Doctoral Dissertation Research: The Character of Civil Society Organizational Life in Two Venezuelan Cities: State Decentralization and the Dynamics of Change

University Of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison WI

Investigators

Abstract

This dissertation investigates the consequences of state decentralization on the expansion of civil society in two Venezuelan municipalities. Past theory has made contradictory predictions about these effects: on the one hand, the expansion of municipal government functions should stimulate the growth of local civic institutions as political decisions are being made closer to people's own experience. On the other hand, decentralization may just promote rent seeking by local elites that would inhibit associational life. The research will compare two municipalities with different histories of civic development. Directories and official data will be searched to estimate the growth of civic associations. Interviews with local leaders will ascertain how the activities and structure of these organizations have changed since the adoption of state decentralization