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Transitions from authoritarianism and breakdowns of democracy have long been central puzzles for scholars of Latin American politics. Because structural explanations have proved to be weak, recent work has emphasised political agency. This strand of research is promising, but major questions remain unanswered: Who are the key actors driving regime change? How do their individual preferences affect transitions and breakdowns? This article focuses on three central members of the political elite: presidents, opposition leaders, and military commanders. These actors develop unique preferences about regimes and unique degrees of radicalism regarding their preferred policies; in turn, these preferences and radicalism affect the probabilities of regime change. Testing the argument in 20 nations between 1945 and 2010, we find that an average measure of preferences masks crucial distinctions in the chain of regime change. Transitions to a competitive regime are more likely when autocrats have low intrinsic commitments to dictatorship. The survival of democracies hinges on whether top military officials develop pro-democratic preferences. The role of executive preferences, by contrast, is moderated by the attachments and radicalism of opposition leaders. Next, we examine how structural contexts shape both preferences and political outcomes, finding that economic development shapes both the emergence of preferences and radicalism and their impacts on regime change. Our findings improve the validity of political agency theories and reconcile the roles of actors with the environments in which regimes emerge and fall. (JPLA/GIGA)

Transitions from authoritarianism and breakdowns of democracy have long been central puzzles for scholars of Latin American politics. Because structural explanations have proved to be weak, recent work has emphasised political agency. This strand of research is promising, but major questions remain unanswered: Who are the key actors driving regime change? How do their individual preferences affect transitions and breakdowns? This article focuses on three central members of the political elite: presidents, opposition leaders, and military commanders. These actors develop unique preferences about regimes and unique degrees of radicalism regarding their preferred policies; in turn, these preferences and radicalism affect the probabilities of regime change. Testing the argument in 20 nations between 1945 and 2010, we find that an average measure of preferences masks crucial distinctions in the chain of regime change. Transitions to a competitive regime are more likely when autocrats have low intrinsic commitments to dictatorship. The survival of democracies hinges on whether top military officials develop pro-democratic preferences. The role of executive preferences, by contrast, is moderated by the attachments and radicalism of opposition leaders. Next, we examine how structural contexts shape both preferences and political outcomes, finding that economic development shapes both the emergence of preferences and radicalism and their impacts on regime change. Our findings improve the validity of political agency theories and reconcile the roles of actors with the environments in which regimes emerge and fall.

This book takes it as a given that the city is made of multiple partially localized assemblages built of heterogeneous networks, spaces, and practices. The past century of urban studies has focused on various aspects-space, culture, politics, economy-but these too often address each domain and the city itself as a bounded and cohesive entity. The multiple and overlapping enactments that constitute urban life require a commensurate method of analysis that encompasses the human and non-human aspects of cities-from nature to socio-technical networks, to hybrid collectivities, physical artefacts a

This study proposes - and its various chapters offer demonstrations - importing into urban studies a body of theories, concepts, and perspectives developed in the field of science and technology studies (STS) and, more specifically, Actor-Network Theory (ANT).

The multilayer technology integration of hardware and software will reduce the social inclusion gap and increase the support in case of an emergency for people with special needs at hearing and visual levels. This research shows a development based on Internet of Things to support people with visual disabilities (PwVD) for indoor and outdoor activities. The decision-making process is made at the operational, tactical, and strategic level, providing a safe place so people with visual and hearing special needs can make decisions, their families can make decisions, and the government authorities can make decisions in case of an emergency or even on a day-by-day basis. In the case of the authorities, the smart visualization of the data according to the information provided facilitates Comprehensive Disaster Risk Management (CDRM) and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). The main findings are based on the need to develop mobile applications, dashboard and web applications that are responsive to people with visual or hearing disabilities, and the need to develop an infrastructure of communication systems assisted by batteries and clean energy, and independent of the current telecommunications system, to allow greater reliability.

The multilayer technology integration of hardware and software will reduce the social inclusion gap and increase the support in case of an emergency for people with special needs at hearing and visual levels. This research shows a development based on Internet of Things to support people with visual disabilities (PwVD) for indoor and outdoor activities. The decision-making process is made at the operational, tactical, and strategic level, providing a safe place so people with visual and hearing special needs can make decisions, their families can make decisions, and the government authorities can make decisions in case of an emergency or even on a day-by-day basis. In the case of the authorities, the smart visualization of the data according to the information provided facilitates Comprehensive Disaster Risk Management (CDRM) and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). The main findings are based on the need to develop mobile applications, dashboard and web applications that are responsive to people with visual or hearing disabilities, and the need to develop an infrastructure of communication systems assisted by batteries and clean energy, and independent of the current telecommunications system, to allow greater reliability.