| ID | 178004 |
| Title Proper | Big Man or Boogey Man? the concept of the Big Man in political science |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Barry Driscoll ; Driscoll, Barry |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | The Big Man has attracted considerable attention from social scientists, both as an explanatory force as well as a phenomenon to be explained. But the concept has become unmoored from its original meaning. Once used to refer to an apex figure within a patrimonial regime, today Big Men are often described as dictators or thieves. I show this using an original dataset covering discussions of Big Men in leading African Studies journals since 1980. I find that authors, especially political scientists, overemphasise theft and underemphasise accountability of Big Men. Then, drawing on my research with Ghanaian local politicians, I show how Big Men are constantly under pressure from their supporters. The paper concludes with a modest call to put the Big Man back in his place as powerful but also empowered, and thus indebted, to those beneath him. |
| `In' analytical Note | Journal of Modern African Studies Vol. 58, No.4; Dec 2020: p.521 - 550 |
| Journal Source | Journal of Modern African Studies 2020-12 58, 4 |
| Key Words | Ghana ; Neopatrimonialism ; Big Man |