Rural Development Capitalist And Socialist Paths (An Overview)

Introduction

This study is an attempt to explain the changes in public policy in democratic systems. It presents an argument that there is an interdependent or exchange relationship between the choices of the policy-makers and the policy-takers.

Institutional Mechanisms

Periodic elections and the political parties are important institutional mechanisms which make the exchange relationship possible. The policy-makers use the policy as an instrument to provide inducements to their own supporters.

Market Structure and Assumptions

The structure of the market for political exchange is characterised as monopolistic competition. The policy-makers are assumed to maximise the probability of re-election while the policy-takers are assumed to maximise the benefit and minimise the costs from a policy.

Propositions and Analysis

These assumptions lead to a number of propositions about the conditions of a policy change. These propositions along with those emerging from the socio-economic and the political factors are tested using data from twenty-one contemporary democratic regimes between 1952-1980.

Conclusion

These analyses confirm the contention that political exchange plays an important part as a determinant of policy outcomes.