A new index of bicameralism: taking legitimacy seriously

• Mueller, Sean ^[1] ; Vatter, Adrian ^[2] ; Dick, Sereina ^[2]
  1. [1] University of Lausanne

     University of Lausanne

     Lausana, Suiza

     
  2. [2] University of Bern

     University of Bern

     Bern/Berne/Berna, Suiza

     
• Localización: The Journal of legislative studies, ISSN 1357-2334, Vol. 29, Nº. 2, 2023, págs. 312-336
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • Second chambers frequently form part of national institutional configurations,but their impact on policy making can vary from negligible to all-important vetoplayers. The standard approach is to assess their importance via twodimensions: formal powers and compositional differences vis-à-vis thefirstchamber. In this paper, we conceptualise a third dimension: the legitimacy ofsecond chambers. We subsequently measure the strength of secondchambers in 14 countries and develop a new index of bicameralism. Runningseveral quantitative analyses with a total sample of 29 OECD countries, weshow how this index is significantly correlated to lower state intervention inthe economy and greater regional autonomy