Learn About The Democratic Erosion Event Dataset Methodology

Explore how we code and categorize events to create the dataset.

Methodology

Understand our Analytic Framework for Categorizing Democratic Erosion Events

The key to the DEED methodology is deciding which events are related to erosion and then classifying them into meaningful categories. DEED classifies events into four types: events that often precede democratic erosion (precursors) from those that constitute erosion itself (symptoms) and those that counteract erosion once it has already begun (resistance), and for autocratic countries, events that undermine the stability of an autocratic regime (destabilizing).

Within these four event types, we also categorize events as relating to vertical accountability, meaning between the government and citizens, or horizontal accountability, meaning between different government agencies and officials.

Precursor

Events that often precede democratic erosion

Threats to Horizontal Accountability

Delegitimizing or weakening the judiciary
Delegitimizing or weakening the legislature
Delegitimizing or weakening subnational units
Manipulation of civil service
Coup or regime collapse
Horizontal corruption

Threats to Vertical Accountability

Co-optation of the opposition
Mal-apportionment
Electoral fraud
Electoral violence
Increasing control over civil society
State-conducted violence or abuse
Media bias
Lack of legitimacy
Polarization
Extremist/populist parties
Party weakness
Vertical corruption
Increased surveillance

Exogenous Risk Factors

Non-state violence
Refugee crisis
External influence
Economic shocks and health shocks
Regional unrest spillover
Border disputes
Diaspora

Symptom

Events that constitute erosion itself

Reduction in Horizontal Accountability

Reduction in judicial independence
Reduction in legislative oversight
Weakened civil service or integrity institutions
Suspension of laws or the constitution
Relaxation of term limits
Revision of the constitution
Reduction autonomy of subnational units

Reduction in Vertical Accountability

Repression of the opposition
Systemic reduction in election freedom and fairness
Curtailed civil liberties
Media repression
No-confidence votes or decreased voter turnout
Foreign military action
Discrimination against minorities

Resistance

Events that counteract erosion once it has begun

Increase in Horizontal Accountability

Check on executive by judiciary
Check on executive by legislature
Check on central power by subnational units
Check on central power by civil service
Post-democratic transition to new constitution

Increase in Vertical Accountability

Coalitions or elite pacts
Increase in electoral integrity
Increase in civic capacity
Nonviolent protest
Violent protest
Increase in media protections/media liberalization

Other

Pressure from outside actor
Exit of people or money
State attempts to prevent backsliding

Destabilizing Events

Events that undermine the stability of an autocratic regime

Domestic Factors

Elite infighting
Non-state political violence
Challenge from extremist/populist factions
Rejecting election results
Coup or regime collapse
Civil war / Revolution
Economic reforms

Exogenous Factors

Refugee crisis
External inluence or invasion
Economic shocks and health shocks
Regional unrest spillover
Disapora

CODEBOOK

DEED Codebook

Download our codebook to access detailed information about how we code events in the dataset and our variables including country, month, year, event type, event category, event description, and source.

Download the Codebook

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Overview to Identifying and Coding DEED Events

Countries are eligible for inclusion in our dataset if, during the period of 2000 to the present, the country experienced a sufficient drop in V-Dem’s Liberal Democracy Index. DEED follows a two-step process for identifying and coding events:

First, DEED coders review key sources of qualitative data including student-written case studies following a standardized template produced in the Democratic Erosion university course, and Freedom House annual reports.

Second, coders use the detailed DEED codebook to convert these qualitative narratives into quantitative data, while maintaining rich event descriptions and corresponding sources for further qualitative information.