Society, Democracy and Human Rights: Sociological Interpretation Notes
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24203/7xfka173Keywords:
Democracy, human rights, society, stateAbstract
This work aims to develop an approach, from the point of view of sociological research, regarding the relationship between democracy and human rights. In this sense, it initially outlines some key elements of democracy and discusses some of its problematic aspects. It states, for example, that a representative system is not necessarily democratic. Then, the paper deals with the concept of human rights. It emphasizes that the protection of human rights and the rule of law, not only in developed but also in developing countries, is best achieved through a commitment to democratic principles. The experience of human rights and freedoms is necessary for democracy to function properly at all. In conclusion, it is stated that the guarantee of civil and political rights for the individual citizen plays a fundamental role in democracy. For instance, these rights are essential to secure the twin democratic principles of popular control and political equality in the system of collective decision-making.
References
[1] Beetham, David and Boyle, Kevin (1995). Introducing democracy: 80 questions and answers. Cambridge: Polity Press.
[2] Beetham, David, ed. (1994). Defining and measuring democracy. London: SAGE Publications.
[3] Giddens, Anthony (1990). The consequences of modernity. London: Polity Press.
[4] Leite, Ivonaldo (2021). An education for outsiders: Popular Education. Journal for Critical Education Policy Studies, London, vol. 19, num. 2.
[5] Mawhinney, Alison and Griffiths, Iorwerth. Ensuring that Others Behave Responsibly: Giddens, Governance, and Human Rights Law. Social & Legal Studies, vol. 20, issue 4.
[6] Rousseau, Jean-Jacques (2018). The social contract and others later political writings. 2nd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge Press.
[7] United
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Ivonaldo Leite
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
- Papers must be submitted on the understanding that they have not been published elsewhere (except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture, review, or thesis) and are not currently under consideration by another journal published by any other publisher.
- It is also the authors responsibility to ensure that the articles emanating from a particular source are submitted with the necessary approval.
- The authors warrant that the paper is original and that he/she is the author of the paper, except for material that is clearly identified as to its original source, with permission notices from the copyright owners where required.
- The authors ensure that all the references carefully and they are accurate in the text as well as in the list of references (and vice versa).
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
- The journal/publisher is not responsible for subsequent uses of the work. It is the author's responsibility to bring an infringement action if so desired by the author.
