The King Can Do No Wrong: Blame Games and Ruler Survival in Authoritarian Regimes

• In Event: Same As the Old Boss: Autocratic Survival

Brief Overview

This paper develops a theory for how dictators delegate responsibility to avoid blame. It tests the theory's observable implications through a case study of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan drawing on survey, experimental, interview, and text data.

Author

• Scott Williamson, Stanford University