Books etc
Books and other material by the V-Dem Team
Democracy in Trouble: Democratic Resilience and Breakdown from 1900 to 2022
Myles Williamson, Christopher Akor, and Amanda B. Edgell
2025 | Cambridge University Press
The book investigates nine cases where democratically elected governments engaged in deliberate and gradual dismantling of democratic institutions that posed a real threat to democracy, comparing the failed cases to the ones that were successful in dismantling democracy. It reveals a similar pattern with leaders often targeting the media, civil society, and judiciary, and using shared tactics to weaken democratic institutions.
Democracy and Dictatorship
Carl Henrik Knutsen
2024 | Fagbokforlaget
The book gives an updated account of the most pressing questions preoccupying democracy researchers. It offers an introduction to the study of democracy and autocracy, discussing subjects such as the conceptualization and measurement of democracy and regime types, the historical development of democracy, and causes of regime stability and change, and more.
Democratic Quality in Southern Europe
Tiago Fernandes (Ed.)
2024 | University of Notre Dame Press
Using data from the V-Dem project, this book takes a close look at the democratic trajectories of France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain over the past fifty years. Despite similar beginnings, the five countries have experienced significant variations in the way their democracies have evolved. The book combines new data with classical methodologies to create fresh, convincing hypotheses on the development, quality, and depth of democracy in this critical region.
Democratization and Autocratization in Comparative Perspective
Jørgen Møller and Svend-Erik Skaaning
2024 | Abingdon: Routledge
This book provides balanced, critical, and comprehensive coverage of the theories and realities of autocratization and democratization. It sketches developments in the conceptions of democracy, discusses how to distinguish between different forms of political rule, and maps the development of democracy and autocracy across space and time.
Why Democracies Develop and Decline
Michael Coppedge, Amanda B. Edgell, Carl Henrik Knutsen, and Staffan I. Lindberg (Eds.)
2022 | Cambridge University Press
This book uses V-Dem data to retest all the leading hypotheses about the causes of democracy levels, upturns, and downturns. It also proposes a novel theoretical framework that orders the best explanatory factors into causal sequences, clarifying which ones have the most direct effects and which ones matter indirectly.
Varieties of Democracy: Measuring Two Centuries of Political Change
Michael Coppedge, John Gerring, Adam Glynn, Carl-Henrik Knutsen, Staffan I. Lindberg, Daniel Pemstein, Brigitte Seim, Svend-Erik Skaaning, and Jan Teorell.
2020 | Cambridge University Press.
This book is an essential user’s guide to the V-Dem project. It creates opportunities for V-Dem data to be used in education, research, news, analysis, advocacy, policy work, and elsewhere.
Defending Democracy against Illiberal Challengers
The V-Dem Institute launched a project on democratic resilience as part of its work on autocratization – the decline of democracy. Our Resource Guide “Defending Democracy against Illiberal Challengers” provides an overview of cutting-edge research and innovative ideas that democratic actors can enact for strengthening democracy. Democratic actors including politicians, activists, and journalists face dilemmas every day. This Resource Guide systematically analyzes strategies for addressing these dilemmas based on the available research evidence.