Costa Rica’s democracy and freedom rating Do all three indexes paint a similar picture, or do they diverge? Democracy Index (Overall Score: 100%) ・The Economist Democracy Index: 82.9% Democracy Index (Overall Score: 100%) ・Freedom House: 91% Democracy Index (Overall Score: 100%) ・V-Dem: 82 % (Deliberative Democracy index) Comparison of overall score ・The Economist and V-Dem are similar (both are around 82%) ・Freedom House is higher than the other two indexes(91%) Political Participation (100%) ・The Economist: 77.8% Political Participation (100%) • Freedom House: 93.8% (15/16) Political Participation (100%) • V-Dem: 65% Civil Liberties (100%) ・The Economist: 97% Civil Liberties (100%) • Freedom House: 88% Civil Liberties (100%) • V-Dem: 95% Has the country’s rating changed over time? 1/2 Has the country’s rating changed over time? 2/2 • A coup in 1917 • General Federico Tinoco • A civil war 1948 • José Figueres • Legislative Assembly • New constitution Theories and concepts from the course literature This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BYSA Surprising/unsurprising finds • The 1948 Costa Rican Civil War Aftermath • Costa Rica being 1 of 3 Latin Nations as a full democracy • Egalitarianism Costa Rica is an extraordinary country that has strived to live in peace and balance throughout many years. It been a democracy since the civil war and has made historic progress towards both a participatory and deliberative democracy. Although the 3 index graphs may have different numbers, it's still a highly rated democracy country. Discussion Question 1. The three indexes are different from each other. How can they close the gap between them? 2. Is the media important when it comes to democracy? Reference list • Americas Quarterly. New Study Ranks Democracy in Latin America. https://www.americasquarterly.org/blog/new-study-ranksdemocracy-in-latin-america/(2023-10-12). • Booth, J.A. (2008). Democratic Development in Costa Rica1. Democratization, 15(4), pp.714–732. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/13510340802191052. • Economist Intelligence. Frontline democracy and the battle for Ukraine. https://pages.eiu.com/rs/753-RIQ-438/images/DI-finalversion-report.pdf?mkt_tok=NzUzLVJJUS00MzgAAAGOnuHV3yl1by_eAbgn6f53LU3vI2ZbZxKiTd9OraOTSVHwbFtpooHFoLUkfHp4_2powF0aPyj2DnOI3kiRH6zDBaAvMTtOrcLu6sj36VGOldEhA(2023-10-09). • Freedom House. https://freedomhouse.org/country/costa-rica/freedom-world/2023(2023-10-09). • Fukuyama, F. (1992), The End of History and the last man (Glencoe: Free Press) • Klingemann, H. D. (1999), 'Mapping Political Support in the 1990s', in P. Norris, (ed.), Critical Citizens (Oxford: Oxford University Press) • Inglehart, R., Norris, P., and Welzel, C. (2002), 'Gender Equality and Democracy', Comparative Sociology, 1/3-4: 321-45 • Inglehart, R. (2003), 'How Solid is Mass Support for Democracy-And How Do We Measure It?' PS Political Science and Politics, 36: 51-7 • Lehoucq, F.E. (1991). Class Conflict, Political Crisis and the Breakdown of Democratic Practices in Costa Rica: Reassessing the Origins of the 1948 Civil War. Journal of Latin American Studies, [online] 23(1), pp.37–60. doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/s0022216x00013353. • Patrick, R. (2017). How Poverty Makes People Less Likely to Vote | Ruth Patrick. [online] The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/may/16/poverty-election-vote-apathy [Accessed 12 Oct. 2023]. • V-Dem. https://v-dem.net/data_analysis/CountryGraph/ (2023-10-09).
