ABSTRACT
The concept of democracy as the almost universally preferred political system is a rather new phenomenon in world politics. In choosing to focus on the formation and maintenance of democracy in small states, there were a number of issues that required consideration. Whether small states are found to be more or less likely than large states to be democratic and respectful of human rights, there are several broader implications of such a finding. For small states themselves, understanding the effects of state size structure that affect the likelihood of democratic development increases the knowledge base of those small states trying to democratize about potentially negative or positive effects, and thus increases their probability of successful democratization. Many of the states that are in the process of democratizing are small states. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
