James G. McGann is the Assistant Director of the International Relations Program and Director of the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania; he is a Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, Philadelphia. He has served as President for 25 years of McGann Associates, which specializes in the challenges facing think tanks, policymakers, international organizations and philanthropic institutions. Dr. McGann has served as a consultant and advisor to the World Bank, United Nations, United States Agency for International Development, Soros, Hewlett and Gates Foundations. His books include Competition for Dollars: Scholars and Influence In The Public Policy Research Industry; and Think Tanks and Policy Advice in the U.S: Academics, Advisors and Advocates (also published by Routledge).

This book explores the pivotal role of think tanks in the democratization and economic reform movements by evaluating their overall effect on the transformation process in developing and transitional countries around the world. James G. McGann assesses twenty-three think tanks, located in nine countries and four regions of the world: Chile, Peru, Poland, Slovakia, South Africa, Botswana, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, that have most impacted political and economic transitions in their respective countries. The author examines the role they played in the process of democratization and market reform during the late 80s and 90s and identifies the importance of think tanks in these processes by evaluating their overall effect on the policymaking process. He argues in the early stages of a transition from an authoritarian regime to an open and democratic society the activities of think tanks are especially critical, and they have provided a civil society safety net to support these fragile democracies. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of political science, democratization, development, economic development and civil society.