Political democratization and economic globalization have been two of the most important global trends of the past few decades. But, how are they connected? Do the domestic political institutions affect a country's attractiveness to foreign investors? Can countries that democratize attract relatively more foreign investments? Drawing on three in-depth case studies of oil-rich countries and statistical analyses of 132 countries over three decades, Oksan Bayulgen demonstrates that the link between democratization and FDI is nonlinear. Both authoritarian regimes and consolidated democracies have institutional capabilities that, though different, are attractive to foreign investors. Democracies can provide long-term stability, and authoritarian regimes can offer considerable flexibility. The regimes that have started on the road to democracy, but have not yet completed it, tend to have political institutions that provide neither flexibility nor stability. These hybrid regimes, then, also find it relatively more difficult to construct a policy environment that is attractive to foreign investments. These findings have deep implications for the link between democratization and globalization, but also how globalization may affect political, social, and economic development.

政治民主化和经济全球化是近几十年来全球最重要的两大趋势。但是，它们是如何联系在一起的呢？国内政治制度是否影响一个国家对外国投资者的吸引力？民主化的国家能吸引相对更多的外国投资吗？Oksan Bayulgen通过对石油丰富国家的三个深入案例研究和对132个国家30年来的统计分析，证明了民主化与外国直接投资之间的联系是非线性的。威权政体和巩固的民主政体都有体制能力，虽然不同，但对外国投资者有吸引力。民主政体可以提供长期稳定，独裁政权可以提供相当大的灵活性。已经开始走上民主之路但尚未完成民主之路的政权，往往拥有既不灵活也不稳定的政治体制。因此，这些混合体制也发现，要建立一个对外国投资有吸引力的政策环境相对更为困难。这些发现对民主化和全球化之间的联系，以及全球化如何影响政治、社会和经济发展有着深刻的影响。