Stretched but not snapped: a response to Russell & Serban on Retiring the ‘Westminster Model
Stretched but not snapped: a response to Russell & Serban on Retiring the ‘Westminster Model
This article engages with Meg Russell and Ruxandra Serban's (2021) argument that the Westminster model is 'a concept stretched beyond repair' that deserves 'to be retired'. We examine the logic, theory and methods that led to such a powerful, potent and provocative argument. We suggest their approach may have inadvertently 'muddied' an already muddled concept. We assess the implications of 'muddying' for their conclusion that the Westminster model is, in essence, a dead concept in need of a decent funeral. We suggest the concept is 'stretched but not snapped' by developing a simple four-perspective broadening of the analytical lens. This approach aids understanding about what the concept covers, how it is operationalized and why it remains useful in comparative research.
Westminster model, comparative politics, institutionalism, interpretive political science
353-369
Rhodes, R. A. W.
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Flinders, Matthew
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Vatter, Adrian
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Judge, David
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January 2022
Rhodes, R. A. W.
cdbfb699-ba1a-4ff0-ba2c-060626f72948
Flinders, Matthew
d4982871-f267-4c51-a12b-1e0340ed4465
Vatter, Adrian
f7d7225d-f4f9-48e9-a396-29a2ed116f12
Judge, David
66734c4b-626c-4609-95c6-a9e008a07f95
Rhodes, R. A. W., Flinders, Matthew, Vatter, Adrian and Judge, David
(2022)
Stretched but not snapped: a response to Russell & Serban on Retiring the ‘Westminster Model.
Government and Opposition, 57 (2), .
(doi:10.1017/gov.2021.19).
Abstract
This article engages with Meg Russell and Ruxandra Serban's (2021) argument that the Westminster model is 'a concept stretched beyond repair' that deserves 'to be retired'. We examine the logic, theory and methods that led to such a powerful, potent and provocative argument. We suggest their approach may have inadvertently 'muddied' an already muddled concept. We assess the implications of 'muddying' for their conclusion that the Westminster model is, in essence, a dead concept in need of a decent funeral. We suggest the concept is 'stretched but not snapped' by developing a simple four-perspective broadening of the analytical lens. This approach aids understanding about what the concept covers, how it is operationalized and why it remains useful in comparative research.
Text
Stretched but not snapped - Flinders et al March 2021 - Clean Accepted
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 25 March 2021
Published date: January 2022
Additional Information:
Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Government and Opposition Limited.
Keywords:
Westminster model, comparative politics, institutionalism, interpretive political science
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 448298
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/448298
ISSN: 0017-257X
PURE UUID: 7a0fc680-82ee-4d1a-a908-fc8aa8698f79
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Date deposited: 19 Apr 2021 16:32
Last modified: 06 Jun 2024 01:50
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Author:
Matthew Flinders
Author:
Adrian Vatter
Author:
David Judge
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