Learning to Govern Together in Representative Democracy
The Dynamics of Cooperation and Competition in Coalition Governance
Author(s)
Thomas König, Xiao Lu, Thiago N Silva
Language
Multiple languagesAbstract
Learning to Govern Together in Representative Democracy introduces a dynamic theory of coalition governance, focusing on the temporal constraints that coalition parties face when governing together in representative democracies. The book examines how coalition partners, over the course of a legislative term, adapt their strategies for joint policy-making as they encounter varying levels of cooperation and competition in partnership. Two distinct models of learning are developed: the portfolio-learning model, where ministers learn through interactions within their portfolios, and the partisan-learning model, which accounts for learning from co-partisan experiences across portfolios. Empirical evidence from 11 parliamentary democracies demonstrates that ministerial office-holders infer the type of partnership from their experienced parliamentary scrutiny, with consequences for their legislative behavior, such as initiating government bill proposals earlier in the term if they perceive a cooperative partnership, or later in the term if they perceive a competitive partnership. The book makes a significant contribution to our understanding of coalition effectiveness, stability, and satisfaction with governance.
Keywords
Representative democracy; Coalition governance; Learning partnership; Cyclical joint policy-making; Agenda timingDOI
10.1093/9780198959045.001.0001ISBN
9780198959014, 9780198959014, 9780198959038, 9780198959045, 9780198959021Publisher
Oxford University PressPublisher website
https://global.oup.com/Publication date and place
Oxford, 2025Imprint
Comparative PoliticsClassification
Political science and theory
Constitution: government and the state
Political leaders and leadership


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