Type of Government

A third important attribute affecting states’ international behavior is their political system. Type of government demonstrably constrains important choices, including whether the use of force is threatened and whether the threat is carried out. Here the important distinction is between constitutional democracy (representative govemment) on one end of the spectrum and autocratic rule (authoritarian or totalitarian) on the other.

In neither democratic (sometimes called "open") nor autocratic ("closed") political systems can political leaders survive long without the support of organized domestic political interests (and sometimes the mass citizenry). But in democratic systems those interests are likely to be politically potent, dispersed beyond the government itself, and active in their pressure on the government to make policy choices that benefit them. Public opinion, interest groups, and the mass media are a more visible part of the policy-making process in democratic systems. Similarly, the electoral process in democratic societies more meaningfully frames choices and produces results about who will lead than typically occurs in authoritarian regimes, where the real choices are made by a few elites behind closed doors. In short, in a democracy, public opinions and preferences may matter and, therefore, differences in who is allowed to participate and how much they exercise their right to participate are critical determinants of foreign policy choices.

Compare, for example, the foreign policy of Saudi Arabia, controlled by a king and royal family, with that of Switzerland, governed by a multiparty democratic process. In the former, foreign policy decisions have sometimes been bold and unexpected, as exemplified by the Saudi royal family’s revolutionary policies in summoning U.S. military forces to its territory during the 1991 Persian Gulf War, in contravention of long-standing Arab policies designed to prevent Western encroachments against Muslim lands. In Switzerland, where voting and mass political participation heavily influence decisions about Switzerland’s international activities, the policy of neutrality has been pursued without deviation since 1815.

Although public preferences help shape democratic societies’ foreign policies, so too does elitism. Often, even in democratic governments, decisions are made by a small ruling elite; this is especially true when international crises erupt. Military-industrial complexes, obtrusively evident in many countries, are examples of elite groups sometimes believed to exercise disproportionate control over defense policy making, in both turbulent and calm times. Elitism’s rival model, known as pluralism, sees policy making as an upward-flowing process in which competitive domestic groups pressure the government for policies responsive to their interests and needs. Pluralism is a peculiarly democratic phenomenon that is widespread, although its effects are sometimes difficult to pinpoint.

Exercises: