Joji Watanuki Books
Joji Watanuki was a Japanese political scientist specializing in comparative politics and governance.
Known for: The Crisis of Democracy: Report on the Governability of Democracies to the Trilateral Commission
Books by Joji Watanuki
The Crisis of Democracy: Report on the Governability of Democracies to the Trilateral Commission
This report, commissioned by the Trilateral Commission in 1975, examines the challenges facing democratic governments in North America, Western Europe, and Japan. The authors argue that democracies were experiencing a 'governability crisis' due to an overload of demands on government institutions, declining authority, and growing public disillusionment. The study explores the balance between participation and governability, suggesting that excessive democratization can weaken effective governance.
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Defining the Crisis of Democracy
In analyzing what we called the 'crisis of democracy,' we found that governability—the capacity of democratic systems to make and implement decisions—was eroding. The perception of crisis did not arise from tyranny, corruption, or authoritarian threat; rather, it came from democracy's own internal d...
From The Crisis of Democracy: Report on the Governability of Democracies to the Trilateral Commission
Historical Background: The Postwar Expansion of Participation
In postwar decades, societies across the Trilateral region underwent broad democratization. The United States saw civil rights movements, student protests, and a surge of citizen activism; Europe experienced new waves of unionization and social movements; Japan, rising from wartime defeat, embraced ...
From The Crisis of Democracy: Report on the Governability of Democracies to the Trilateral Commission
About Joji Watanuki
Joji Watanuki was a Japanese political scientist specializing in comparative politics and governance.
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Joji Watanuki was a Japanese political scientist specializing in comparative politics and governance.
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