The Military's Role In Political Regimes

Abstract

Variations in the degree and form of military incorporation into political executives are explored in the cross section of nations at 1980. Utilizing block-clustering methods, a hierarchical typology of regime types is constructed. Three major and two smaller groupings of cases emerge on the basis of similarity in the forms of military and civilian participation. It is found that qualitative types of regimes may be broadly arrayed from greater to lesser military roles similar to several existing typologies. Differences in the form, as well as the degree, of military participation, however, are found significant. The resulting classification may be useful in clarifying the diverse results on the causes and consequence of military intervention in government, in addition to explaining the relationship between qualitative and quantitative approaches to understanding the military role in governance.