For understanding and coherence purposes, VALPOP uses the following definitions of core project concepts:
Public goods are defined as goods or services that are fully or partially non-excludable (everyone can use them) and non-rivalrous (one’s use does not prevent others’ access). While pure public goods are rare in practice, the project adopts a broader definition that includes goods that approximate these characteristics, such as education, infrastructure, or environmental quality.
Societal network actors are individuals or collective entities (e.g., politicians, firms, media organisations, NGOs) embedded in relational structures that shape the creation, distribution, and governance of public goods.
Societal network ties refer to the formal and informal relationships connecting these actors, including ownership links, affiliations, shared experiences, and public interactions. These ties vary in type, structure (e.g., centrality), and strength.
Populism is conceptualised as a thin-centred ideology that divides society into “the pure people” and “the corrupt elite” and manifests through both rhetoric (Us vs Them) and policy actions that may challenge institutional constraints.
Rule of law refers to the extent to which laws are publicly disclosed, equally enforced, and independently adjudicated, including dimensions such as judicial independence, anti-corruption frameworks, media pluralism, and institutional checks and balances.
