Bernat Puertas
bernatpuertas.bsky.social
Bernat Puertas
@bernatpuertas.bsky.social
Political scientist, now a PhD candidate at Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Comparative politics, autocracies and personalism.

bernatpuertas.github.io
8️⃣Further steps? Investigating sectoral FDI (primary vs. secondary vs. tertiary sectors) and forms of aid (economic vs. democracy aid) could shed light on how personalism might respond to distinct types of funds💡
Check out the full paper (open access) at: doi.org/10.1017/psrm...
Foreign aid, FDI and the personalization of power in autocracies | Political Science Research and Methods | Cambridge Core
Foreign aid, FDI and the personalization of power in autocracies
doi.org
March 25, 2025 at 2:40 PM
7️⃣Implications? Our findings shed new light on the debate about whether foreign income is a curse or a blessing for recipient countries, analyzing a different dimension of autocratic rule: personalism 🌎
March 25, 2025 at 2:40 PM
6️⃣Aid increases the likelihood that dictators create paramilitary units while it reduces the need to create a new political party. FDI reduces the likelihood that dictators will control military promotions and use purges ⚔️
March 25, 2025 at 2:40 PM
5️⃣Our findings? We find no robust evidence that aid or FDI are correlated with personalism, but have some effect on some of the personalism index components. What are these effects? 👇
March 25, 2025 at 2:40 PM
4️⃣Our second argument? FDI's more decentralized nature and MNCs' role push the regime to reshape its organization, constraining the leader. Constraints reduce MNCs' investment risks, FDI inflows boost mutual dependency, and elites acquire new preferences, connections, and exit options👊📉
March 25, 2025 at 2:40 PM
3️⃣Our first argument? Aid should be related to higher personalism since it does not require cooperation from elites to obtain it, creates dependency ties with elite members, and signals foreign support for the regime👊📈
March 25, 2025 at 2:40 PM
2️⃣Personalism -or the gradual accumulation of power by dictators- is linked to a wide range of negative consequences: repression, nuclear weapons, conflict... And since WWII and especially since 1991, it has risen almost steadily!👊📈
March 25, 2025 at 2:40 PM
1️⃣Aid and FDI are among the main sources of external finance of countries under autocratic rule, but differ from each other in important ways: size, volatility, donors and recipients.🌎💰
March 25, 2025 at 2:40 PM