Political Regimes and Regime Transitions in Africa, 1910-1994 (ICPSR 6996)
Version Date: Aug 25, 1997 View help for published
Principal Investigator(s): View help for Principal Investigator(s)
Michael Bratton, Unknown;
Nicolas van de Walle, Unknown
https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR06996.v1
Version V1
Summary View help for Summary
This data collection focuses on political regimes and regime transitions in 47 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. The first part of the dataset contains information on the characteristics of post-colonial political regimes from independence to December 31, 1989 (63 variables). Economic variables include GNP per capita, inflation, structural adjustment programs, overseas development assistance, and external debt, while social indicators concern ethnic and religious fragmentation. Political variables provide a listing of every national election in Africa from independence to 1989, for totals of 106 presidential and 185 parliamentary contests, the number of political parties, association groups, and media outlets in each country in 1975 and 1989, and type of political regime, including the duration of each regime in years and the total number and mode of previous regime transitions up to 1989. The second part of the dataset covers the political dynamics of regime transitions for the five-year period from the beginning of 1990 to the end of 1994 (36 variables). The researchers created a standardized framework to identify and categorize the key events and features of political transitions, concentrating on landmark events such as political protests, liberalization reforms, elections, and changes of government in each country. In addition, the researchers assembled a complete set of standard election results for every multiparty contest in Africa between 1990 and 1994, along with information on whether observers ruled the vote as free and fair, whether incumbents were ousted, and whether losers accepted the results.
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Geographic Coverage View help for Geographic Coverage
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Date of Collection View help for Date of Collection
Data Collection Notes View help for Data Collection Notes
Users should consult the codebook to obtain the value labels.
Sample View help for Sample
Researchers used an inclusive method of case selection covering 47 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Information was gathered for two time periods: from independence to December 31, 1989, and from the beginning of 1990 to the end of 1994.
Universe View help for Universe
Sub-Saharan African countries.
Method of Data Collection View help for Method of Data Collection
Original Release Date View help for Original Release Date
1997-08-25
Version History View help for Version History
- Bratton, Michael, and Nicolas van de Walle. POLITICAL REGIMES AND REGIME TRANSITIONS IN AFRICA, 1910-1994. ICPSR06996-v1. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University [producer], 1996. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 1997. http://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR06996.v1
Notes
Data in this collection are available only to users at ICPSR member institutions.

This study is provided by ICPSR. ICPSR provides leadership and training in data access, curation, and methods of analysis for a diverse and expanding social science research community.