Bad for business? Entrepreneurs and democracy in the Arab world

Why do business communities in some developing countries support democratization whereas business communities in other developing countries continue to support authoritarian rule? In an effort to answer this question, the author compares the political behavior of entrepreneurs in one region where entrepreneurs have supported democratization, Latin America, with a region where entrepreneurs have not, the Arab world. Although Latin American business communities supported democratization during the 1980s and 1990s in an effort to reestablish their influence over economic policy making, restore competent management of the economy, and help bring about governments' enjoying greater popular legitimacy, entrepreneurs' continued support for authoritarian rule in the Middle East and North Africa is related to the high incidence of regional conflicts, entrepreneurs' fear that democratization will empower Islamist parties seeking to reverse economic liberalization, and the perceived potential for democratization to lead to increased civil strife.