Data Set and Resources

Explore the Methodology, Technical Procedures Guide and Codebook to learn more about how the Global State of Democracy (GSoD) indices were designed and constructed:

More questions? 

If you have more questions about the indices you can contact us by email at GSoD.indices@idea.int. We look forward to hearing from you!

Old data sets and background documents

  • Previous versions of The Global State of Democracy Indices: Methodology are available here: version 1; version 2; version 3; version 4; version 5. These documents explain the conceptual distinctions, theoretical framework and measurement procedures on which the GSoD Indices are based.
  • Previous versions of The Global State of Democracy Indices: Technical Procedures Guide are available here: version  2; version 3; version 4; version 5. These documents outline the technical steps taken in constructing the GSoD Indices. They were written for readers who want a better understanding of the Indices or for researchers who wish to use and build on the data contained within them. The guide builds upon the GSoD Indices Methodology.
  • Previous versions of The Global State of Democracy Indices: Codebook are available here: version 2version 3; version 4; version 5. These documents present information about all the variables included in the GSoD indices data set.
  • Previous versions of the data set can be downloaded here:
    • Version 5.1 (with data through the end of 2021): .csv and .xlsx
    • Version 4 (with data through the end of 2019): .csv, .xlsx, and .dta
    • Version 3 (with data through the end of 2018): .csv, .xlsx and .sav
    • Version 2 (with data through the end of 2017): .csv.xlsx and .sav
    • Version 1 (with data through the end of 2016): .csv, .xlsx and .sav