Regime Transitions & Economic Prosperity: Myths of Autocrat-Induced Growth

Fri, October 3, 2025 1:00 PM at 104 South Kedzie Hall

Friday, October 3 (1-2:30 pm): “Regime Transitions & Economic Prosperity: Myths of Autocrat-Induced Growth,” Dr. Masaaki Higashijima (Associate Professor of Comparative Politics at the Institute of Social Science, University of Tokyo & MSU PLS PhD)

Title: Regime Transitions and Economic Prosperity: Myths of Autocrat-Induced Growth
  

Talk Description: How do different types of regime transitions affect economic growth? Using data from 169 countries between 1800 and 2019, Dr. Higashijima shows that democratic transitions generate genuine gains, while authoritarian reversals appear to raise growth but mostly through manipulated statistics. The results highlight that democratization promotes real development, whereas autocrats may fabricate growth to solidify their rule.

 Short bio: Dr. Higashijima (PhD in Political Science, MSU) is an Associate Professor of Comparative Politics at the Institute of Social Science, University of Tokyo. He is currently affiliated with the Ellison Center for Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies in the Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington. He is the author of The Dictator's Dilemma at the Ballot Box: Electoral Manipulation, Economic Maneuvering, and Political Order in Autocracies (University of Michigan Press, 2022).