New Books in Political Science What Democracy Does… and Does Not Do
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Nov 7, 2025 Maya Tudor, a Professor at the Blavatnik School of Government, dives into whether democracies truly deliver on their promises. She shares compelling cross-national data showcasing how democracies achieve better health, education, and lower civil conflict. However, she warns of mixed economic growth outcomes and inflated data in autocratic regimes. Tudor highlights the adaptability of democracies in addressing global challenges like climate change, arguing that while imperfect, they often provide better solutions than authoritarian models.
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Lower Infant Mortality In Democracies
- Democracies show substantially lower infant mortality than autocracies, about 17 fewer deaths per thousand on average.
- This effect emerges from multiple cross-national studies covering many decades.
More Schooling, Not Always Better Learning
- Democracies produce more average years of schooling but evidence on learning quality is mixed and measurement is difficult.
- Tudor warns that more years in school do not necessarily equal better learning outcomes.
Democracy Reduces Civil Conflict
- Democracies experience substantially fewer deaths from internal violent conflict compared to non-democracies.
- Democratic institutions and competition reduce the risk of civil war on average.