Why do some nations fail while others succeed? How can we compare the political capacity of a totalitarian regime to a democracy? Are democracies always more efficient? The Performance of Nations answers these key questions by providing a powerful new tool for measuring governments' strengths and weaknesses. Allowing researchers to look inside countries down to the local level as well as to compare across societies and over time, the book demonstrates convincingly that political performance is the missing link in measuring power and military capability. This groundbreaking work will be an essential resource for scholars, policymakers, and institutions interested in measuring the political capacities of nations and in knowing where foreign aid and investment will be most effective.

Introduction Ronald L. Tammen and Jacek Kugler Part I: Defining and Measuring Extraction, Reach, and Allocation Chapter 1: Political Performance Marina Arbetman-Rabinowitz, Jacek Kugler, Mark Abdollahian, Kyungkook Kang, Hal T. Nelson, and Ronald L. Tammen Part II: Cross-National Performance Chapter 2: Setting the Stage: The Politics of Economic Growth Mark Abdollahian and Kyungkook Kang Chapter 3: How Political Performance Impacts Conflict and Growth Jacek Kugler, Ronald L.Tammen, and John Thomas Chapter 4: Political Performance, Leadership, and Regional Integration in Europe Gaspare M. Genna, Birol Yesilada, and Peter Noordijk Chapter 5: Political Performance as a Moderator of International Migration Tadeusz Kugler, Constantine Boussalis, and Travis G. Coan Chapter 6: Oil ... Path to Prosperity or Poverty: The Effects of Political Performance in Africa Marina Arbetman-Rabinowitz and Kristin Johnson Part III: Sub-National Performance Chapter 7: Following the Wisdom of Elders: Instability in China Kristin Johnson, Marina Arbetman-Rabinowitz, and Siddharth Swaminathan Chapter 8: Will Foreign Aid Help Curb Terrorism in Pakistan? Ayesha Umar Wahedi and Marina Arbetman-Rabinowitz Chapter 9: Provincial Politics and the Attraction of FDI in India and China Tadeusz Kugler, Travis G. Coan, and Constantine Boussalis Chapter 10: Indian Performance, Religion, and Economic Growth Yi Feng and Saumik Paul Chapter 11: The Politics of Births in India: Evidence from the States Siddharth Swaminathan and John Thomas Part IV: Local Performance Chapter 12: Government Performance and U.S. Residential Building Energy Codes Hal T. Nelson Chapter 13: Do Local Governments Matter? Impact of U.S. Municipal Level Relative Political Extraction Capacity on Crime Rate Masami Nishishiba, Mariah Kraner, and Mathew Jones Part V: A New Tool Chapter 14: The Contributions of Political Performance Jacek Kugler and Ronald L. Tammen