Consensus, conflict, and compromise in western: Thought on representative government

Adam Przeworski

    Research output: Contribution to journalConference articlepeer-review

    Abstract

    Representative government in the West was born under an ideology that postulated a basic harmony of interests in society. The political decision process was thus expected to be largely consensual. This ideology obfuscated important conflicts of values and interests, and it became untenable with the rise of mass, class-based and religious parties. Beginning with Kelsen (1923) and culminating with Schumpeter (1942), theorists of representative government conceptualized it as a system for processing conflicts. In one view, representation is assured by compromises among parties, in another by partisan alternation in office.

    Original languageEnglish (US)
    Pages (from-to)7042-7055
    Number of pages14
    JournalProcedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences
    Volume2
    Issue number5
    DOIs
    StatePublished - 2010

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • General Social Sciences
    • General Psychology

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