This is somewhat less focused on dictatorship itself than one would think from the title, but is still relevant and quite interesting.
I’ve roughly ranked this as 25th out of 44 EA-related books for how generally useful to me it seemed (not just for understanding authoritarianism etc.).
I’d recommend the book both in general and for the specific purpose of learning about things like authoritarianism
The author engagingly presents a series of interesting and important historical case studies.
But I’m not sure how much knowing more about those case studies will actually help me learn other things or make good decisions. And, if I recall correctly, the author provides very little in the way of analysis or recommendations, except in a somewhat rushed and superficial seeming way at the very end of the book.
I’ve roughly ranked this as 38th out of 44 EA-related books for how generally useful to me it seemed.
This is loosely relevant, in the sense that it discusses a range of different types of societies and political systems, some implications these different systems have, historical trends towards more democracy, and potential drivers of those trends
I haven’t quite finished the book yet
I’d recommend the book in general, though probably not for the specific purpose of learning about things like authoritarianism
ETA: I’ve now finished the book, and stand by that assessment. See also my notes on the book.
Books that may have had relevant parts (e.g., on pros and cons of democracy vs authoritarianism, or historical trends in these things), though I can’t remember for sure:
Books I’ve read that are relevant to things like authoritarianism generally (not just one or two specific regimes), democratic backsliding, etc.
The Dictator’s Handbook, by de Mesquita & Smith, 2012
This is somewhat less focused on dictatorship itself than one would think from the title, but is still relevant and quite interesting.
I’ve roughly ranked this as 25th out of 44 EA-related books for how generally useful to me it seemed (not just for understanding authoritarianism etc.).
I’d recommend the book both in general and for the specific purpose of learning about things like authoritarianism
How to Be a Dictator: The Cult of Personality in the Twentieth Century, by Dikötter, 2019
The author engagingly presents a series of interesting and important historical case studies.
But I’m not sure how much knowing more about those case studies will actually help me learn other things or make good decisions. And, if I recall correctly, the author provides very little in the way of analysis or recommendations, except in a somewhat rushed and superficial seeming way at the very end of the book.
I’ve roughly ranked this as 38th out of 44 EA-related books for how generally useful to me it seemed.
I’m unsure whether to recommend this.
The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous
This is loosely relevant, in the sense that it discusses a range of different types of societies and political systems, some implications these different systems have, historical trends towards more democracy, and potential drivers of those trends
I haven’t quite finished the book yet
I’d recommend the book in general, though probably not for the specific purpose of learning about things like authoritarianism
ETA: I’ve now finished the book, and stand by that assessment. See also my notes on the book.
Books that may have had relevant parts (e.g., on pros and cons of democracy vs authoritarianism, or historical trends in these things), though I can’t remember for sure:
The Better Angels of Our Nature, by Pinker, 2011
See here for some thoughts on this and other nuclear-risk-related books.
Against the Grain, by Scott, 2017
See also this interesting Slate Star Codex review of the book
The Myth of the Rational Voter, by Caplan, 2007
Enlightenment Now, by Pinker, 2018
Radical Markets, by Posner & Weyl, 2018
(I’ve roughly ranked those books as 15th, 22nd, 28th, 33rd, and 37th out of 44 EA-related books for how generally useful to me they seemed)