Gerardo Munck

Tenure Track Appointments

• Professor, School of International Relations, University of Southern California, 2003 –

Visiting and Temporary Appointments

• Honorary Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Aarhus, 2008 – 2013

Summary Statement of Research Interests

Gerardo Munck’s research focuses on political regimes and democracy, methodology, and Latin America. His books include Measuring Democracy: A Bridge Between Scholarship and Politics (Johns Hopkins, 2009). Regimes and Democracy in Latin America (Oxford, 2007); Passion, Craft, and Method in Comparative Politics (with Richard Snyder; Johns Hopkins, 2007); and Authoritarianism and Democratization. Soldiers and Workers in Argentina, 1976-83 (Penn State, 1998).

He has published dozens of journal articles in the United States, Canada, England, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador and Mexico. Some of his articles and book chapters are: (with Snyder) “Debating the Direction of Comparative Politics: An Analysis of Leading Journals,” Comparative Political Studies (2007); (with Jay Verkuilen) “Research Designs,” in Kempf-Leonard (ed.), Encyclopedia of Social Measurement Vol. 3 (2005); “Democratic Politics in Latin America,” Annual Review of Political Science Vol. 7 (2004); “Tools for Qualitative Research,” in Brady and Collier (eds.), Rethinking Social Inquiry: Diverse Tools, Shared Standards (2004); (with Jay Verkuilen) “Conceptualizing and Measuring Democracy,” Comparative Political Studies (February 2002); “The Regime Question,” World Politics (October 2001); and “Game Theory and Comparative Politics,” World Politics (January 2001).

He worked on Democracy in Latin America (2004), a report of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); a second regional report prepared by the UNDP and the Organization of American States (OAS), Nuestra democracia (2010); and is active in various initiatives to promote and monitor democracy. He has consulted for the UNDP, the Organization of Americas States (OAS), the InterAmerican Development Bank, the World Bank, and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). He was a member of the Executive Committee of the Organized Section on Qualitative Methods, of the American Political Science Association (APSA); and a Board Member of the Committee on Concepts and Methods (C&M) of the International Political Science Association (IPSA).

His book Authoritarianism and Democratization. Soldiers and Workers in Argentina, 1976-83 was selected by Choice Magazine of as one of the “Outstanding Academic Titles for 1999.” His article “Conceptualizing and Measuring Democracy: Evaluating Alternative Indices” (Comparative Political Studies, 2002) received the 2003 Award for Conceptual Innovation in Democratic Studies, of the International Political Science Association (IPSA) Committee on Concepts and Methods (C&M) and the Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales (FLACSO), Mexico.

Research Keywords

Comparative politics, political regimes and democratization, Latin American politics, research design and methodology.

Research Specialties

Democracy, comparative politics, methods, measurement

Conference Presentations

• La cuestión democrática en América Latina, 2010: Orientando el debate conceptual , IX Congreso Chileno de Ciencia PolíticaKeynote Lecture, Asociación Chilena de Ciencia Política, Invited, Santiago, Chile, 11/11/2010 – 11/13/2010

• “La Ciudadanía en América Latina: Estado Actual, Tendencias, y Desafíos,” Background Paper used as the basis for Chapter 3, “Un balance de los logros y falencias de la democracia latinoamericana,” of OAS (Organization of American States) and UNDP, Nuestra Democracia (México: OAS, UNDP and Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2010).
• “A Global Perspective: Building an Inclusive, Responsive and Capable State,” pp. 7-25, in UNDP Democratic Governance Group, Building an Inclusive, Responsive and Capable State. Background Papers (New York: United Nations Development Programme, 2010).
• “Democratic Governance Assessments in Latin America and the Caribbean: An Overview and Some Proposals,” Background Paper prepared for the UNDP Workshop on “Measuring and Assessing Democratic Governance in Latin America and the Caribbean,” Panama, June 10-11, 2010. 25 pp.
• “Promoting Democratic Governance: The Role and Contributions of UNDP,” Paper prepared for the UNDP/Democratic Governance Group’s (DGG) Dialogue with Partners, UNDP, New York, December 7, 2009. 45 pp.
• Angela Hawken and Gerardo L. Munck, “Measuring Gender Equality: The State of the Art and a New Index,” Technical Background Paper prepared for the Asia Pacific Human Development Report, Gender: Overcoming Unequal Power, Unequal Voice (September 2008). 40 pp.
• Angela Hawken and Gerardo L. Munck, “Measuring Corruption. A Critical Assessment and a Proposal,” Technical Background Paper prepared for the Asia Pacific Human Development Report, Tackling Corruption, Transforming Lives: Accelerating Human Development in Asia and the Pacific (Colombo, Sri Lanka: UNDP and Macmillan, 2008). 39 pp.
• Paper (with Angela Hawken), “A Corruption Monitoring System for Afghanistan,” UNDP Afghanistan, July 2008.

Book

• Munck, G. L. (2009). Measuring Democracy: A Bridge Between Scholarship and Politics. Baltimore, Md: Johns Hopkins University Press.
• Munck, G. L., Snyder, R. (2007). Passion, Craft, and Method in Comparative Politics. Baltimore, Md.:: The Johns Hopkins University Press.
• Munck, Gerardo Luis (Ed.). (2007). Regimes and Democracy in Latin America. Theories and Methods. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Munck, G. L. (1998). Authoritarianism and Democratization. Soldiers and Workers in Argentina, 1976-83. University Park, Pa.: Pennsylvania State University Press.

Other Advisement or Time Devoted to Students

• Faculty Advisor, USC Volunteer Latin America, Sept 2007-, 09/01/2007 – 08/31/2012

Professional Offices

• Board Member, International Political Science Association (IPSA) Committee on Concepts and Methods (C&M, 09/2006 – 09/2012
• Executive Committee member, Organized Section on Qualitative Methods, American Political Science Association (APSA), 09/2005 – 09/2007

Professional Memberships

• American Political Science Association (APSA), 1990 – 2012