12: Comparative Politics of Developing Countries

Aníbal Pérez-Liñán, University of Pittsburgh, asp27@pitt.edu

Issues of representation lie at the core of political debates in developing countries, where vast segments of the population usually lack access to economic resources and social power. A diverse set of agents may articulate the citizens’ policy preferences, including legislatures and political parties, but also courts, sub-national governments, social movements, trade unions, interest groups, media conglomerates, and even military officers or authoritarian leaders. We welcome submissions that cover this broad range of representative relationships from the perspectives of institutional analysis, political behavior, historical sociology, or political economy. We encourage panels and papers that explore innovative questions, employ original data, or embrace multi-method designs. Both single and multi-country studies will be considered, but preference will be given to papers and panels that address larger comparative themes and theoretical issues.