While one of the most important attempts to explain the rise of authoritarian regimes and their relationship to problems of economic development has been the "bureaucratic-authoritarian model," there has been growing dissatisfaction with various elements of this model. In light of this dissatisfaction, a group of leading economists, political scientists, and sociologists was brought together to assess the adequacy; of the model and suggest directions for its reformulation. This volume is the product of their discussions over a period of three years and represents an important advance in the critique and refinement of ideas about political development. Part One provides an overview of the issues of social science analysis raised by the recent emergence of authoritarianism in Latin America and contains chapters by David Collier and Fernando Henrique Cardoso. The chapters in Part Two address the problem of explaining the rise of bureaucratic authoritarianism and are written by Albert Hirschman, Jose Serra, Robert Kaufman, and Julio Coder. In Part Three Guillermo O'Donnell, James Kurth, and David Collier discuss the likely future patterns of change in bureaucratic authoritarianism, opportunities for extending the analysis to Europe, and priorities for future research. The book includes a glossary and an extensive bibliography.

In Latin America as elsewhere, politicians routinely face a painful dilemma: whether to use state resources for national purposes, especially those that foster economic development, or to channel resources to people and projects that will help insure political survival and reelection. While politicians may believe that a competent state bureaucracy is intrinsic to the national good, political realities invariably tempt leaders to reward powerful clients and constituents, undermining long-term competence. "Politician's Dilemma" explores the ways in which political actors deal with these contradictory pressures and asks the question: when will leaders support reforms that increase state capacity and that establish a more meritocratic and technically competent bureaucracy? Barbara Geddes brings rational choice theory to her study of Brazil between 1930 and 1964 and shows how state agencies are made more effective when they are protected from partisan pressures and operate through merit-based recruitment and promotion strategies. Looking at administrative reform movements in other Latin American democracies, she traces the incentives offered politicians to either help or hinder the process. In its balanced insight, wealth of detail, and analytical rigor, "Politician's Dilemma" provides a powerful key to understanding the conflicts inherent in Latin American politics and to unlocking possibilities for real political change.

本书对拉丁美洲自1900年至今的民主化进程进行了深入细致的考察，以全面且独特的视角介绍并分析了拉丁美洲国家民主的起源及进化，借助诸多例证性的奇闻逸事、人物评论、方法论说明以及对概念化发展路径的评议，对拉美国家在向民主推进过程中所涉及的相关议题进行了生动阐释。 《论拉美的民主》是一部极具学术价值的政治学著作，其对拉丁美洲民主制度所进行的历史和比较视角的解读，为整个拉丁美洲的政治制度研究设定了标杆，作者不仅具有一定历史深度的独特视角，而且在庞杂信息的组织、复杂数据的分析以及语言的组织上，都表现出了一位出色政治学者所具有的研究功力。尽管是一部学术性的研究专著，但读起来绝不会让读者感到枯燥乏味。它是了解拉丁美洲民主制度不可多得的政治学入门读物。

《现代化和官僚威权主义：南美政治研究》是著名政治学家奥唐奈的代表性著作。这是一本有关威权主义政体民主化的杰出著作，它阐释的“官僚威权主义”模式，是政治发展理论和拉美政治研究中一个里程碑式的成就。它探讨了工业化—经济增长与民主化之间的复杂关系，是最早突破二者之间简单的因果关系框架的代表性文献之一，在比较政治学中具有重要的范式意义。

长眠于巴西大地的奥地利作家斯蒂芬?茨威格曾经预言：“巴西是一片未来之土，它也将永远处于未来。” 如今，这个与中国一同崛起的金砖之国，正努力走出这一宿命，引起全世界的关注。 这其中，有投资嗅觉最灵敏的美国人，并不失时机地推出了这样一本研究巴西与美国比较优势的书。《巴西的经验》找到了巴西走出历史宿命的内在逻辑，同样也为出海寻求机遇的中国资本提供了另一种选择。

'He has more first-hand knowledge of Latin America than anybody else I can think of, and uses it to tell the world of the dreams and disillusions, the hopes and failures of its people... Galeano denounces exploitation with uncompromising ferocity, yet this book is almost poetic in its description of solidarity and human capacity for survival in the midst of the worst kind of despoliation' -Isabel Allende 'This book is a monument in our Latin American history. It allows us to learn history, and we have to build on this history' -Hugo Chavez, President of Venezuela 'I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Galeano's vision is unswerving, surgical and yet immensely generous and humane... Eduardo Galeano ought to be a household name' -Arundhati Roy A superbly written, excellently translated, and powerfully persuasive exposé which all students of Latin American and U.S. history must read. - Choice Well written and passionately stated, this is an intellectually honest and valuable study. - Library Journal A dazzling barrage of words and ideas. - History