Consociational Democracy in Austria : Political Change, 1968-1998

As a consequence of the experience of centrifugal democracy, civil war, & dictatorship, Austria's "Second Republic" developed, from 1945 onward, a special kind of consensus-oriented democracy. Based on the reconciliation efforts of the two traditional political movements -- the Social Democrats & the Catholic Conservatives -- the Austrian political system became an example of political "over stabilization." In the 1990s, this type of consociational democracy lost more & more its ability to mobilize political loyalties within its traditional framework. The rise of the rightist populist Freedom Party (FPOe) & the new Green Party indicates the alienation of the traditional elitist network & the younger generation. The FPOe's entry into a coalition cabinet -- allied with the conservative OeVP -- is a rather dramatic signal of political transformation. The basic philosophy behind the consociational type of democracy in plural societies is to reduce the rule of competition in favor of a balance between competitive & coalescent elements, between conflict & consensus orientation. The rules of the game should not be "the winner takes all," but rather that the loser gets something too. The history behind this philosophy is a deep fragmentation caused by violent domestic conflict. 6 Tables, 1 Figure, 24 References. Adapted from the source document.