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Numerous studies examine the micro-dynamics of subjective well-being (SWB) generally, or life satisfaction (LS) more specifically. Others also document the macro determinants of SWB and LS. We propose a model linking the two, in which an individual's life satisfaction is contingent on (1) personal circumstances, (2) national factors such as democratic governance and the national wealth, and (3) the explicit interaction of these two levels of analysis. We test three sets of hypotheses that arise from this model with compiled data from six waves of the World Values Survey (WVS) data. The empirical evidence we present supports most of the hypotheses, including our novel proposition that both national wealth and democracy reduce the effect of individual personal income on LS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Are democratic crises also human crises? While the determinants of the erosion of democracy have been extensively scrutinised in the literature, their public policy consequences remain relatively unexplored. In a novel attempt to navigate this uncharted terrain, we analyse the effect of autocratization on health outcomes. We conceptualise autocratization as the relative decline of 'vertical' and 'horizontal' accountability. 'Vertical accountability' is threatened in the absence of regular free and fair elections as well as restricted political participation. A decline in vertical accountability lowers citizens' capacity to ensure governmental responsiveness to public demands. 'Horizontal accountability' is reduced when the executive branch undermines the other branches of government. Limited electoral competition further strengthens the executive branch relative to other branches. We argue that such a movement away from democracy – autocratization – has a detrimental effect on public health outcomes. We present empirical evidence supporting this argument in within- and cross-country contexts using regression discontinuity designs as well as panel data analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explains variations in citizens' well-being among non-democratic developing countries by disaggregating non-democracies and focusing on the role of party strength. The effect of party strength is analyzed through the prisms of information and capacity. I argue that stronger parties facilitate a two-way flow of information between citizens and political leaders about societal needs. Additionally, stronger parties have the capacity to aggregate information and formulate policies that meet the needs of the citizenry. The theory is tested through a time-series-cross-sectional analysis of developing non-democracies and is supplemented with a case narrative on Rwanda. The findings demonstrate the significance of disaggregating non-democratic regimes to better understand the political dynamics of citizens' well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When is oil a curse for health outcomes? This paper addresses the question by analyzing the effect of oil wealth on child mortality rates in nondemocratic countries. We argue that oil is particularly likely to harm child mortality when leaders have short time horizons. Such leaders are more likely to use oil revenues to finance private goods and patronage which builds their support coalition at the expense of public goods that benefit the broader population. We test this argument using panel regression and a global sample of nondemocratic regimes, supplemented with a case study of Cameroon. Results from both empirical approaches are consistent with our argument. These findings identify some specific conditions under which oil can be detrimental to child mortality, and thus explain some of the variation in health outcomes across oil-producing states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the nature of party systems to explain variations in foreign direct investment inflows within developing democracies. We hypothesize a positive relationship between the effective number of parliamentary parties and foreign direct investment inflows. Large effective number of parliamentary parties is indicative of the expropriation risks as well as stability of the political environment of host countries. We thus argue that expropriation risks are low when the presence of multiple parties makes drastic, impulsive changes in economic policies difficult. We also suggest that a larger number of parties represent diverse societal interests better, reducing the chances of underrepresented social groups driving political instability. The relationship between effective number of parliamentary party and foreign direct investment inflows is tested on a sample of 56 developing democracies from 1985 to 2011. The evidence presented lends strong support to the argument and is found robust to a number of alternative empirical scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How does democratic politics affect infant mortality? The bulk of existing research has debated whether democracies have lower levels of infant mortality than non-democracies. Yet, infant mortality varies as much within countries as it does between countries, suggesting that the political processes affecting infant mortality operate at the subnational level. To shed new light on the debate, this paper examines how three core democratic attributes affect infant mortality within a single democracy: India. I argue that higher levels of political representation, citizens' participation, and electoral competition provide political incentives for elected representatives to reduce infant mortality. The theory is tested on a times-series data set from 15 major Indian states between 1980 and 2011. Overall, the results demonstrate the significance of democratic politics, particularly political representation, in influencing infant mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]