Citizenship and Involvement in European Democracies: A Comparative Analysis

This unique study presents the results of a cross-national analysis of citizenship and participation among citizens in twelve European democracies. Research on the future and quality of contemporary democracy is usually restricted to focus either on political participation, on particular aspects of citizenship, or on social activities, exclusively. This new book offers the first empirical investigation of the relationships both between social and political involvement, and between "small-scale" and "large-scale" democracies. Citizenship and Involvement in European Democraciesoffers representative samples of the populations in a selection of European countries between 2000-2, including: Denmark; Germany [East and West]; Moldova; the Netherlands; Norway; Portugal; Romania; Russia; Slovenia; Spain; Sweden; and Switzerland. The leading contributors provide new theoretical insights and offer a broad conceptualization of citizenship, stimulating the ongoing discussions about the problems andchallenges of democratic political systems. This book has a companion volume entitledSocial Capital and Associations in European Democraciesedited by William A. Maloney and Sigrid Robteutscher (Routledge, 2006). Both volumes will be of great interest to students and researchers of European Politics, Comparative Politics and Sociology.