Resumo

BARREDA, Mikel. The Quality of Democracy: A Comparative Analysis of Latin America. Polít. gob [online]. 2011, vol.18, n.2, pp.265-295. ISSN 1665-2037.

This article offers a comparative examination of the quality of Latin American democracies through the use of an aggregate indicator generated by factorial analysis. The data reflect very notable differences among the countries, but also indicate a degree of stability in the level of democratic quality during the 2000-2008 period. The regression analysis performed indicates democratic experience as the main explanatory factor for such differences -a finding that coincides with recent studies-. But this is not to say that the issue is framed in terms of institutional determinism or path dependence. The analysis also reveals some points of discrepancy with the theses offered in the literature, especially in connection with the explanatory ability of social cápital -not verified here.

Palavras-chave : democratic quality; democracy; political institutions; rights; representation; Latin America.