Social and Political
Foundations of Constitutions
by Denis J. Galligan
(Editor), Mila Versteeg (Editor)
This volume analyses the
social and political forces that influence constitutions and the process of
constitution making. It combines theoretical perspectives on the social and
political foundations of constitutions with a range of detailed case studies from
nineteen countries. In the first part leading scholars analyse and develop a
range of theoretical perspectives, including constitutions as coordination
devices, mission statements, contracts, products of domestic power play,
transnational documents, and as reflection of the will of the people. In the
second part these theories are examined through in-depth case studies of the
social and political foundations of constitutions in countries such as Egypt,
Nigeria, Japan, Romania, Bulgaria, New Zealand, Israel, Argentina and others.
The result is a multidimensional study of constitutions as social phenomena and
their interaction with other social phenomena.
