The ways in which a political regime manages the 'nationalities question'-a situation brought abo... more The ways in which a political regime manages the 'nationalities question'-a situation brought about by the discrepancy between national groups and political borders-are vital for its stability and legitimacy. But even democratic regimes behave very differently towards their minority nationalities and display a variable willingness to accommodate their political claims, depending on who is in power. The ideology of ruling elites is thus a crucial variable in determining a government's attitudes towards regional nationalist political movements. Of the major party families that have structured West European party systems, Social Democratic parties have exhibited a pronounced willingness to decentralise political authority and offer symbolic recognition of plurinationalism, but this disposition has nevertheless often been matched by a competing ideological tradition which views centralised decision-making as the best instrument for achieving the party's other, mainly redistributive goals.
The ways in which a political regime manages the 'nationalities question'-a situation brought abo... more The ways in which a political regime manages the 'nationalities question'-a situation brought about by the discrepancy between national groups and political borders-are vital for its stability and legitimacy. But even democratic regimes behave very differently towards their minority nationalities and display a variable willingness to accommodate their political claims, depending on who is in power. The ideology of ruling elites is thus a crucial variable in determining a government's attitudes towards regional nationalist political movements. Of the major party families that have structured West European party systems, Social Democratic parties have exhibited a pronounced willingness to decentralise political authority and offer symbolic recognition of plurinationalism, but this disposition has nevertheless often been matched by a competing ideological tradition which views centralised decision-making as the best instrument for achieving the party's other, mainly redistributive goals.
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