Political Theory and Democracy
Political Theory and Democracy is a research topic within Political Science and International Relations. Science Explorer counts 5.6k research works in it since 1950. 7.4% of them reached the world's top 10% most cited for their field and year.
This cluster of papers covers a wide range of topics related to democratic theory, including deliberative democracy, political participation, global governance, civil society, democratic crisis, and democratization. It explores the challenges and prospects for democracy in various contexts and provides insights into the evolution of democratic theory and practice.
- Democracy
- Political Participation
- Democratic Crisis
- Deliberative Democracy
- Global Governance
- Civil Society
- Political Accountability
- Republicanism
- Democratic Participation
- Democratization
- Research works
- 5.6k fractional, since 1950
- In the world top 10%
- 411 per year above
- Top-10% rate
- 7.4% share of its works in the world top 10%
- Growth, 2013–17 → 2018–22
- -15% the tick is no change
Which countries lead Political Theory and Democracy research?
By volume, Spain and Mexico publish the most (221 and 134 works in 2022–2025).
How concentrated that is
The same countries as shares of everything the list above accounts for. A node where two countries do two thirds of the work and one spread evenly across twelve read alike as a ranking and not at all alike here.
Shares of the rows listed above, not of the whole node.
Which institutions lead Political Theory and Democracy research?
By volume in 2022–2025, Universidad Complutense de Madrid publishes the most Political Theory and Democracy research, followed by Universidad de Buenos Aires and Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.
By volume, 2022–2025
- 1 Universidad Complutense de MadridSpain 33 works
- 2 Universidad de Buenos AiresArgentina 24 works
- 3 Universidad Nacional Autónoma de MéxicoMexico 21 works
- 4 Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y TécnicasArgentina 13 works
- 5 Universidad de GuadalajaraMexico 11 works
- 6 Universidad Autónoma de MadridSpain 10 works
- 7 Universidad de GranadaSpain 9 works
- 8 National University of RosarioArgentina 8 works
- 9 Universidad de MurciaSpain 8 works
- 10 University of the Basque CountrySpain 8 works
Who are the leading researchers in Political Theory and Democracy?
The most-cited researchers publishing on Political Theory and Democracy include Robert A. Dahl, Giovanni Sartori and Karl Marx.
- 1 Robert A. Dahl United States 1.3k citations
- 2 Giovanni Sartori Italy 1.3k citations
- 3 Karl Marx Denmark 1.1k citations
Ranked by citations received across their whole record, among researchers with at least three works on this topic.
Where is Political Theory and Democracy research done?
The largest centres of Political Theory and Democracy research in 2022–2025 are Madrid (Spain), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Mexico City (Mexico) and Santiago (Chile). Among places with at least 20 works in it, it is an unusually large share of all research in Buenos Aires and Santiago.
Largest cities, 2022–2025
- 1 Madrid Spain 86 works
- 2 Buenos Aires Argentina 53 works
- 3 Mexico City Mexico 46 works
- 4 Santiago Chile 33 works
- 5 Bogotá Colombia 30 works
- 6 Barcelona Spain 13 works
- 7 Guadalajara Mexico 13 works
- 8 Seville Spain 12 works
- 9 Lima Peru 12 works
- 10 Quito Ecuador 11 works
Where it is the local speciality
- Buenos AiresAR · 53.5 works36×
- SantiagoCL · 33.4 works26×
Location quotient: how much more of its research is in Political Theory and Democracy than the world average.
Where is the best place to study Political Theory and Democracy?
Among universities, judged by research, Universidad de Granada, Universidad de Guadalajara and Universidad Complutense de Madrid score highest, combining excellence, specialisation, size, growth and international reach. Research strength is one signal when choosing where to study; it does not measure teaching.
One dot per university in the table below. The upper left is the interesting corner: small places doing unusually strong work.
| # | University | Score | Top 10% | Specialisation | Works | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Universidad de GranadaSpain | 43.3 | 9.3% | 23.0× | 9 | +216.9% |
| 2 | Universidad de GuadalajaraMexico | 36.1 | 15.9% | 45.4× | 10 | +19.4% |
| 3 | Universidad Complutense de MadridSpain | 31.6 | 3.0% | 57.7× | 33 | +34.5% |
| 4 | Universidad de Buenos AiresArgentina | 30.2 | 4.0% | 80.3× | 24 | +28.4% |
| 5 | Universidad Autónoma de MadridSpain | 28.3 | 6.8% | 33.7× | 10 | +25.0% |
| 6 | Universidad Nacional Autónoma de MéxicoMexico | 22.8 | 1.6% | 29.2× | 21 | +13.1% |
| 7 | National University of RosarioArgentina | 2.3 | 0.0% | 113.1× | 8 | -15.0% |
Universities only. Score blends excellence (30%), specialisation (25%), size (20%), growth (15%) and international reach (10%), 2015–2022; growth compares 2010–14 with 2015–19.
Is Political Theory and Democracy research growing?
Output in 2018–2022 was 15% lower than in 2013–2017, peaking in 2025. The fastest-growing topics are Political Theory and Democracy.
The same series as a ribbon — one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.
Which topics inside it are moving
Growth and decline on one axis around a shared zero. Two lists side by side hide the thing that matters: whether the growth dwarfs the decline, or the other way round.