The Logic of Political Survival

The authors of this ambitious book address a fundamental politicalquestion: why are leaders who produce peace and prosperity turned out of officewhile those who preside over corruption, war, and misery endure? Considering thispolitical puzzle, they also answer the related economic question of why somecountries experience successful economic development and others do not.The authorsconstruct a provocative theory on the selection of leaders and present specificformal models from which their central claims can be deduced. They show howpolitical leaders allocate resources and how institutions for selecting leaderscreate incentives for leaders to pursue good and bad public policy. They also extendthe model to explain the consequences of war on political survival. Throughout thebook, they provide illustrations from history, ranging from ancient Sparta to VichyFrance, and test the model against statistics gathered from cross-national data. Theauthors explain the political intuition underlying their theory in nontechnicallanguage, reserving formal proofs for chapter appendixes. They conclude bypresenting policy prescriptions based on what has been demonstrated theoreticallyand empirically.

Review :
""The Logic of Political Survival" takes up the big question that has long puzzled social scientists of all stripes--why do governments that cripple or destroy their own societies survive in office for so long? The authors offer a detailed and convincing theory and subject that theory to withering examination by the data. A must-read for anyone who seeks to understand the fate of nations."--William Easterly, Professor of Economics, New York University, and author of The Elusive Quest for Growth "In recent years, the boundaries between international relations and comparative politics have become ever more porous. This book represents the first full-scale integration of the two fields, adding dramatically to both. Political scientists will be confronting its theory and evidence for years to come."--Barry Weingast, Ward C. Krebs Family Professor of Political Science, Stanford University "This widely anticipated book addresses fundamental questions in international and comparative politics: why do democratic leaders typically govern with less corruption, more prosperity, and less war for their peoples? Combining rigorous formal logic, systematic empirical analysis, and wide-ranging historical examples, the authors' excellent work will draw great attention and stimulate much further research."--Bruce Russett, Dean Acheson Professor of International Relations, Yale University " & quot; In recent years, the boundaries between international relations and comparative politics have become ever more porous. This book represents the first full-scale integration of the two fields, adding dramatically to both. Political scientists will be confronting its theory and evidence for years to come.& quot; --Barry Weingast, Ward C. Krebs Family Professor of Political Science, Stanford University & quot; The Logic of Political Survival takes up the big question that has long puzzled social scientists of all stripes--why do governments that cripple or destroy their own societies survive in office for so long? The authors offer a detailed and convincing theory and subject that theory to withering examination by the data. A must-read for anyone who seeks to understand the fate of nations.& quot; --William Easterly, Professor of Economics, New York University, and author of The Elusive Quest for Growth & quot; This widely anticipated book addresses fundamental questions in international and comparative politics: why do democratic leaders typically govern with less corruption, more prosperity, and less war for their peoples? Combining rigorous formal logic, systematic empirical analysis, and wide-ranging historical examples, the authors' excellent work will draw great attention and stimulate much further research.& quot; --Bruce Russett, Dean Acheson Professor of International Relations, Yale University " "The Logic of Political Survival" takes up the big question that has long puzzled social scientists of all stripes--why do governments that cripple or destroy their own societies survive in office for so long? The authors offer a detailed and convincing theory and subject that theory to withering examination by the data. A must-read for anyone who seeks to understand the fate of nations." --William Easterly, Professor of Economics, New York University, and author of The Elusive Quest for Growth " In recent years, the boundaries between international relations and comparative politics have become ever more porous. This book represents the first full-scale integration of the two fields, adding dramatically to both. Political scientists will be confronting its theory and evidence for years to come." --Barry Weingast, Ward C. Krebs Family Professor of Political Science, Stanford University " This widely anticipated book addresses fundamental questions in international and comparative politics: why do democratic leaders typically govern with less corruption, more prosperity, and less war for their peoples? Combining rigorous formal logic, systematic empirical analysis, and wide-ranging historical examples, the authors' excellent work will draw great attention and stimulate much further research." --Bruce Russett, Dean Acheson Professor of International Relations, Yale University --Barry Weingast, Ward C. Krebs Family Professor of Political Science, Stanford University --Bruce Russett, Dean Acheson Professor of International Relations, Yale University --William Easterly, Professor of Economics, New York University, and author of The Elusive Quest for Growth ""A must-read for anyone who seeks to understand the fate of nations."