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Counting the Number of Parties: An Alternative Index

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  • Molinar, Juan

Abstract

I propose an alternative index to operationalize the variable number and size of parties in a party system. To support it, I present a critical overview of the two most common indices, Laakso and Taagepera's effective number of parties and Kesselman and Wildgen's hyperfractionalization, showing the causes of their weakness. Then I explain the computational logic of my alternative, “number of parties,†and compare it with the other two, using hypothetical cases. After that, I contrast the Laakso-Taagepera index with mine, using data from actual elections between 1945 and 1981. I conclude that my index outperforms the other two as an operationalization of the variable number and size of parties.

Suggested Citation

  • Molinar, Juan, 1991. "Counting the Number of Parties: An Alternative Index," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 85(4), pages 1383-1391, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:apsrev:v:85:y:1991:i:04:p:1383-1391_18
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    Cited by:

    1. Vani K. Borooah, 2013. "A general measure of the ‘effective’ number of parties in a political system," Chapters, in: Francisco Cabrillo & Miguel A. Puchades-Navarro (ed.), Constitutional Economics and Public Institutions, chapter 8, pages 146-159, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    2. Alberto Diaz-Cayeros & Beatriz Magaloni, 2001. "Party Dominance and the Logic of Electoral Design in Mexico’s Transition to Democracy," Journal of Theoretical Politics, , vol. 13(3), pages 271-293, July.
    3. Peter Mayer, 2013. "Gross Violations of Duverger’s Law in India," Studies in Indian Politics, , vol. 1(2), pages 179-201, December.
    4. Maddah, Majid & Ghaffari Nejad, Amir Hossein & Sargolzaei, Mostafa, 2022. "Natural resources, political competition, and economic growth: An empirical evidence from dynamic panel threshold kink analysis in Iranian provinces," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    5. Roberto Guerrero Compeán, 2008. "Decentralization: Panacea or Pandora’s Box? Fiscal Perversity in Mexico," Ensayos Revista de Economia, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon, Facultad de Economia, vol. 0(2), pages 89-110, November.
    6. Benny Geys & Bruno Heyndels, 2006. "Disentangling The Effects Of Political Fragmentation On Voter Turnout: The Flemish Municipal Elections," Economics and Politics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(3), pages 367-387, November.
    7. Caulier, Jean-François & Dumont, Patrick, 2005. "The effective number of relevant parties : how voting power improves Laakso-Taagepera’s index," MPRA Paper 17846, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Yuriy O. Gaivoronskiy, 2015. "The Influence of Political Competition on the Efficiency of the Regional Executives in Russia," HSE Working papers WP BRP 28/PS/2015, National Research University Higher School of Economics.
    9. Abdul Shaban & Shahbaz Khan, 2023. "Cultural diversity, human capital, and regional economic growth in India," Regional Science Policy & Practice, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(5), pages 973-991, June.
    10. Canen, Nathan & Ch, Rafael & Wantchekon, Leonard, 2023. "Political uncertainty and the forms of state capture," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    11. Rostislav Turovsky & Marina Sukhova, 2017. "Similar or Different? Exploring the Gap between Federal and Regional Elections in Russia," HSE Working papers WP BRP 55/PS/2017, National Research University Higher School of Economics.
    12. Jean-François Caulier, 2011. "The Interpretation of the Laakso-Taagepera Effective Number of Parties," Post-Print halshs-00565315, HAL.
    13. D. K. Tinyakov, 2022. "Opportunities for Public Participation Influence on the Russian Waste Management Reform: Statistical Analysis," Administrative Consulting, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. North-West Institute of Management., issue 12.
    14. Jean-François Caulier, 2010. "On the measurement of Fragmentation," Université Paris1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (Post-Print and Working Papers) hal-00633613, HAL.
    15. Jean-François Caulier, 2010. "On the measurement of Fragmentation," Working Papers hal-00633613, HAL.

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