Comparative Studies of Social and Political Elites

In contrast to the traditional elite theories of Pareto and Mosca, contemporary elite theories have as their starting point that elites and democracy are not incompatible. Elites are conceived primarily as coalitions of incumbents of top positions in the various social sectors, such as politics, media, civil service, and business. Together, these sector elites as a whole may constitute a more or less well-integrated elite on the societal level.
The present volume focuses on changes in elite composition and functioning in Europe, both historically and across countries. Two trends are clearly brought out: The recruitment into social elites has broadened, and sector elites have been more specialized. One the one hand, this implies a democratization of elite formation, on the other a possible weakening of social and political governance, due to growing social complexity.
The articles on political elites cover a broad range of themes, from the tensions created by the conflicts between the EU policies and national political agendas, to the recruitment of women into political elite positions. The aesthetic aspects of political elites are explored. The relationship between business elites and politics are shown to vary substantively both within the northern and eastern parts of Europe. In a separate review section, problems linked to the relationship between elites and democracy are highlighted.
Volume editors are Fredrik Engelstad, Institute for Social Research, and Trygve Gulbrandsen, Institute for Social Research.
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