The second half of the 20th century has witnessed several waves of democratization in Europe, the Americas, and in other regions of the world. Drawing on a systematic, empirical analysis of four key Southern European countries, this text identifies several key aspects of democratic consolidation.

Introduction ; PART 1: THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ; 1. Actors, Institutions, and Change ; 2. Indicators and Measures ; PART 11: DIMENSIONS OF CONSOLIDATION ; 3. Consensus and Legitimation ; 4. Parties and Party Organization ; 5. State and Civil Society ; PART 111: FACETS OF CRISIS ; 6. Beyond Consolidation ; 7. Features and Explanations of Crisis ; Conclusions: A Theory of Anchoring?

`insightful analysis ... evident expertise and intellectual elegance ... The future work of scholars on these and related issues will find an invaluable intellectual foundation in the excellent book of Leonardo Molino.' South European Society & Politics, vol.5(3) `Morlino's analysis, both judicious and generous in spirit, offers readers a conceptually stimulating and empirically rich treatment of its wide-ranging theme. ... The book should be required reading for comparative students of Southern Europe and indeed for a broad audience of scholars within the fields of comparative political science and sociology. Morlino offers comparativists and country specialists an extremely useful analysis of national differences on key questions such as democracy's legitimacy for the mass public and the changing strength of parties and party systems.' South European Society & Politics, vol.5(3) `a work of enormously rich scholarship, which builds cumulatively on the foundation afforded by a wide array of studies on Southern European politics, studies which Morlino has carefully examined and reflected upon. It would be difficult to find a book that does a better or more complete job of building on the accumulated scholarly production in the field.' South European Society & Politics, vol.5(3) `Morlino speaks with all the authority of a recognized expert in the field with a distinguished track record in the analysis of how party and group politics in Southern Europe are structured ... The clear strength of this book is its impressive empirical range and the author's familiarity with a vast literature, which he synthesizes and develops with admirable ambition ... a key text for students of Southern Europe and democratic transition and consolidation alike.' Jonathan Hopkin, Democratization, Vol.8, 2001 `Leonardo Morlino's Democracy between Consolidation and Crisis: Parties, Groups and Citizens in Southern Europe provides the most explicitly theoretical treatment of the subject of democratic consolidation.' Omar G Encarnacion, Poli.Sci.71. ...a most exciting comparative study...it will become a classic in the field... Juan J. Linz

First systematic, comparative analysis of consolidation and crisis in Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Greece Contains a wealth of up-to-date empirical evidence on party organizations, interest associations, the press, and public opinion in these countries By a leading figure in the field of democratization studies

First systematic, comparative analysis of consolidation and crisis in Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Greece Contains a wealth of up-to-date empirical evidence on party organizations, interest associations, the press, and public opinion in these countries By a leading figure in the field of democratization studies