Political development and the international political system Research Paper

Political development and the international political system - Research Paper Example Martinussen (1997) found that political development is essential to process inputs into such outputs that can be implemented for the benefits of the society. Any country needs development of a proper political system in order to run the government institutions in an appropriate manner because it is very difficult to manage those institutions without having a well-structured political system. Such countries face political decline where there are no signs of political development because political problems cannot be solved easily without development of a proper political system in a country. Kingsbury (2007) found that political development reflects a process of change that is away from archaic political forms, such as feudalism, through to authoritarian or oligarchic political systems, or on the extreme end, a totalitarian or parasitic form of government (p.17). Bringing democracy in a country and then strengthening the roots of democracy is one of the main motives of political develo pment. The main goal of political development is human freedom, which is vital for pursuing capabilities, and realizing rights (Kingsbury, 2007, p.17). Political development not only results in implementation of laws but also brings considerable changes in the social and political dimensions of a society. Political development is also necessary to strengthen the economic system of a country. It is because there is a strong link between the economic development and political system of a country. Political development involves such characteristics and variables, which not only changes the attitudes of the political culture but also carries out considerable institutional reforms. Models of political development play an important role in setting the dimensions of a desired political system. There is no single model for political development. The two models presented by the political development literature include unilinear and monolithic models. Both of these models provide assistance i n the proper political development in a country. Is Democratization Equivalent to Political Development? Democratization is one of the trends in modern political science and it can be a transition from an authoritarian political regime to a democratic political regime. â€Å"Democratization is important because of one of the most widely (but not universally) accepted trends in international relations, known as the democratic peace† (Hauss, 2003). Democratization is not equivalent to political development because democratization is a process by which a country adopts a democratic political regime whereas political development refers to the concept of developing a political structure for implementation. Hauss (2003) states, â€Å"There is less agreement among political scientists about how that process occurs, including the criteria to use in determining if democratization has, in fact, taken place†. â€Å"Democratization relates specifically to a programmatic agenda of state reform promoted by transnational actors† (Burnell, 2006, p. 24). Political development means to form an authoritarian, oligarchic, totalitarian, or parasitic type of government whereas democratization is the transition of autocratic form of government into a democratic regime. Political development is very broad concept related to development of a political attitudes and values in order to form a political system whereas democrati