Full Text Available
Note: Clicking the button above will open the full text document at the original institutional repository in a new window.
Elite Cohesion and Its Historical Sources: Analyzing its Impact on Democratization in Nigeria and Botswana
This thesis examines the divergent democratization trajectories of Botswana and Nigeria, focusing on the role of colonial legacies and post-colonial elites in shaping elite cohesion. While both countries experienced British colonial rule, their transitions to democracy in the post-independence perio...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Thesis |
| Published: |
AUC Knowledge Fountain
2025
|
| Subjects: | |
| Tags: |
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1867613424651862016 |
|---|---|
| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Aboutera, Aliaa Magdy |
| author_browse | Aboutera, Aliaa Magdy |
| author_facet | Aboutera, Aliaa Magdy |
| author_sort | Aboutera, Aliaa Magdy |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | This thesis examines the divergent democratization trajectories of Botswana and Nigeria, focusing on the role of colonial legacies and post-colonial elites in shaping elite cohesion. While both countries experienced British colonial rule, their transitions to democracy in the post-independence period have differed significantly. This study argues that elite cohesion, although insufficient on its own, is a critical facilitating factor in democratic consolidation that warrants greater attention in the democratization literature. This cohesion is largely shaped by the sociology of political elites, with historical contexts influencing how elites organize. Through process tracing, the thesis argues that colonialism in Botswana did not fragment elites to the extent seen in Nigeria, where British divide-and-rule strategies fostered deep ethnic, regional, and religious cleavages. In contrast, Botswana’s relatively homogenous elite structure and limited colonial interference allowed for a smoother transition to democracy. In that sense, the thesis attempted to integrate elite cohesion as well as sociology of political elites into already existing models of democratization. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-3535 |
| institution | American University in Cairo (Egypt) |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:35:55.364Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | AUC Knowledge Fountain |
| publisherStr | AUC Knowledge Fountain |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress |
| spelling | oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-3535 Elite Cohesion and Its Historical Sources: Analyzing its Impact on Democratization in Nigeria and Botswana Aboutera, Aliaa Magdy This thesis examines the divergent democratization trajectories of Botswana and Nigeria, focusing on the role of colonial legacies and post-colonial elites in shaping elite cohesion. While both countries experienced British colonial rule, their transitions to democracy in the post-independence period have differed significantly. This study argues that elite cohesion, although insufficient on its own, is a critical facilitating factor in democratic consolidation that warrants greater attention in the democratization literature. This cohesion is largely shaped by the sociology of political elites, with historical contexts influencing how elites organize. Through process tracing, the thesis argues that colonialism in Botswana did not fragment elites to the extent seen in Nigeria, where British divide-and-rule strategies fostered deep ethnic, regional, and religious cleavages. In contrast, Botswana’s relatively homogenous elite structure and limited colonial interference allowed for a smoother transition to democracy. In that sense, the thesis attempted to integrate elite cohesion as well as sociology of political elites into already existing models of democratization. 2025-06-15T07:00:00Z thesis application/pdf https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/2487 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/3535/viewcontent/auto_convert.pdf Theses and Dissertations AUC Knowledge Fountain Democratization democratic consolidation political elites democratic development colonialism elite cohesion elite structures elite fragmentation African History Development Studies |
| spellingShingle | Democratization democratic consolidation political elites democratic development colonialism elite cohesion elite structures elite fragmentation African History Development Studies Aboutera, Aliaa Magdy Elite Cohesion and Its Historical Sources: Analyzing its Impact on Democratization in Nigeria and Botswana |
| title | Elite Cohesion and Its Historical Sources: Analyzing its Impact on Democratization in Nigeria and Botswana |
| title_full | Elite Cohesion and Its Historical Sources: Analyzing its Impact on Democratization in Nigeria and Botswana |
| title_fullStr | Elite Cohesion and Its Historical Sources: Analyzing its Impact on Democratization in Nigeria and Botswana |
| title_full_unstemmed | Elite Cohesion and Its Historical Sources: Analyzing its Impact on Democratization in Nigeria and Botswana |
| title_short | Elite Cohesion and Its Historical Sources: Analyzing its Impact on Democratization in Nigeria and Botswana |
| title_sort | elite cohesion and its historical sources analyzing its impact on democratization in nigeria and botswana |
| topic | Democratization democratic consolidation political elites democratic development colonialism elite cohesion elite structures elite fragmentation African History Development Studies |
| url | https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/2487 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/3535/viewcontent/auto_convert.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT abouteraaliaamagdy elitecohesionanditshistoricalsourcesanalyzingitsimpactondemocratizationinnigeriaandbotswana |