Types of Democracies - Assignment Example

Types of democracies According two British political philosophers, James Mill and Jeremy Bentham described a protective democracy asa type of government that is formed with the main aim of protecting liberty rights of countries citizens. The two philosophers had a soft spot for democratic governments which led Bentham into developing the utilitarian theory which supports the need for a liberal government system. The utilitarian theory goes hand in hand with the liberal theory that supports the need for any government to do greatest good for the greatest number of citizens.

Bentham and Mill argued that a protective democracy must have the ability to participate in free and fair elections, right to free press, universal male suffrage, secret ballot and frequent elections make up the bulk of protective democracy. In such a democracy the government ought to ensure that there is disparity in the sharing of resources unlike any other system of governance where political leaders only serve their personal interests. The utilitarian theory therefore teaches the need for government to protect both the people and the capitalist markets.

Excesses of protective democracies could hurt the capitalist markets since most people will assume security from the government making them poor and property less due to liberal anxiety. Another shortcoming of a protective democracy is that the government assumes that inequality will still exist therefore they are less concerned about potential threats that could be created by such an inequality. Protective democracies assume a negative view of the people. Developmental democracies have the advantage of assuming a positive view of the people.

Unlike the protective democracy, this model encourages people to be assertive developers who can create their own wealth despite the government mediation during harsh economic times. Political and social analysts are opposed to this model stating that there can never be such a government where its citizens are equal and uninformed about political happenings in their countries. This cannot be true at any time and if it was a reality then it will be a hindrance to democratic politics.Pluralist democracy is a democracy that attempts to correct the inefficiencies of a developmental democracy.

This model gives people the power to be free and participate in the political activities of their countries. It encourages competitive elections where even the less active people in the society can have a right to vote. The main disadvantage of a pluralist democracy is that not all people can be disinterested in politics and if so then the most popular leaders among them should take charge of the government. The pluralist model can be seen to be more effective than its predecessors.The participatory model is based on the developmental model of democracy thus it has the advantages of fostering political participation; it motivates people into practicing civil virtue.

A setback associated with participatory democracy is the need for restructuring of bureaucracies and industrialized societies so as to accommodate all citizens and give them a chance to participate in decision making (Syd, 2011, p 45). The role of citizenship changes depending on the democratic model since each model gives emphasis to a certain specific aspect of life. For instance; developmental democracies favor people in such a way that it induces them into participating in economic activities.

Generally, the names give a clue on the role the government expects its citizens to play. The models of democracy identified above have the power to influence how campaigns and elections will be conducted under a given model since there will be a change of policies and need for political parties to refocus their political agenda.The American democracy at one stage or the other has represented most of these forms of democracies. Example the participatory model arose in the 1960’s after a political turbulence hit the United States.

It had similar characteristics to developmental democracies. This shows how the functions of a democracy are bound to change depending on the situation and government focus.ReferencesSyd, B. (2011). The simultaneous policy: Voting for Global peace and justice. New York. Simplot Press