What are the consequences of different paths toward democracy How can religion support democratic diversity And what ongoing dilemmas do democratic governments face in reining in the armed forces that once ruled The original essays in Problems Confronting Contemporary Democracies investigate these and other questions which Alfred Stepan addressed in his pioneering work as one of the most prominent comparative political scientists of the past four decades. The contributors who came together at a conference in Stepans honor at Columbia University in 2007 pay tribute to his work and illuminate some of the debates he launched while advancing understanding of problems facing democracies around the world.The essays in Problems Confronting Contemporary Democracies demonstrate the substantive geographic and methodological range of Stepans work by building on many of his major scholarly contributions. Principal themes include authoritarianism the breakdown of democratic regimes transitions from authoritarianism to democracy democratic consolidation the role of the military in politics and waysincluding the varieties of federalismto manage conflict democratically in societies that are divided by religious ethnic and national cleavages. The contributions range from Latin America to the postSoviet regions Iran China Turkey Israel Spain and Portugal and the United States. This volume will appeal to students and scholars of political science sociology and international studies particularly Latin American and Middle Eastern studies.Contributors Scott Mainwaring Douglas Chalmers J. Samuel Fitch Fernando Henrique Cardoso Mark Ungar Lszl Bruszt Robert M. Fishman Mirjam Knkler Ryan E. Carlin Cecilia MartnezGallardo Jonathan Hartlyn Juan J. Linz Thomas Jeffrey Miley Ashley Esarey Edward L. Gibson Shamil Midkhatovich Yenikeyeff Brian H. Smith Murat Akan Hanna Lerner