Short description of this research:

How do people view democracy? The project will deepen existing scholarly debates about people's views and expectations of democracy in emerging democracies. Aims are to examine the characteristics of dissatisfied democrats in recently democratised countries, test existing theories, and develop alternative theories based on empirical evidence of new democracies. More empirical research is needed, i.e. in new democracies.

Articles and book chapters based on this research:

- article ‘Dissatisfied Democrats in Africa; Critical Citizens, Democratic Support and Satisfaction in African Democracies’ (to be published in International Political Science Review in Summer of 2012)

- book chapter ‘Public support versus dissatisfaction in new democracies: an ‘inside challenge’?’ in P. Burnell and R. Youngs (eds.), Democracy’s International Challenges, London: Routledge, 2010, pp. 93-116

- book review of Distrusting Democrats. by Devra C. Moehler. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. 2008. Published in Perspectives on Politics 2009

- book chapter ‘Citizen’s Support for Legislature and Democratic Consolidation: Comparative study with special focus on Mali’ in Salih, M. O. (ed.) African Parliaments, New York: Palgrave, 2005

Conference papers based on this research:

- ‘Democracy promotion as foreign policy – the democratization perspective on the recipient’s side’, presented at the British International Studies Association Conference, Manchester Conference Centre, 27 May 2011

- ‘Public Opinion and Democracy in the World’, paper presented at workshop „Vectors of Transfer. Democratic Repertoires and Contestations“, Nijmegen University, the Netherlands, December 2010. Part of the “Repertoires of Democracy” project (2008-2011), which is an interdisciplinary research project of political scientists, political philosophers, and political historians at Radboud University Nijmegen

- ‘Dissatisfied democrats in Africa Critical Citizens, Democratic Support and Satisfaction in African Democracies’, presented at departmental seminar, Politics department, Surrey University, February 17, 2010. Also presented at Cape Town University, Law department, South Africa, April 2010

- ‘How people view democracy in Africa’, presented at Africa@Warwick conference, organised by the Institute of Advanced Study, Warwick University, January 15 and 16, 2010, See podcast on Warwick Uni Websites

- ‘Democracy Satisfaction and the Endogenous Approach: insights from psychology and economics’ presented at the ESRC-DFID workshop on “Aspirations and Poverty”, Department of Economics, Warwick University, December 14 and 15, 2009

- ‘Democracy’s Normative Appeal; The record of new democracies’. Paper presented at ‘Democracy’s International Challenges’, an international seminar organised by CEPS, FRIDE, the Open Society Institute, and Warwick University At CEPS, Brussels, Belgium, 17 June 2008

Book project (work-in-progress) related to this research:

- 'Democratic Dreams', book project on the effects of democratization in comparative perspective

Organized events related to this research:

- Roundtables, Film Screenings, Seminars and Public Lecture 'Mass Media and Democratic Revolutions around the World', by e.g. Zoe D'Amaro (Italian filmmaker based in Amsterdam). Organised by the Centre for Studies in Democratisation (CSD/ PaIS), March 9-11, 2011.

- Roundtables on Democracy in the Middle East, PaIS/ CSD, 2011, see for CSD events http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/pais/research/csd/

- See events organized with corruption network: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/cross_fac/ias/networks/corruption/

Funding related to this research:

- Academic Fellowship IATL 2011-2012. What, why democracy? Research and Film Projects about Democracy: Students, Academics and Filmmakers United

- Mentor Tina Freyburg, Leverhulme Postdoc 2012-2013

- Interdisciplinary Corruption Network (2011-2012), funding by IAS, established together with prof Mark Knights (History)

PhD students and postdocs related to this research:

- Mohammed Ali Bapir, PhD student, working on 'building political institutions in divided societies: the case of Iraq'

- Juan Carlos Gomez, PhD student, working on 'elites and democratic consolidation in Colombia and Venezuela'

- Tina Freyburg, Leverhulme postdoc 2012-2013

- Elena Piffero, CSD postdoc 2011-2012, working on 'political participation and democracy in Egypt'