ABSTRACT
The primary analytic instrument to be used is the concept of clientelism, an explanatory device which has been used in a wide variety of contexts. It is a term which refers to political and social systems wholly or largely based on patron-client relationships. The function of clientelism in modern societies will then be considered in the light of the previous theoretical descriptions; the theory will also be compared with the practice of clientelism in national government in Rome and local and regional government in the south. Before going on to similar relationships in modern societies, there are some dependence relationships which cannot be classified as clientelistic even though at first they seem to have much in common with the phenomenon. The first opinion regards clientelism as a transitional phase, the path between so-called traditional and modern societies; the second considers the phenomenon as some kind of political pathology which is independent of the state of development of society.
