing scores in the participatory anddeliberativedimensions.

Inordertotrackdownmorespecificaspectswithinthesevariousdemocraticdevelopments,wefurtherexploreeachofthesixcomponentsofdemocracybygraphingtheindicatorsandindiceswhichtheyarecomposedofinthefollowingsection.

The Electoral Component The V-Dem electoral democracy component indexmeasures the core value ofmaking rulersresponsive to citizens through competition for the approval of a broad electorate duringperiodicelections;whetherpoliticalandcivilsocietyorganizationscanoperatefreely;whetherelectionsarecleanandnotmarredbyfraudorsystematicirregularities;andthechiefexecutiveof a country is selected (directly or indirectly) through elections.Figure 3 displays the fourindicesthatmakeuptheelectoralcomponent.

ThefirstdirectelectioninFinlandwasheldin1907anditwasthiselectionwhichintroduceduniversalsuffrage,asreflectedintheshareofpopulationwithsuffrageindex.Thepresidenthasbeen directly elected since the very first presidential election in 1919. From the very firstelection,theelectionshave,accordingtothecleanelectionsindicatorbeenlargelyfreeandfair.The score of over .8 speaks to the absence of registration fraud, systematic irregularities,government intimidationof theopposition, votebuying, andelectionviolence throughout thecentury.

Theabilityforparties,includingoppositionparties,tofreelyformandrunforelections,withoutbans or limits of their autonomy is ensured, as indicatedby the high levels of the freedomofassociation index throughout the explored period. Civil society organizations are also free toorganize and operate without attempts of repression. However, the figure shows a negativedevelopmentwithinthecountrybetweenthefirstpresidentialelectionin1919andtheendofWorldWarII.Hence,duringthisperiod,thefreedomofpartiesandcivilsocietyorganizationsis


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increasingly limited, partly reflecting the banning of the radical nationalist Laouamovementafterafailedcoupd’étatin1932.

The Liberal Component The liberal dimension of democracy embodies the intrinsic value of protecting individual andminority rights against the tyranny of the state. This is achieved through constitutionallyprotectedcivillibertiesandstrongruleoflaw,allofwhicharecapturedwiththeV-Demindexfor the liberal component. Furthermore, the index captures if there are effective checks andbalances by the judiciary and the legislature that limit the use of executive power Figure 4showsthedevelopmentofthesethreeindicesovertimeinFinland.

TheliberalcomponentwasoneoftheindicesinwhichFinlandachieveditshighestscoresafterindependence.Thereasonforthecomponentnotbeingoneoftheaspectswiththehighestlevelof development before that seems to be the limited ability of the legislature to constrain theexecutive. The index displays a score of slightly above .2 when the Parliament was firstestablished. However, the independence leads to a strengthening of the legislature and theability of the Parliament and other government agencies to investigate and monitor theexecutive.

The judicialconstraintsontheexecutivewereinitiallystronger inthebeginningofthecenturyand expand after independence. As a result, the respect for, and compliance with, theconstitution by the executive, and the independence of the judiciary, is extensive within thecountry.

Theequality before the lawand individual liberty index captures the extent towhich laws aretransparent and rigorously enforced and public administration impartial, and the extent towhich citizens enjoy access to justice, secure property rights, freedom from forced labor,freedom of movement, physical integrity rights, and freedom of religion. A gradualimprovementofthesefeaturestakesplaceduringthefirsthalfofthecenturyand,sincetheendofWorldWarII,Finlandshowstoplevelsinthisregard.


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The Participatory Component The participatory dimension of democracy embodies the values of direct rule and activeparticipationbycitizensinallpoliticalprocesses;itemphasizesnon-electoralformsofpoliticalparticipationthroughsuchchannelsascivilsocietyorganizationsandthroughthemechanismsofdirectdemocracy.

Figure5displaystheindicesthatgointotheparticipatorydemocracycomponent,whichscoresthe lowestwhen compared to theotherdimensions in the first two figures. Forparticipatorydemocracy,thescoresofthedifferentindicatorsvaryfromtheverybottomofthescaletothetop,indicatingthatsomeparticipatoryaspectsofdemocracyaremuchstrongerthanothers.

The low score of thedirect popular vote index throughout history reflects the infrequency ofinstitutionalizedprocesses suchas referendumsandplebiscitesbywhich theFinnish citizenscanexpresstheirchoicesoropinionsonspecificissues. Thetwospikesinthedatareflectthetwonationalreferendumsthecountryheldin1931and1994.

Finland’sscores,intermsofthelocalandregionalgovernmentindices,suggestthattheidealofhaving elected local and regional governments be able to operate without restrictions fromunelectedactorsatthelocalandregionallevelsisfarfromachieved.

The civil society participation indicator reflects a robust Finnish civil society with extensiveinvolvement by citizens in civil society organizations, including freedom of participation forwomen.Thehighscoresincethe50salsoimpliesthatpolicymakershaveconsultedmajorcivilsocietyorganizationsonaregularbasisandthatcandidatenominationwithinpartiesishighlydecentralized or done through party primaries. Even historically, the participation in civilsocietyinFinlandhasbeenextensivealthoughitwasmorelimitedbeforethedemocracyboostin1905,pre-independenceandduringthetwoworldwars.

The Deliberative Component The deliberative component of democracy captures the core value that political decisions areguidedbythepursuitofthepublicgoodandshouldbeinformedbyrespectfulandreasonabledialogue at all levels rather than by emotional appeals, solidary attachments, parochialinterests,orcoercion.


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Note that the indicators displayed in Figures 6, 7 and 8 have different scales, which arespecified in parentheses in the legend of each figure. The deliberative indicators, included in

Figure6,showoverallcovariancebutalsodifferencesindevelopmentovertime.TheRussianRevolution and theFinnish strike affectedpublic deliberation in all its various aspects asdid

independence.ThenegativeimpactsofWorldWarIIarealsoevidentinallindicatorsexceptfor

thecommongood indicatorwhichshowssteadyscores inthewarperiod.Asmalldropisalsovisibleinthemeasureswithinthedeliberativecomponentintheearly1990s.

Thelargeststepstowardsincreaseddeliberationaretakenintermsoftherangeofconsultationat elite levels. At thebeginningof the century, consultationonly included groups loyal to the

rulingparty,whereassincethe80s,elitesfrombasicallyallpartsofthepoliticalspectrumare

includedinthediscussions.

Thecountryisexperiencingthesamepositivedevelopmentovertimeinregardstothebreadth

andindependenceofthedeliberations,asmeasuredbytheengagedsocietyindicator.Withlowscores of around 2 up to the end ofWorldWar II, the deliberations havemoved from being

infrequent and constrained by the elites to covering large groups of non-elite actors and

ordinarycitizens,discussingvariouspolicies inthemedia,bothwithinassociationsandinthe

streets.

It is interesting to note the drop inmore recent years, indicating a negative trend for public

discussionsinFinland.

Development has been more modest, yet still positive, for the indicators common good andrespectcounterarguments.Infact,thescoreoftheformerhasonlychangedfromjustbeneath3tojustabove3.Hence,theindicatormeasuringtheextenttowhichpoliticalelites justifytheir

positionsintermsofthecommongoodwhendiscussingimportantpolicychangessuggeststhat

the justifications inFinlandarebasedonamixtureofreferencestotheconstituency,partyor

group, although leaning slightly more towards the common good. The latter measure which

captures whether the political elites of a country tend to acknowledge and respectcounterargumentssuggeststhatcounterargumentswereallowedinthebeginningofthecentury,butthattheywerealmostalwaysareignored.Afterapositivedevelopmentovertime,political

elites now tend to acknowledge the arguments without making explicit negative or positive

statementsaboutthem.


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Another central question within deliberation is whether the political elites care to offer

justifications for their positions on a matter before making important policy decisions. The

initial score of 0 in the reasoned justification indicator has improved to a score of close to 3

since the 80s. Hence, the justifications over the last 30 years have been sophisticated in the

sense that elites tend to offer nuanced and complete explanations for their positions on

particular issues. In all indicators, except for the common good one, the quality of publicdeliberationinFinlandclearlyimprovesattheendofthe70sandbeginningofthe80s.

The Egalitarian Component Theegalitarian idea is thatmaterial and immaterial inequalities inhibit the actual exerciseofformalrightsandliberties;henceamoreequaldistributionofresources,education,andhealth

acrosssocio-economicgroupsshouldenhancepoliticalequality.

Figure 7 presents the eight indicators that constitute the egalitarian democracy component.The overall development of Finland in terms of egalitarian democracy is gradual and rather

undramatic.

The indicator particularistic or public goods (yellow line) measures how “particularistic” or“public”mostexpenditurewithinthenationalbudgetis,andthescoreof4sinceWorldWarII

suggests that almost all social and infrastructure expenditures are public-goods in character

withonlyasmallportionbeingparticularistic.Asamatterafact,eversince1900,mostofthe

expenditureshavebenefittedthepublicgood.

The most significant increase over time is represented by themeans-tested vs. universalisticindicator(lightblue line). Itrelates towhatcharacterizes thecountry’swelfareprogramsand

tells us whether they are universal in the sense that they benefit everyone. In the V-Dem

conceptualscheme,welfareprogramsthatbenefiteveryone(thiscanbefreeeducation,national

health care schemes, and retirement programs) and do not stigmatize certain unprivileged

groups,suchaspoorpeople,aremoredemocraticfromanegalitarianperspectivethanmeans-

tested programs (e.g. cash-transfer programs) targeting these particular groups only. Before

independence,almostallofthewelfarestatepoliciesinFinlandweremeans-testedasindicated

byascoreof1,whereasascoreofabove4asof2014indicatesthatmostwelfarestatepolicies


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areuniversalistic,withaportionbeingmeans-tested.Between1970and1990,aneven largersharewasuniversalisticincharacterandonlyaverysmallportionmeans-tested.

Equalityinhealthandeducation(purpleandbluelines)hasbeenfullyachievedinFinlandsincethe70s.TopscoresinbothindicatorssuggestthatlessthanfivepercentofFinnishcitizensarerestricted from exercising their basic political rights as adult citizens due to inequality inhealthcareorbasiceducation.

SincetheendofWorldWarII,membersofallsocialgroupshaveenjoyedthesamelevelofcivilliberties,asthehighscoreofthesocialgroupequality forcivil liberties (orange line) indicates.Thesamedevelopmenttakesplaceintermsofpowerdistributedbysocioeconomicposition(redline), although with a slightly lower score of between 3 and 4 in 2014. This suggests thatwealthyFinnishcitizensholdmorepoliticalpower,althoughpeoplewithaverageorlowincomealsohaveasignificantdegreeofpower.

Thepowerdistributionamongsocialgroups(blackline)appearssimilar,whereeitherallsocialgroups possess some political power, with some groups havingmore power than others; ordifferentsocialgroupsalternateinpower,accordingtothescoreof3ontheindicator.

Intermsofpoliticalpowerdistributionacrossgenders,Finlandnearlyreachesatopscoreof4by themillennium, indicating a roughly even power division betweenwomen andmen. Thescorewasactuallyalreadynearascoreof3atthebeginningofthecentury,whileitdroppedtoascoreof2duringtheperiodof1960to1970.

Female Rights Equality betweenwomen andmen is indivisible fromdemocracy at all levels, and is broadlyrecognizedasapre-conditionfortrulyrepresentativeandresponsivegovernments.TheV-Demfemale rights index focuses on the ability of women to participate in the open discussion ofpoliticalissues,toparticipateincivilsocietyorganizations,thefreedomofmovement,therighttoprivateproperty,theaccesstojustice,thefreedomfromforcedlabor,andanequalshareintheoveralldistributionofpower.


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The figure indicates that the rights of the women of Finland have been extensive for a long

period of time, as indicated by the high scores on themeasures of the female rights index inFigure8.

All indicators, except thepowerdistributedbygender(lightblue line),havebeenat top levelssince the 1960s. Even since 1910, the majority of them display scores of 3 out of 4. Hence,

women’s freedom from forced labor (orange line), freedom of domesticmovement (black line)and freedomofdiscussion (purple line)havebeenconsistentlyprotected inFinlandeven fromthebeginningofthecentury.Secureandeffectiveaccesstojusticeforwomenisalmostalways

observed, as indicated by the high scores for the variable access to justice (green line). Inaddition,women are almost never prevented fromparticipating in civil society organizations

(redline).

Thelargestchangecanbeobservedintermsofpropertyrights(yellowline),inwhichwomen’s

righttopropertyisfullyachievedinthe1940s.Theslowestdevelopmenttakesplaceintermsof

women’saccesstopoliticalpower(lightblueline).Since2000,however,Finlandhasachieveda

topscoreinthisaspectoffemalerights,aswell.

Concluding Remarks BasedondatafromkeyV-Demindicesandindicators,thisbriefprovidesanoverviewofsome

ofthecentralcomponentsofdemocracyovertimeinFinland.Finland’slongdemocratichistory

isreflectedintheV-Demdatainwhichmanydemocracycomponentsreachclosetotopscores

followingWorldWarII.

The participatory component, however, has only achieved a score of just below .6 in recent

years.

Thisrather lowscoreseemsmostlydrivenbytheV-Demmeasureofhowhardit isto initiate

andgetapprovalforadirectpopularvote,and,tosomeextent,reflectsthedecreasingroleand

freedomofthelocalandregionalgovernments.

The main political events of the country are more clearly reflected in some aspects of

democracythaninothers.ThedemocraticenhancementfollowingtheRussianRevolutionand

Finnishgeneralstrikein1905,aswellasindependenceandtheworldwarsshowcleareffects

on deliberative democracy as well as the participation among the Finns in civil society

organizations. It is important to note the quite distinct decrease in the engagement of the

society which has taken place in recent years. It can be interesting to keep an eye on this

developmentinthefuture.


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Appendix I. List of variables. Thisisalistofalltheindicesandindicatorsincludedinthecountrybrief.Itcontainsthequestionandthequestionalternativesaswellasinformationofaggregation,scale,datareleaseandcitation.ThesecanalsobefoundintheV-Demcodebook.

VariablesincludedinFigure1.

Electoraldemocracyindex(D)(v2x_polyarchy)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentistheidealofelectoraldemocracyinitsfullestsenseachieved?Clarifications: Theelectoralprincipleofdemocracyseekstoembodythecorevalueofmaking

rulers responsive to citizens, achieved through electoral competition for the electorate’sapproval under circumstances when suffrage is extensive; political and civil societyorganizationscanoperatefreely;electionsarecleanandnotmarredbyfraudorsystematicirregularities; andelectionsaffect the compositionof the chief executiveof the country. Inbetween elections, there is freedom of expression and an independent media capable ofpresenting alternative views on matters of political relevance. In the V-Dem conceptualscheme,electoraldemocracyisunderstoodasanessentialelementofanyotherconceptionof (representative) democracy – liberal, participatory, deliberative, egalitarian, or someother.

Aggregation: The index is formed by taking the average of, on the one hand, the sum of theindices measuring freedom of association (thick) (v2x_frassoc_thick), suffrage (v2x_suffr),clean elections (v2xel_frefair), elected executive (de jure) (v2x_accex) and freedom ofexpression (v2x_freexp_thick); and, on the other, the five-way interaction between thoseindices. This is halfwaybetween a straight average and strictmultiplication,meaning theaverageofthetwo.It isthusacompromisebetweenthetwomostwellknownaggregationformulas in the literature,bothallowing "compensation" inone sub-component for lackofpolyarchy in the others, but also punishing countries not strong in one sub-componentaccordingtothe"weakestlink"argument.TheaggregationisdoneatthelevelofDahlssub-components (with the one exception of the non-electoral component). The index isaggregatedusingthisformula:v2x_polyarchy=.1*v2x_suffr+ .1*v2xel_frefair+ .1*v2x_accex+ .1*v2x_frassoc_thick+ .1*v2x_freexp_thick+.5*v2x_suffr*v2xel_frefair*v2x_accex*v2x_frassoc_thick*v2x_freexp_thick.

Scale:IntervalSources:v2x_freexp_thickv2x_EDcomp_thickDatarelease:4,5(release1,2,and3usedadifferent,preliminaryaggregationformula)Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Liberaldemocracyindex(D)(v2x_libdem)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentistheidealofliberaldemocracyachieved?Clarifications: The liberal principle of democracy emphasizes the importance of protecting

individual and minority rights against the tyranny of the state and the tyranny of themajority.Theliberalmodeltakesa“negative”viewofpoliticalpowerinsofarasitjudgesthequalityofdemocracybythelimitsplacedongovernment.Thisisachievedbyconstitutionallyprotected civil liberties, strong rule of law, an independent judiciary, and effective checksandbalancesthat,together,limittheexerciseofexecutivepower.Tomakethisameasureofliberaldemocracy,theindexalsotakesthelevelofelectoraldemocracyintoaccount.

Aggregation:Theindexisaggregatedusingthisformula:v2x_libdem=


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.25*v2x_polyarchy^1.6+.25*v2x_liberal+.5*v2x_polyarchy^1.6*v2x_liberalScale:IntervalSources:v2x_liberalv2x_polyarchyDatarelease:4,5(release1,2,and3usedadifferent,preliminaryaggregationformula)Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Participatorydemocracyindex(D)(v2x_partipdem)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentistheidealofparticipatorydemocracyachieved?Clarifications: The participatory principle of democracy emphasizes active participation by

citizens inallpoliticalprocesses, electoralandnon-electoral. It ismotivatedbyuneasinessabout a bedrock practice of electoral democracy: delegating authority to representatives.Thus, direct rule by citizens is preferred, wherever practicable. This model of democracythustakessuffrageforgranted,emphasizingengagementincivilsocietyorganizations,directdemocracy, and subnational elected bodies. To make it a measure of participatorydemocracy,theindexalsotakesthelevelofelectoraldemocracyintoaccount.

Aggregation:Theindexisaggregatedusingthisformula:v2x_partipdem=.25*v2x_polyarchy^1.6+.25*v2x_partip+.5*v2x_polyarchy^1.6*v2x_partip

Scale:IntervalSources:v2x_polyarchyv2x_partipDatarelease:4,5(release1,2,and3usedadifferent,preliminaryaggregationformula)Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Deliberativedemocracyindex(D)(v2x_delibdem)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentistheidealofdeliberativedemocracyachieved?Clarification: The deliberative principle of democracy focuses on the process by which

decisions are reached in a polity. A deliberative process is one inwhich public reasoningfocused on the common goodmotivates political decisions—as contrastedwith emotionalappeals, solidary attachments, parochial interests, or coercion. According to this principle,democracyrequiresmorethananaggregationofexistingpreferences.Thereshouldalsoberespectful dialogue at all levels—from preference formation to final decision—amonginformedandcompetentparticipantswhoareopentopersuasion.Tomakeitameasureofnot only thedeliberativeprinciple but also of democracy, the index also takes the level ofelectoraldemocracyintoaccount.

Aggregation:Theindexisaggregatedusingthisformula:v2x_delibdem=.25*v2x_polyarchy^1.6+.25*v2x_delib+.5*v2x_polyarchy^1.6*v2x_delib

Scale:IntervalSources:v2xdl_delibv2x_polyarchyDatarelease:4,5.Datarelease:4,5(release1,2,and3usedadifferent,preliminaryaggregationformula)

Egalitariandemocracyindex(D)(v2x_egaldem)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentistheidealofegalitariandemocracyachieved?Clarifications: The egalitarian principle of democracy addresses the distribution of political

power across social groups, i.e., groups defined by class, sex, religion, and ethnicity. Thisperspective on democracy emphasizes that a formal guarantee of political rights and civillibertiesarenotalwayssufficientforpoliticalequality.Ideally,allsocialgroupsshouldhave


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approximately equal participation, representation, agenda-setting power, protection underthe law, and influenceoverpolicymakingandpolicy implementation. If suchequalitydoesnot exist, the state ought to seek to redistribute socio-economic resources, education, andhealthsoastoenhancepoliticalequality.Tomakeitameasureofegalitariandemocracy,theindexalsotakesthelevelofelectoraldemocracyintoaccount.

Aggregation:Theindexisaggregatedusingthisformula:v2x_egaldem=.25*v2x_polyarchy^1.6+.25*v2x_egal+.5*v2x_polyarchy^1.6*v2x_egal

Scale:IntervalSources:v2x_egalv2x_polyarchyDatarelease:4,5(release1,2,and3usedadifferent,preliminaryaggregationformula)Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).


Electoralcomponentindex(D)(v2x_EDcomp_thick)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentistheelectoralprincipleofdemocracyachieved?Clarification: The electoral principle of democracy seeks to achieve responsiveness and

accountabilitybetweenleadersandcitizensthroughthemechanismofcompetitiveelections.This is presumed to be achieved when suffrage is extensive; political and civil societyorganizationscanoperatefreely;electionsarecleanandnotmarredbyfraudorsystematicirregularities;andthechiefexecutiveofacountryisselected(directlyorindirectly)throughelections.

Aggregation: The electoral component index is operationalized as a chain defined by itsweakest linkof freedomofassociation,suffrage,cleanelections,andelectedexecutive.Theindexisthusaggregatedusingthisformula:v2x_EDcomp_thick=v2x_frassoc_thick*v2x_suffr*v2xel_frefair*v2x_accex.

Scale:IntervalSources:v2x_frassoc_thickv2x_suffrv2xel_frefairv2x_accexDatarelease:3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Participatorycomponentindex(D)(v2x_partip)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentistheparticipatoryprincipleachieved?Clarification: The participatory principle of democracy emphasizes active participation by

citizens inallpoliticalprocesses, electoralandnon-electoral. It ismotivatedbyuneasinessabout a bedrock practice of electoral democracy: delegating authority to representatives.Thus, direct rule by citizens is preferred, wherever practicable. This model of democracythustakessuffrageforgranted,emphasizingengagementincivilsocietyorganizations,directdemocracy,andsubnationalelectedbodies.

Aggregation:Thisindexisformedbyaveragingthefollowingindices:civilsocietyparticipation(v2x_iccpart), direct popular vote (v2xdd_dd), elected local government power(v2xel_locelec),andelectedregionalgovernmentpower(v2xel_regelec).

Scale:IntervalSources:v2x_iccpartv2xdd_ddv2xel_locelecv2xel_regelecDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).


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Egalitariancomponentindex(D)(v2x_egal)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentistheegalitarianprincipleachieved?Clarifications: The egalitarian principle of democracy addresses the distribution of political

power across social groups, i.e., groups defined by class, sex, religion, and ethnicity. Thisperspective on democracy emphasizes that a formal guarantee of political rights and civillibertiesarenotalwayssufficientforpoliticalequality.Ideally,allsocialgroupsshouldhaveapproximately equal participation, representation, agenda-setting power, protection underthe law, and influenceoverpolicymakingandpolicy implementation. If suchequalitydoesnot exist, the state ought to seek to redistribute socio-economic resources, education, andhealthsoastoenhancepoliticalequality.

Aggregation: The index is formed by point estimates drawn from a Bayesian factor analysismodel including indicators of power distribution according to socioeconomic position(v2pepwrses), power distribution according to social group (v2pepwrsoc), social groupequality in respect for civil liberties (v2clsocgrp), equal access to education (v2peedueq),equalaccesstohealth(v2pehealth),powerdistributionaccordingtogender(v2pepwrgen),shareofbudgetallocatedtopublic/commongoods(v2dlencmps),andtheshareofwelfareprogramsthatprovideuniversalratherthanmeans-testedbenefits(v2dlunivl).

Scale:IntervalSources: v2pepwrses v2pepwrsoc v2clsocgrp v2peedueq v2pehealth v2pepwrgen

v2dlencmpsv2dlunivlDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Liberalcomponentindex(D)(v2x_liberal)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentistheliberalprincipleofdemocracyachieved?Clarification: The liberal principle of democracy emphasizes the importance of protecting

individual and minority rights against the tyranny of the state and the tyranny of themajority.Theliberalmodeltakesa“negative”viewofpoliticalpowerinsofarasitjudgesthequalityofdemocracybythelimitsplacedongovernment.Thisisachievedbyconstitutionallyprotected civil liberties, strong rule of law, an independent judiciary, and effective checksandbalancesthat,together,limittheexerciseofexecutivepower.

Aggregation: This index is formedbyaveragingthe following indices:equalitybeforethe lawand individual liberties (v2xcl_rol), judicial constraints on the executive (v2x_jucon), andlegislativeconstraintsontheexecutive(v2xlg_legcon).

Scale:IntervalSources:v2xcl_rolv2x_juconv2xlg_legconDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Deliberativecomponentindex(D)(v2xdl_delib)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentisthedeliberativeprincipleofdemocracyachieved?Clarification: The deliberative principle of democracy focuses on the process by which

decisions are reached in a polity. A deliberative process is one inwhich public reasoningfocused on the common goodmotivates political decisions—as contrastedwith emotionalappeals, solidary attachments, parochial interests, or coercion. According to this principle,democracyrequiresmorethananaggregationofexistingpreferences.Thereshouldalsoberespectful dialogue at all levels—from preference formation to final decision—amonginformedandcompetentparticipantswhoareopentopersuasion.


16

Tomeasurethesefeaturesofapolitywetrytodeterminetheextenttowhichpoliticalelitesgivepublicjustificationsfortheirpositionsonmattersofpublicpolicy,justifytheirpositionsintermsofthepublicgood,acknowledgeandrespectcounter-arguments;andhowwidetherangeofconsultationisatelitelevels.

Aggregation: The index is formed by point estimates drawn from a Bayesian factor analysismodelincludingthefollowingindicators:reasonedjustification(v2dlreason),commongoodjustification (v2dlcommon), respect for counterarguments (v2dlcountr), range ofconsultation(v2dlconslt),andengagedsociety(v2dlengage).

Scale:IntervalSources:v2dlreasonv2dlcommonv2dlcountrv2dlconsltv2dlengageDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Femalerightsindex(D)(v2x_gender)

Projectmanager:JohnGerringQuestion:Towhatextentarewomen’spoliticalrightsprotected?Clarifications:Politicalrightsindexfocusesontheabilityofwomentoparticipateindiscussions

ofpoliticalissues,participationincivilsocietyorganizations,freedomofmovement,therighttoprivateproperty,accesstojustice,freedomfromforcedlabor,representationintheranksofjournalists,andanequalshareintheoveralldistributionofpower.

Aggregation:TheindexisformedbytakingthepointestimatesfromaBayesianfactoranalysismodel of the indicators for CSO women’s participation (v2csgender), female journalists(v2mefemjrn), freedom of domestic movement for women (v2cldmovew), freedom ofdiscussion for women (v2cldiscw), freedom from forced labor for women (v2clslavef),property rights for women (v2clprptyw), access to justice for women (v2clacjstw), andpowerdistributedbygender(v2pepwrgen).

Scale:IntervalSources: v2csgender v2mefemjrn v2cldmovew v2cldiscw v2clslavef v2clprptyw v2clacjstw

v2pepwrgenDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).


Freedomofassociation(thick)index(D)(v2x_frassoc_thick)

Projectmanager:AllenHicken,MichaelBernhard,JanTeorellQuestion: To what extent are parties, including opposition parties, allowed to form and to

participateinelections,andtowhatextentarecivilsocietyorganizationsabletoformandtooperatefreely?

Aggregation:TheindexisformedbytakingthepointestimatesfromaBayesianfactoranalysismodel of the indicators for party ban (v2psparban), barriers to parties (v2psbars),opposition parties autonomy (v2psoppaut), elections multiparty (v2elmulpar), CSO entryand exit (v2cseeorgs) and CSO repression (v2csreprss). Since the multiparty electionsindicator is only observed in election years, its values have first been repeated withinelectionregimeperiods(asdefinedbyv2x_elecreg).

Scale:IntervalSources:v2psparbanv2psbarsv2psoppautv2elmulparv2cseeorgsv2csreprssDatarelease:4,5(release1,2,and3usedadifferentaggregationformulaforthethinner index

v2x_frassoc)Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).


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Cleanelectionsindex(D)(v2xel_frefair)

Projectmanagers:StaffanLindberg,JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentareelectionsfreeandfair?Clarifications:Freeandfairconnotesanabsenceofregistrationfraud,systematicirregularities,

governmentintimidationoftheopposition,votebuying,andelectionviolence.Aggregation:TheindexisformedbytakingthepointestimatesfromaBayesianfactoranalysis

model of the indicators for EMB autonomy (v2elembaut), EMB capacity (v2elembcap),electionvoterregistry(v2elrgstry),electionvotebuying(v2elvotbuy),electionothervotingirregularities (v2elirreg), election government intimidation (v2elintim), election otherelectoralviolence(v2elpeace),andelectionfreeandfair(v2elfrfair).Sincethebulkoftheseindicators are only observed in election years, the index scores have then been repeatedwithinelectionregimeperiods(asdefinedbyv2x_elecreg)

Scale:IntervalSources: v2elembaut v2elembcap v2elrgstry v2elvotbuy v2elirreg v2elintim v2elpeace

v2elfrfairDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Shareofpopulationwithsuffrage(D)(v2x_suffr)

Projectmanager:Svend-ErikSkaaningQuestion: What share of adult citizens (as defined by statute) has the legal right to vote in

nationalelections?

Clarification: This question does not take into consideration restrictions based on age,residence,havingbeenconvictedforcrime,orbeinglegallyincompetent.Itcoverslegal(dejure) restrictions, not restrictions thatmay be operative in practice (de facto). The scoresreflect de jureprovisionsof suffrage extension inpercentageof the adult population as ofJanuary 1 in a particular year. The adult population (as defined by statute) is defined bycitizens inthecaseof independentcountriesorthepeople living intheterritorialentity inthe case of colonies. Universal suffrage is coded as 100%. Universalmale suffrage only iscodedas50%.Yearsbeforeelectoralprovisionsareintroducedarescored0%.Thescoresdonot reflectwhether an electoral regimewas interrupted or not. Only if new constitutions,electoral laws, or the like explicitly introducenewregulationsof suffrage, the scoreswereadjusted accordingly if the changes suggested doing so. If qualifying criteria other thangender apply (such as property, tax payments, income, literacy, region, race, ethnicity,religion, and/or ‘economic independence’), estimates have been calculated by combininginformationontherestrictionswithdifferentkindsofstatisticalinformation(onpopulationsize, age distribution, wealth distribution, literacy rates, size of ethnic groups, etc.),secondary country-specific sources, and – in the case of very poor information – theconditionsinsimilarcountriesorcolonies.

Aggregation:v2elsuffrage/100

Responses:PercentScale:IntervalSource:v2elsuffrageDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Electedexecutiveindex(dejure)(D)(v2x_accex)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion: Is the chief executive appointed through popular elections (either directly or

indirectly)?


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Clarifications: This index attempts tomeasurewhether the chief executive is elected, either

directly elected through popular elections or indirectly through a popularly elected

legislaturethatthenappointsthechiefexecutive.

Note that a popular election is minimally defined and also includes sham elections with

limited suffrage and no competition. Similarly, “appointment” by legislature only implies

selectionand/orapproval,notthepowertodismiss.

This index is useful primarily for aggregating higher-order indices and should not be

interpretedasanimportantelementofdemocracyinitsownright.

Aggregation: There are six different chains of appointment/selection to take into account in

constructingthisindex,allofwhicharescaledtovaryfrom0to1.First,whethertheheadof

state is directly elected (a=1) or not (a=0). Second, the extent to which the legislature is

popularly elected (b), measured as the proportion of legislators elected (if legislature is

unicameral), or the weighted average of the proportion elected for each house, with the

weightdefinedbywhichhouseisdominant(if legislatureisbicameral).Third,whetherthe

headofstate isappointedbythe legislature,or theapprovalof the legislature isnecessary

for theappointmentof theheadof state (c1=1,otherwise0). Fourth,whether theheadof

governmentisappointedbythelegislature,ortheapprovalofthelegislatureisnecessaryfor

theappointmentoftheheadofgovernment(c2=1,otherwise0).Fifth,whethertheheadof

governmentisappointedbytheheadofstate(d=1)ornot(d=0).Sixth,whethertheheadof

governmentisdirectlyelected(e=1)ornot(e=0).Definehoswastheweightfortheheadof

state.Iftheheadofstateisalsoheadofgovernment(v2exhoshog==1),hosw=1.Iftheheadof

statehasmorepowerthantheheadofgovernmentovertheappointmentanddismissalof

cabinet ministers, then hosw=1; if the reverse is true, hosw=0. If they share equal power,

hosw=.5.Definetheweightfortheheadofgovernmentashogw=1-hosw.Theformulais:

v2x_accex=

hosw*[max(a1,b*c1)]+hogw*[max(a1*d,b*c1*d,a2,b*c2)]

Scale:Interval

Sources: v2lgello v2lgelecup v2lgdomchm v2exaphos v2expathhs v2exaphogp v2expathhg

v2exdfcbhsv2exdjcbhgv2exdfdmhsv2exdfdshgv2exhoshog

Datarelease:4,5(release1,2,and3usedadifferent,preliminaryaggregationformula)

Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).


Equalitybeforethelawandindividuallibertyindex(D)(v2xcl_rol)

Projectmanager:JanTeorell

Question: To what extent are laws transparent and rigorously enforced and public

administration impartial, and to what extent do citizens enjoy access to justice, secure

propertyrights,freedomfromforcedlabor,freedomofmovement,physicalintegrityrights,

andfreedomofreligion?

Aggregation:TheindexisformedbytakingthepointestimatesfromaBayesianfactoranalysis

model of the indicators for rigorous and impartial public administration (v2clrspct),

transparent laws with predictable enforcement (v2cltrnslw), access to justice for

men/women (v2clacjstm, v2clacjstw), property rights for men/women (v2clprptym,

v2clprptyw),freedomfromtorture(v2cltort),freedomfrompoliticalkillings(v2clkill),from

forced labor for men/women (v2clslavem v2clslavef), freedom of religion (v2clrelig),

freedom of foreign movement (v2clfmove), and freedom of domestic movement for

men/women(v2cldmovem,v2cldmovew).

Scale:Interval

Sources: v2clrspct v2cltrnslw v2clacjstm v2clacjstw v2clprptym v2clprptyw v2cltort v2clkill

v2clslavemv2clslavefv2clreligv2clfmovev2cldmovemv2cldmovew

Datarelease:1,2,3,4,5.


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Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Legislativeconstraintsontheexecutiveindex(D)(v2xlg_legcon)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion:Towhatextentisthelegislatureandgovernmentagencies(e.g.,comptrollergeneral,

general prosecutor, or ombudsman) capable of questioning, investigating, and exercisingoversightovertheexecutive?

Aggregation:TheindexisformedbytakingthepointestimatesfromaBayesianfactoranalysismodeloftheindicatorsforlegislaturequestionsofficialsinpractice(v2lgqstexp),executiveoversight (v2lgotovst), legislature investigates in practice (v2lginvstp), and legislatureoppositionparties(v2lgoppart).

Scale:IntervalSources:v2lgqstexpv2lgotovstv2lginvstpv2lgoppartDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Judicialconstraintsontheexecutiveindex(D)(v2x_jucon)

Projectmanager:JanTeorellQuestion: Towhat extent does the executive respect the constitution and complywith court

rulings,andtowhatextentisthejudiciaryabletoactinanindependentfashion?Aggregation:TheindexisformedbytakingthepointestimatesfromaBayesianfactoranalysis

model of the indicators for executive respects constitution (v2exrescon), compliancewithjudiciary (v2jucomp), compliancewith high court (v2juhccomp), high court independence(v2juhcind),andlowercourtindependence(v2juncind).

Scale:IntervalSources:v2exresconv2jucompv2juhccompv2juhcindv2juncindDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).VariablesincludedinFigure5.

Civilsocietyparticipationindex(D)(v2x_cspart)

Projectmanager:MichaelBernhardQuestion:AremajorCSOsroutinelyconsultedbypolicymaker;howlargeistheinvolvementof

people in CSOs; are women prevented from participating; and is legislative candidatenomination within party organization highly decentralized or made through partyprimaries?

Clarifications:Thesphereofcivilsocietyliesinthepublicspacebetweentheprivatesphereandthestate.Here,citizensorganizeingroupstopursuetheircollectiveinterestsandideals.Wecall these groups civil society organizations (CSOs). CSOs include, but are by no meanslimitedto,interestgroups,laborunions,spiritualorganizations(iftheyareengagedincivicorpoliticalactivities),socialmovements,professionalassociations,charities,andothernon-governmentalorganizations.Thecorecivilsocietyindex(CCSI)isdesignedtoprovideameasureofarobustcivilsociety,understood as one that enjoys autonomy from the state and in which citizens freely andactivelypursuetheirpoliticalandcivicgoals,howeverconceived.

Aggregation:TheindexisformedbytakingthepointestimatesfromaBayesianfactoranalysismodel of the indicators for candidate selection –national/local (v2pscnslnl), CSOconsultation (v2cscnsult), CSO participatory environment (v2csprtcpt), and CSO women’sparticipation(v2csgender).


20

Scale:IntervalSources:v2pscnslnlv2cscnsultv2csprtcptv2csgenderDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Localgovernment(D)(v2xel_locelec)

Projectmanagers:KellyMcMann,JanTeorellQuestion: Are there elected local governments, and –if so – towhat extent can they operate

withoutinterferencefromunelectedbodiesatthelocallevel?Clarification: The lowest score would be reserved for a country that has no elected local

governments. A medium score would be accorded a country that has elected localgovernmentsbutwherethosegovernmentsaresubordinatetounelectedofficialsatthelocallevel (perhaps appointed by a higher-level body). A high score would be accorded to acountryinwhichlocalgovernmentsareelectedandabletooperatewithoutrestrictionsfromunelected actors at the local level (with the exception of judicial bodies). (Naturally, localgovernmentsremainsubordinatetotheregionalandnationalgovernments.)

Aggregation: First, local government elected (v2ellocelc) is recoded so that 0=none elected,1=onlyexecutiveelected,2=onlyassemblyelected,and3=bothelected.Thisnewconstructisthen scaled to vary from 0-1 and multiplied by local offices relative power (v2ellocpwr)scaledtovaryfrom0-1.

Scale:IntervalSources:v2ellocelcv2ellocpwrDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Directpopularvoteindex(D)(v2xdd_dd)

Projectmanager:DavidAltmanQuestion:Towhatextentisthedirectpopularvoteutilized?Clarification:Directpopularvotingrefersheretoaninstitutionalizedprocessbywhichcitizens

ofaregionorcountryregistertheirchoiceoropiniononspecificissuesthroughaballot.Itisintended to embrace initiatives, referendums, and plebiscites, as those terms are usuallyunderstood.Itcapturessomeaspectsofthemoregeneralconceptofdirectdemocracy.Thetermdoesnotencompassrecallelections,deliberativeassemblies,orsettings inwhichthevoteisnotsecretorthepurviewisrestricted.Likewise,itdoesnotapplytoelectionsforrepresentatives.

Aggregation: Thisindexmeasureshoweasyit istoinitiateandapproveadirectpopularvoteandhowconsequentialthatvoteis(ifapproved)?Easeof initiationismeasuredby(a)theexistence of a direct democracy process (v2ddlegci), (b) the number of signatures needed(v2ddsigcip), (c) time-limits to circulate the signatures (v2ddgrgpci), and (d) the level ofgovernment (national and/or subnational). Ease of approval is measured by quorumspertaining to (a) participation (v2ddgrgpci), (b) approval (v2ddbindci), (c) supermajority(v2ddspmjci),and(d)districtmajority(v2dddistci).Consequencesaremeasuredby(a)thelegal status of the decisionmade by citizens (binding ormerely consultative) (v2ddlegci),and (b) the frequency with which direct popular votes have been approved in the past(v2ddciniyr).

Scale:IntervalSources: v2ddlegci v2ddsigcip v2ddgrtlci v2ddgrgpci v2ddlevci v2ddbindci v2ddthreci

v2ddspmjciv2dddistciv2ddlegciv2ddciniyrDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).


21

Regionalgovernment(D)(v2xel_regelec)

Projectmanagers:KellyMcMann,JanTeorellQuestion:Arethereelectedregionalgovernments,and–ifso–towhatextentcantheyoperate

withoutinterferencefromunelectedbodiesattheregionallevel?Clarification: The lowest scorewould be reserved for a country that has no elected regional

governments. A medium score would be accorded a country that has elected regionalgovernments but where those governments are subordinate to unelected officials at theregionallevel(perhapsappointedbyahigher-levelbody).Ahighscorewouldbeaccordedtoacountryinwhichregionalgovernmentsareelectedandabletooperatewithoutrestrictionsfromunelectedactorsattheregionallevel(withtheexceptionofjudicialbodies).(Naturally,regionalgovernmentsremainsubordinatetothenationalgovernment.)

Aggregation:First,regionalgovernmentelected(v2elsrgel)isrecodedsothat0=noneelected,1=onlyexecutiveelected,2=onlyassemblyelected,and3=bothelected.Thisnewconstructisthenscaled tovary from0-1andmultipliedbyregionalofficesrelativepower(v2elrgpwr)scaledtovaryfrom0-1.

Scale:IntervalSources:v2elsrgelv2elrgpwrDatarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).VariablesincludedinFigure6.

Reasonedjustification(C)(v2dlreason,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:MichaelCoppedge,JohnGerring,StaffanLindbergQuestion: Whenimportantpolicychangesarebeingconsidered,i.e.beforeadecisionhasbeen

made, to what extent do political elites give public and reasoned justifications for theirpositions?

Clarification:Becausediscoursevariesgreatlyfrompersontoperson,baseyouransweronthestylethatismosttypicalofprominentnationalpoliticalleaders.

Responses:0:Nojustification.Elitesalmostalwaysonlydictatethatsomethingshouldorshouldnot

be done, but no reasoning about justification is given. For example, “We must cutspending.”

1:Inferiorjustification.Elitestendtogivereasonswhysomeoneshouldorshouldnotbefordoingornotdoingsomething,butthereasonstendtobeillogicalorfalse,althoughtheymay appeal tomany voters. For example, “Wemust cut spending. The state isinefficient.”[Theinferenceisincompletebecauseaddressinginefficiencieswouldnotnecessarilyreducespendinganditmightundermineessentialservices.]

2: Qualified justification. Elites tend to offer a single simple reason justifyingwhy theproposedpoliciescontribute toordetract fromanoutcome.Forexample, “Wemustcutspendingbecausetaxpayerscannotaffordtopayforcurrentprograms.”

3: Sophisticated justification. Elites tend to offer more than one or more complex,nuanced and complete justification. For example, “We must cut spending becausetaxpayerscannotaffordtopayforcurrentgovernmentprograms.Raisingtaxeswouldhurteconomicgrowth,anddeficitspendingwouldleadtoinflation.”

Scale:Ordinal,convertedtointervalbythemeasurementmodel.Cross-coder aggregation: Bayesian item response theory measurement model (see V-Dem

Methodology,postedatV-Dem.net).Datarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).


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Respectcounterarguments(C)(v2dlcountr,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:MichaelCoppedge,JohnGerring,StaffanLindbergQuestion: When important policy changes are being considered, to what extent do political

elitesacknowledgeandrespectcounterarguments?Clarification:Becausediscoursevariesgreatlyfrompersontoperson,baseyouransweronthe

stylethatismosttypicalofprominentnationalpoliticalleaders.Responses:

0:Counterargumentsarenotallowedorifarticulated,punished.1: Counterarguments are allowed at least from some parties, but almost always are

ignored.2: Elites tend to acknowledge counterarguments but then explicitly degrade them by

makinganegativestatementaboutthemorthe individualsandgroupsthatproposethem.

3: Elites tend to acknowledge counterarguments without making explicit negative orpositivestatementsaboutthem.

4:Elitesalmostalwaysacknowledgecounterargumentsandexplicitlyvaluethem,eveniftheyultimatelyrejectthemforthemostpart.

5: Elites almost always acknowledge counterarguments and explicitly value them, andfrequentlyalsoevenacceptthemandchangetheirposition.



Engagedsociety(C)(v2dlengage,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:MichaelCoppedge,JohnGerring,StaffanLindbergQuestion: When important policy changes are being considered, how wide and how

independentarepublicdeliberations?Clarification:Thisquestionreferstodeliberationasmanifestedindiscussion,debate,andother

publicforumssuchaspopularmedia.Responses:

0:Publicdeliberationisnever,oralmostneverallowed.1: Somelimitedpublicdeliberationsareallowedbut thepublicbelowtheelite levels is

almostalwayseitherunawareofmajorpolicydebatesorunabletotakepartinthem.2: Publicdeliberation isnotrepressedbutnevertheless infrequentandnon-eliteactors

aretypicallycontrolledand/orconstrainedbytheelites.3: Public deliberation is actively encouraged and some autonomous non-elite groups

participate,butitisconfinedtoasmallsliceofspecializedgroupsthattendstobethesameacrossissue-areas.

4:Publicdeliberationisactivelyencouragedandarelativelybroadsegmentofnon-elitegroupsoftenparticipateandvarywithdifferentissue-areas.

5: Largenumbersofnon-elitegroupsaswell asordinarypeople tend todiscussmajorpoliciesamongthemselves, inthemedia, inassociationsorneighborhoods,or inthestreets.Grass-rootsdeliberationiscommonandunconstrained.




23

Commongood(C)(v2dlcommon,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:MichaelCoppedge,JohnGerring,StaffanLindbergQuestion: When important policy changes are being considered, to what extent do political

elitesjustifytheirpositionsintermsofthecommongood?Clarification:Becausediscoursevariesgreatlyfrompersontoperson,baseyouransweronthe

stylethatismosttypicalofprominentnationalpoliticalleaders.Responses:

0:Littleornojustificationintermsofthecommongoodisusuallyoffered.1: Specificbusiness,geographic,group,party,orconstituencyinterestsareforthemost

partofferedasjustifications.2:Justificationsareforthemostpartamixofspecificinterestsandthecommongoodand

itisimpossibletosaywhichjustificationismorecommonthantheother.3: Justifications are based on a mixture of references to constituency/party/group

interestsandonappealstothecommongood.4: Justificationsareforthemostpartalmostalwaysbasedonexplicitstatementsofthe

common good for society, understood either as the greatest good for the greatestnumberorashelpingtheleastadvantagedinasociety.



Rangeofconsultation(C)(v2dlconslt,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:MichaelCoppedge,JohnGerring,StaffanLindbergQuestion: When important policy changes are being considered, how wide is the range of

consultationatelitelevels?Clarification:Becausepracticesvarygreatlyfrompolicytopolicy,baseyouransweronthestyle

thatismosttypicalofpolicymaking.Responses:

0: No consultation. The leader or a very small group (e.g. military council) makesauthoritativedecisionsontheirown.

1: Very little and narrow. Consultationwith only a narrow circle of loyal party/rulingelites.

2: Consultation includesthe formerplusa largergroupthat is loyal to thegovernment,suchastherulingparty’sorparties’localexecutivesand/orwomen,youthandotherbranches.

3:Consultationincludestheformerplusleadersofotherparties.4: Consultation includes the former plus a select range of society/labor/business

representatives.5: Consultationengageselitesfromessentiallyallpartsofthepoliticalspectrumandall

politicallyrelevantsectorsofsocietyandbusiness.Scale:Ordinal,convertedtointervalbythemeasurementmodel.Cross-coder aggregation: Bayesian item response theory measurement model (see V-Dem

Methodology,postedatV-Dem.net).Datarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).VariablesincludedinFigure7.


24

Powerdistributedbysocioeconomicposition(C)(v2pepwrses,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanager:JohnGerring Question:Ispoliticalpowerdistributedaccordingtosocioeconomicposition?Clarification: Allsocietiesarecharacterizedbysomedegreeofeconomic(wealthandincome)

inequality.Insomesocieties,incomeandwealtharedistributedinagrosslyunequalfashion.Inothers,thedifferencebetweenrichandpoorisnotsogreat.Here,weareconcernednotwith the degree of social inequality but ratherwith the political effects of this inequality.Specifically,we are concernedwith the extent towhichwealth and income translates intopoliticalpower.

Responses:0: Wealthy people enjoy a virtual monopoly on political power. Average and poorer

peoplehavealmostnoinfluence.1: Wealthypeopleenjoyadominantholdonpoliticalpower.Peopleofaverage income

havelittlesay.Poorerpeoplehaveessentiallynoinfluence.2:Wealthypeoplehaveaverystrongholdonpoliticalpower.Peopleofaverageorpoorer

incomehavesomedegreeofinfluencebutonlyonissuesthatmatterlessforwealthypeople.

3: Wealthypeoplehavemorepoliticalpowerthanothers.Butpeopleofaverageincomehave almost as much influence and poor people also have a significant degree ofpoliticalpower.

4: Wealthy people have nomore political power than thosewhose economic status isaverageorpoor.Politicalpower ismoreor lessequallydistributedacrosseconomicgroups.



Socialgroupequalityinrespectforcivilliberties(C)(v2clsocgrp,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanager:Svend-ErikSkaaningQuestion: Doallsocialgroups,asdistinguishedbylanguage,ethnicity,religion,race,region,or

caste,enjoythesamelevelofcivilliberties,oraresomegroupsgenerallyinamorefavorableposition?

Clarification: Here,civil libertiesareunderstoodto includeaccess to justice,privatepropertyrights,freedomofmovement,andfreedomfromforcedlabor.

Responses:0: Members of some social groups enjoy much fewer civil liberties than the general

population.1: Members of some social groups enjoy substantially fewer civil liberties than the

generalpopulation.2:Membersofsomesocialgroupsenjoymoderatelyfewercivillibertiesthanthegeneral

population.3: Members of some social groups enjoy slightly fewer civil liberties than the general

population.4:Membersofallsalientsocialgroupsenjoythesamelevelofcivilliberties.




25

Healthequality(C)(v2pehealth,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:MichaelCoppedge,JohnGerring,StaffanLindbergQuestion:Towhatextentishighqualitybasichealthcareguaranteedtoall,sufficienttoenable

themtoexercisetheirbasicpoliticalrightsasadultcitizens?Clarification:Poor-qualityhealthcarecanmakecitizensunabletoexercisetheirbasicrightsas

adult citizensby failing toadequately treatpreventableand treatable illnesses that renderthemunabletowork,participateinsocialorpoliticalorganizations,orvote(wherevotingisallowed).

Responses:0:Extreme.Becauseofpoor-qualityhealthcare,atleast75percent(%)ofcitizens’ability

toexercisetheirpoliticalrightsasadultcitizensisundermined.1:Unequal.Becauseofpoor-qualityhealthcare,atleast25percent(%)ofcitizens’ability

toexercisetheirpoliticalrightsasadultcitizensisundermined.2:Somewhatequal.Becauseofpoor-qualityhealthcare,tento25percent(%)ofcitizens’

abilitytoexercisetheirpoliticalrightsasadultcitizensisundermined.3: Relatively equal. Basic health care is overall equal in quality but because of poor-

qualityhealthcare,fivetotenpercent(%)ofcitizens’abilitytoexercisetheirpoliticalrightsasadultcitizensisundermined.

4: Equal.Basichealthcare isequal inqualityand less than fivepercent (%)of citizenscannotexercisetheirbasicpoliticalrightsasadultcitizens.



Particularisticorpublicgoods(C)(v2dlencmps)

Projectmanagers:MichaelCoppedge,JohnGerring,StaffanLindbergQuestion: Consideringtheprofileofsocialandinfrastructuralspendinginthenationalbudget,

how“particularistic”or“publicgoods”aremostexpenditures?Clarification: Particularistic spending is narrowly targeted on a specific corporation, sector,

socialgroup,region,party,orsetofconstituents.Suchspendingmaybereferredtoas“pork,”“clientelistic,”or“privategoods.”Public-goodsspendingisintendedtobenefitallcommunitieswithinasociety,thoughitmaybemeans-testedsoastotargetpoor,needy,orotherwiseunderprivilegedconstituents.Thekeypointisthatallwhosatisfythemeans-testareallowedtoreceivethebenefit.Youranswershouldconsidertheentirebudgetofsocialandinfrastructuralspending.Weareinterestedintherelativevalueofparticularisticandpublic-goodsspending,notthenumberofbillsorprogramsthatfallintoeithercategory.

Responses:0:Almostallofthesocialandinfrastructureexpendituresareparticularistic.1:Mostsocialandinfrastructureexpendituresareparticularistic,butasignificantportion

(e.g.¼or1/3)ispublic-goods.2:Socialandinfrastructureexpendituresareevenlydividedbetweenparticularisticand

public-goodsprograms.3:Mostsocialandinfrastructureexpendituresarepublic-goodsbutasignificantportion

(e.g.,¼or1/3)isparticularistic.4:Almostallsocialandinfrastructureexpendituresarepublic-goodsincharacter.Onlya

smallportionisparticularistic.Scale:Ordinal,convertedtointervalbythemeasurementmodel.Cross-coder aggregation: Bayesian item response theory measurement model (see V-Dem

Methodology,postedatV-Dem.net).


26

Datarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Powerdistributedbysocialgroup(C)(v2pepwrsoc,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanager:JohnGerringQuestion:Ispoliticalpowerdistributedaccordingtosocialgroups?Clarification:Asocialgroupisdifferentiatedwithinacountrybycaste,ethnicity,language,race,

region, religion, or some combination thereof. (It does not include identities grounded insexualorientationorsocioeconomicstatus.)Socialgroupidentityiscontextuallydefinedandis likelytovaryacrosscountriesandthroughtime.Socialgroupidentitiesarealsolikelytocross-cut, so thatagivenpersoncouldbedefined inmultipleways, i.e., aspartofmultiplegroups.Nonetheless,atanygivenpointintimetherearesocialgroupswithinasocietythatareunderstood-bythoseresidingwithinthatsociety–tobedifferent,inwaysthatmaybepoliticallyrelevant.

Responses:0: Political power is monopolized by one social group comprising a minority of the

population.Thismonopolyisinstitutionalized,i.e.,notsubjecttofrequentchange.1: Politicalpowerismonopolizedbyseveralsocialgroupscomprisingaminorityofthe

population.Thismonopolyisinstitutionalized,i.e.,notsubjecttofrequentchange.2: Politicalpower ismonopolizedbyseveralsocialgroupscomprisingamajorityof the

population.Thismonopolyisinstitutionalized,i.e.,notsubjecttofrequentchange.3: Eitherallsocialgroupspossesssomepoliticalpower,withsomegroupshavingmore

power than others; or different social groups alternate in power, with one groupcontrollingmuchofthepoliticalpowerforaperiodoftime,followedbyanother–butallsignificantgroupshaveaturnattheseatofpower.

4: All social groups have roughly equal political power or there are no strong ethnic,caste, linguistic, racial, religious, or regional differences to speak of. Social groupcharacteristicsarenotrelevanttopolitics.



Educationalequality(C)(v2peedueq,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:MichaelCoppedge,JohnGerring,StaffanLindbergQuestion: Towhatextentishighqualitybasiceducationguaranteedtoall,sufficienttoenable

themtoexercisetheirbasicrightsasadultcitizens?Clarification: Basic education refers to ages typically between6 and16 years of agebut this

variesslightlyamongcountries.Responses:

0:Extreme.Provisionofhighqualitybasiceducationisextremelyunequalandatleast75percent (%) of children receive such low-quality education that undermines theirabilitytoexercisetheirbasicrightsasadultcitizens.

1:Unequal.Provisionofhighqualitybasiceducationisextremelyunequalandatleast25percent (%) of children receive such low-quality education that undermines theirabilitytoexercisetheirbasicrightsasadultcitizens.

2: Somewhat equal.Basic education is relatively equal inqualitybut ten to25percent(%) of children receive such low-quality education that undermines their ability toexercisetheirbasicrightsasadultcitizens.


27

3:Relativelyequal.Basiceducationisoverallequalinqualitybutfivetotenpercent(%)

ofchildrenreceivesuchlow-qualityeducationthatprobablyunderminestheirability

toexercisetheirbasicrightsasadultcitizens.

4: Equal. Basic education is equal in quality and less than five percent (%) of children

receivesuchlow-qualityeducationthatprobablyunderminestheirabilitytoexercise

theirbasicrightsasadultcitizens.



Powerdistributedbygender(C)(v2pepwrgen,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanager:JohnGerringQuestion:Ispoliticalpowerdistributedaccordingtogender?Responses:

0:Menhaveanear-monopolyonpoliticalpower.

1:Menhaveadominantholdonpoliticalpower.Womenhaveonlymarginalinfluence.

2:Menhavemuchmorepoliticalpowerbutwomenhavesomeareasofinfluence.

3:Menhavesomewhatmorepoliticalpowerthanwomen.

4:Menandwomenhaveroughlyequalpoliticalpower.



Means-testedv.universalisticpolicy(C)(v2dlunivl,*_dos,*_ord,*_meanl)

Projectmanagers:MichaelCoppedge,JohnGerring,StaffanLindbergQuestion:Howmanywelfareprogramsaremeans-testedandhowmanybenefitall(orvirtually

all)membersofthepolity?

Clarification: A means-tested program targets poor, needy, or otherwise underprivilegedconstituents.Cash-transferprogramsarenormallymeans-tested.

A universal (non-means tested) program potentially benefits everyone. This includes free

education, national health care schemes, and retirement programs. Granted, some may

benefitmore than others from these programs (e.g.,when peoplewith higher salaries get

higherunemploymentbenefits).Thekeypointisthatpracticallyeveryoneisabeneficiary,or

potentialbeneficiary.

Thepurposeofthisquestionisnottogaugethesizeofthewelfarestatebutratheritsquality.

So,youranswershouldbebasedonwhateverprogramsexist.

Responses:0: There are no, or extremely limited, welfare state policies (education, health,

retirement,unemployment,povertyprograms).

1:Almostallofthewelfarestatepoliciesaremeans-tested.

2: Mostwelfare statepoliciesmeans-tested, but a significantportion (e.g.¼or1/3) is

universalisticandpotentiallybenefitseveryoneinthepopulation.

3: The welfare state policies are roughly evenly divided between means-tested and

universalistic.

4:Mostwelfarestatepoliciesareuniversalistic,butasignificantportion(e.g.,¼or1/3)

aremeans-tested.


28

5: Almost all welfare state policies are universal in character. Only a small portion ismeans-tested.




CSOwomen’sparticipation(C)(v2csgender,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanager:MichaelBernhardQuestion:Arewomenpreventedfromparticipatingincivilsocietyorganizations(CSOs)?Clarification:Pleasepayattentiontoboth(A)whetherwomenarepreventedfromparticipating

incivilsocietyorganizations(CSOs)becauseoftheirgenderand(B)whetherCSOspursuingwomen’sinterestsarepreventedfromtakingpartinassociationallife.

Responses:0:Almostalways.1:Frequently.2:Abouthalfthetime.3:Rarely.4:Almostnever.



Freedomofdiscussionforwomen(C)(v2cldiscw,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:PamelaPaxton,Svend-ErikSkaaningQuestion: Are women able to openly discuss political issues in private homes and in public

spaces?Clarification: Thisindicatorspecifiestheextenttowhichwomenareabletoengageinprivate

discussions,particularlyonpoliticalissues,inprivatehomesandpublicspaces(restaurants,public transportation, sports events, work etc.) without fear of harassment by othermembers of the polity or the public authorities. We are interested in restrictions by thegovernmentanditsagentsbutalsoculturalrestrictionsorcustomarylawsthatareenforcedbyothermembersofthepolity,sometimesininformalways.Thisquestiondoesnotaskyoutoassesstherelativefreedomofmenandwomen.Thus,itispossibletoassignthelowestpossiblescoretoacountryevenifmenandwomenenjoyequal–andextremelylow–rightstofreedomofdiscussion.

Responses:0:Notrespected.Hardlyanyfreedomofexpressionexistsforwomen.Womenaresubject

to immediate and harsh intervention and harassment for expression of politicalopinion.

1:Weaklyrespected.Expressionsofpoliticalopinionsbywomenarefrequentlyexposedtointerventionandharassment.

2: Somewhat respected. Expressions of political opinions by women are occasionallyexposedtointerventionandharassment.

3: Mostly respected. There are minor restraints on the freedom of expression in theprivate sphere, predominantly limited to a few isolated cases or only linked to soft


29

sanctions. But as a rule there is no intervention or harassment if women makepoliticalstatements.

4: Fullyrespected.Freedomofspeechbywomenintheirhomesandinpublicspacesisnotrestricted.



Propertyrightsforwomen(C)(v2clprptyw,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:PamelaPaxton,Svend-ErikSkaaningQuestion:Dowomenenjoytherighttoprivateproperty?Clarification: Private property includes the right to acquire, possess, inherit, and sell private

property, including land. Limits on property rights may come from the state (whichmaylegally limit rights or fail to enforce them); customary laws and practices; or religious orsocialnorms.Thisquestionconcernstherighttoprivateproperty,notactualownershipofproperty.Thisquestiondoesnot askyou to assess the relative rightsofmenandwomen.Thus, it ispossibletoassignthelowestpossiblescoretoacountryevenifmenandwomenenjoyequal–andveryminimal–propertyrights.

Responses:0:Virtuallynowomenenjoyprivatepropertyrightsofanykind.1:Somewomenenjoysomeprivatepropertyrights,butmosthavenone.2:Manywomenenjoymanyprivatepropertyrights,butasmallerproportionenjoysfew

ornone.3: More thanhalf ofwomen enjoymost privateproperty rights, yet a smaller share of

womenhavemuchmorerestrictedrights.4:Mostwomenenjoymostprivatepropertyrightsbutasmallminoritydoesnot.5:Virtuallyallwomenenjoyall,oralmostall,propertyrights.



Powerdistributedbygender(C)(v2pepwrgen,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanager:JohnGerringQuestion:Ispoliticalpowerdistributedaccordingtogender?Responses:

0:Menhaveanear-monopolyonpoliticalpower.1:Menhaveadominantholdonpoliticalpower.Womenhaveonlymarginalinfluence.2:Menhavemuchmorepoliticalpowerbutwomenhavesomeareasofinfluence.3:Menhavesomewhatmorepoliticalpowerthanwomen.4:Menandwomenhaveroughlyequalpoliticalpower.




30

Freedomofdomesticmovementforwomen(C)(v2cldmovew,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:PamelaPaxton,Svend-ErikSkaaningQuestion:Dowomenenjoyfreedomofmovementwithinthecountry?Clarification:Thisindicatorspecifiestheextenttowhichallwomenareabletomovefreely,in

daytime and nighttime, in public thoroughfares, across regions within a country, and to

establishpermanentresidencywhere theywish.Note that restrictions inmovementmight

be imposed by the state and/or by informal norms and practices. Such restrictions

sometimesfallonruralresidents,onspecificsocialgroups,orondissidents.

Thisquestiondoesnotaskyoutoassesstherelativefreedomofmenandwomen.Thus,itispossibletoassignthelowestpossiblescoretoacountryevenifmenandwomenenjoyequal

–andextremelylow–freedomofmovement.

Do not consider restrictions in movement that are placed on ordinary (non-political)criminals.Donotconsiderrestrictionsinmovementthatresultfromcrimeorunrest.

Responses:0:Virtuallynowomenenjoyfullfreedomofmovement(e.g.,NorthKoreaorAfghanistan

undertheTaliban).

1:Somewomenenjoyfullfreedomofmovement,butmostdonot(e.g.,ApartheidSouth

Africa).

2: Most women enjoy some freedom of movement but a sizeable minority does not.

Alternativelyallwomenenjoypartialfreedomofmovement.

3:Mostwomenenjoyfullfreedomofmovementbutasmallminoritydoesnot.

4:Virtuallyallwomenenjoyfullfreedomofmovement.



Freedomfromforcedlaborforwomen(C)(v2clslavef,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:PamelaPaxton,Svend-ErikSkaaningQuestion:Areadultwomenfreefromservitudeandotherkindsofforcedlabor?Clarification:Involuntaryservitudeoccurswhenanadultisunabletoquitajobs/hedesiresto

leave – not by reason of economic necessity but rather by reason of employer’s coercion.

This includes labor camps but not work or service which forms part of normal civic

obligationssuchasconscriptionoremploymentincommandeconomies.

Thisquestiondoesnotaskyoutoassesstherelativefreedomofmenandwomenfromforcedlabor.Thus,acountryinwhichbothmenandwomensufferthesameconditionsofservitude

mightbecodeda(0)forwomen,eventhoughthereisequalityacrossthesexes.

Responses:0: Femaleservitudeorotherkindsofforcedlaboriswidespreadandaccepted(perhaps

evenorganized)bythestate.

1: Female servitude or other kinds of forced labor is substantial. Although officially

opposed by the public authorities, the state is unwilling or unable to effectively

containthepractice.

2: Female servitude or other kinds of forced labor exists but is not widespread and

usually actively opposed by public authorities, or only tolerated in some particular

areasoramongparticularsocialgroups.

3: Female servitude or other kinds of forced labor is infrequent and only found in the

criminalunderground.Itisactivelyandsincerelyopposedbythepublicauthorities.

4:Femaleservitudeorotherkindsofforcedlaborisvirtuallynon-existent.

Scale:Ordinal,convertedtointervalbythemeasurementmodel.


31

Cross-coder aggregation: Bayesian item response theory measurement model (see V-DemMethodology,postedatV-Dem.net).

Datarelease:1,2,3,4,5.Citation:V-Demcodebook(seesuggestedcitationatthetopofthisdocument).

Accesstojusticeforwomen(C)(v2clacjstw,*_dos,*_ord,*_mean)

Projectmanagers:PamelaPaxton,Svend-ErikSkaaningQuestion:Dowomenenjoyequal,secure,andeffectiveaccesstojustice?Clarification: This question specifies the extent to which women can bring cases before the

courtswithoutrisktotheirpersonalsafety,trialsarefair,andwomenhaveeffectiveabilityto seek redress if public authorities violate their rights, including the rights to counsel,defense,andappeal.Thisquestiondoesnotaskyoutoassesstherelativeaccesstojusticemenandwomen.Thus,itispossibletoassignthelowestpossiblescoretoacountryevenifmenandwomenenjoyequal–andextremelylimited–accesstojustice.

Responses:0:Secureandeffectiveaccesstojusticeforwomenisnon-existent.1: Secureandeffectiveaccess to justice forwomen isusuallynotestablishedorwidely

respected.2: Secure and effective access to justice for women is inconsistently observed. Minor

problemscharacterizemost casesoroccur ratherunevenlyacrossdifferentpartsofthecountry.

3:Secureandeffectiveaccesstojusticeforwomenisusuallyobserved.4:Secureandeffectiveaccesstojusticeforwomenisalmostalwaysobserved.




32

Appendix II. Overview of the structure of the indices.

StructureofAggregation–IndicesandIndicators DemocracyIndicesNames

Mid-LevelDemocracyandGovernanceIndicesNames

Lower-LevelDemocracyandGovernanceIndicesNames

NamesIndicators v2_tagIndicesandIndicators

ElectoralDemocracyIndex

v2x_polyarchy

Freedomofexpressionindex

v2x_freexp

Governmentcensorshipeffort-Media

v2mecenefm

Harassmentofjournalists v2meharjrn Mediaself-censorship v2meslfcen Freedomofdiscussion

formenv2cldiscm

Freedomofdiscussionforwomen

v2cldiscw

Freedomofacademicandculturalexpression

v2clacfree

Alternativesourceinformationindex

v2xme_altinf

Mediabias v2mebias Print/broadcastmedia

criticalv2mecrit

Print/broadcastmediaperspectives

v2merange

ElectoralComponentIndex

v2x_EDcomp_thick

Freedomofassociationindex(thick)

v2x_frassoc_thick

PartyBan v2psparban Barrierstoparties v2psbars Oppositionparties

autonomyv2psoppaut

Electionsmultiparty v2elmulpar CSOentryandexit v2cseeorgs CSOrepression v2csreprss Shareof

populationwithsuffrage

v2x_suffr

Percentofpopulationwithsuffrage

v2elsuffrage

Cleanelectionsindex

v2xel_frefair

EMBautonomy v2elembaut


33

EMBcapacity v2elembcap Electionvoterregistry v2elrgstry Electionvotebuying v2elvotbuy Electionothervoting

irregularitiesv2elirreg

Electiongovernmentintimidation

v2elintim

Electionotherelectoralviolence

v2elpeace

Electionfreeandfair v2elfrfair Electedexecutive

index(dejure) v2x_accex

Lowerchamberelected v2lgello Upperchamberelected v2lgelecup Legislaturedominant

chamberv2lgdomchm

HOSselectionbylegislatureinpractice

v2exaphos

HOSappointmentinpractice

v2expathhs

HOGselectionbylegislatureinpractice

v2exaphogp

HOGappointmentinpractice

v2expathhg

HOSappointscabinetinpractice

v2exdfcbhs

HOGappointscabinetinpractice

v2exdjcbhg

HOSdismissesministersinpractice

v2exdfdmhs

HOGdismissesministersinpractice

v2exdfdshg

HOSappointscabinetinpractice

v2exdfcbhs

LiberalDemocracyIndex

v2x_libdem


v2x_polyarchy

LiberalComponentIndex

v2x_liberal

Equalitybeforethelawandindividuallibertyindex

v2xcl_rol

Rigorousandimpartialpublicadministration

v2clrspct

Transparentlawswithpredictableenforcement

v2cltrnslw

Accesstojusticeformen v2clacjstm Accesstojusticefor

womenv2clacjstw


34

Propertyrightsformen v2clprptym Propertyrightsfor

womenv2clprptyw

Freedomfromtorture v2cltort Freedomfrompolitical

killingsv2clkill

Freedomfromforcedlaborformen

v2clslavem

Freedomfromforcedlaborforwomen

v2clslavef

Freedomofreligion v2clrelig Freedomofforeign

movementv2clfmove

Freedomofdomesticmovementformen

v2cldmovem

Freedomofdomesticmovementforwomen

v2cldmovew

Judicialconstraintsontheexecutiveindex

v2x_jucon

Executiverespectsconstitution

v2exrescon

Compliancewithjudiciary

v2jucomp

Compliancewithhighcourt

v2juhccomp

Highcourtindependence v2juhcind Lowercourtindependence v2juncind Legislative

constraintsontheexecutiveindex

v2xlg_legcon

Legislaturequestionsofficialsinpractice

v2lgqstexp

Executiveoversight v2lgotovst Legislatureinvestigatesin

practicev2lginvstp

Legislatureoppositionparties

v2lgoppart

DeliberativeDemocracyIndex

v2x_delibdem


v2x_polyarchy

DeliberativeComponentIndex

v2xdl_delib

Reasonedjustification v2dlreason Commongood v2dlcommon Respect

counterargumentsv2dlcountr

Rangeofconsultation v2dlconslt Engagedsociety v2dlengage


35

EgalitariandemocracyIndex

v2x_egaldem


v2x_polyarchy

EgalitarianComponentIndex

v2x_egal

Powerdistributedbysocioeconomicposition

v2pepwrses

Powerdistributedbysocialgroup

v2pepwrsoc

Socialgroupequalityinrespectforcivilliberties

v2clsocgrp

Educationalequality v2peedueq Healthequality v2pehealth Powerdistributedby

genderv2pepwrgen

Encompassing-ness v2dlencmps Means-testedvs.

universalisticv2dlunivl

ParticipatoryDemocracyIndex

v2x_partipdem


v2x_polyarchy

ParticipatoryComponentIndex

v2x_partip

Civilsocietyparticipationindex

v2x_cspart

Candidateselection--National/local

v2pscnslnl

CSOconsultation v2cscnsult CSOparticipatory

environmentv2csprtcpt

CSOwomensparticipation

v2csgender

DirectPopularVoteIndex

v2xdd_dd

Initiativespermitted v2ddlegci Initiativessignatures% v2ddsigcip Initiativessignature-

gatheringtimelimitv2ddgrtlci

Initiativessignature-gatheringperiod

v2ddgrgpci

Initiativeslevel v2ddlevci Initiativesparticipation

thresholdv2ddbindci

Initiativesapprovalthreshold

v2ddthreci

Initiativesadministrativethreshold

v2dddistci

Initiativessupermajority v2ddspmjci


36

Occurrenceofcitizen-initiativethisyear

v2ddciniyr

Localgovernmentindex

v2xel_locelec

Localgovernmentelected

v2ellocelc

Localofficesrelativepower

v2ellocpwr

Localgovernmentexists v2ellocgov Regional

governmentindex v2xel_regelec

Regionalgovernmentelected

v2elsrgel

Regionalofficesrelativepower

v2elrgpwr

Regionalgovernmentexists

v2elreggov

CoreCivilSociety

Index v2xcs_ccsi

CSOentryandexit v2cseeorgs CSOrepression v2csreprss CSOparticipatory

environmentv2csprtcpt

Party

Institutionalizationindex

v2xps_party

Partyorganizations v2psorgs PartyBranches v2psprbrch Partylinkages v2psprlnks Distinctpartyplatforms v2psplats Legislativeparty

cohesionv2pscohesv

Femalerightsindex v2x_gender

CSOwomensparticipation

v2csgender

Percent(%)FemaleJournalists

v2mefemjrn

Freedomofdomesticmovementforwomen

v2cldmovew

Freedomofdiscussionforwomen

v2cldiscw

Freedomfromforcedlaborforwomen

v2clslavef

Propertyrightsforwomen

v2clprptyw

Accesstojusticeforwomen

v2clacjstw

Powerdistributedby v2pepwrgen


37

gender ElectoralRegime

Index v2x_elecreg

Legislativeorconstituentassemblyelection

v2xel_elecparl

v2eltype v2eltype_0 v2eltype v2eltype_1 v2eltype v2eltype_4 v2eltype v2eltype_5 Legislatureclosed

downoraborted v2xlg_leginter

Legislaturebicameral v2lgbicam Presidential

election v2xel_elecpres

v2eltype v2eltype_6 v2eltype v2eltype_7 Chiefexecutiveno

longerelected v2x_hosinter

HOS=HOG? v2exhoshog HOGappointmentin

practicev2expathhg

HOSappointmentinpractice

v2expathhs

country report finland … · middle- and upper class, where finnish speakers dominated the red...

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