INTRODUCTION 2
1.Terminology 2
2.Contents 2
3.Research motives 2
4.Public interest 3
5.Reasons of professional interest 5
6.Personal interest 7
7.Two questions 8
8.Further information for the constitutional lawyer 8
PART ONE: DATA ON CONSTITUTIONS 11
Chapter One: The data research 11
1.Why and what? 11
2.Synopsis of Part One 13
3.Selected items 13
4.The research design 16
5.The choice of the design 17
6.The research subject 18
7.Other methodological problems 19
8.Data source 20
9.The process of data collection 21
10.Reliability and validity 22
Chapter Two: Survey of national states, listing the constitutional documents included in the inquiry and the closing dates of the chronologies as printed in Blaustein and Flanz’s ”Constitutions of the Countries of the World” per March 31, 1976 23
Chapter Three: Survey of the questionnaire listing the results in prospect of each variable 38
1.Introductory questions 38
2.Documentary constitution and the structure of government 54
3.Documentary constitution and the legal system 74
4.The forms of documentary constitutions 85
5.Documentary constitutions and universal values and norms 88
a.Questions with regard to values and norms that have particular reference to the relationship between the state and its citizens, and to governmental institutions and their operation 88
b.Questions with regard to civil and political rights 103
c.Questions with regard to social and economic rights 114
d.Questions with regard to cultural rights 118
e.Questions with regard to civil duties 121
f.Final questions 124
6.Documentary constitution and aspects of cultural life 126
7.Documentary constitution and state- and nation-building 130
Chapter Four: Similarities between constitutions 137
1.Definition of similarity 137
2.Qualification of similarities 138
3.Notification of similarities 138
4.Points of similarity 139
5.Summary 154
6.Degree of uniformity 158
7.What do constitutions contain? 161
8.Developments between 1788 and 1975 162
9.Conclusions 164
Appendix to Chapter Four 165
Chapter Five: The length of constitutions 174
1.Introduction 174
2.Views on the length of constitutions 175
3.Scheme of research on length of constitutions 176
4.Research into the various factors 177
5.A combination of factors 184
6.Conclusions 186
Chapter Six: National constitutions and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 189
1.Introduction 189
2.The influence of the Universal Declaration 189
3.Aim of research on relationship between the content of the Universal Declaration and that of the constitutions 190
4.Value references in the U.N.Declaration 191
5.Personal and political rights and freedoms 195
6.Social rights 198
7.Constitutions established 1949 or later 201
8.Constitutions of single-party states 205
9.The inspirational effect of the Universal Declaration 207
10.Summary 208
Chapter Seven: Constitutions as instruments of state-and nation-building 212
1.Introduction 212
2.Elements of state- and nation-building 213
3.The scores in respect of the nation-building variables 215
4.Closer examination of the results 217
5.Some conclusions 226
PART TWO: THEORETICAL REFLECTIONS 231
Chapter Eight: Constitutional specialism 231
1.Introduction 231
2.The narrow meaning of ”constitution” 231
3.The impossibility of providing a substantive definition 232
4.New tendencies 233
5.A formal definition 234
6.Existence of constitutional specialism 235
7.Theoretical levels 236
8.Approaches 237
9.Which approach? 239
10.Conclusion 240
Chapter Nine: Typology of constitutions 241
1.What is constitutional typology? 241
2.Why typology? 242
3.Classifying constitutions 244
4.Sorts of classifications 245
5.Obsolete classifications 248
6.Formal classifications 249
7.Material classifications 254
8.Dubious typology 260
9.Constitutional archetypes 261
Chapter Ten: Constitutional models 263
1.What is a model? 263
2.Physical models of constitutions 265
3.Conceptual models of constitutions 265
4.Other models 267
5.Model constitution 268
6.A basic model? 270
Chapter Eleven: Functions of constitutions 272
1.The word ”function” 272
2.The various functions of constitutions 273
3.Four general functions 275
4.Transformation 275
5.Information 277
6.Regulation 279
7.Canalization 280
8.Functional effectiveness 281
9.Dysfunctionality 282
10.Final remarks 282
Chapter Twelve: Some other problems 283
1.Constitutional analysis 283
2.Constitutional concepts 283
3.Constitutional families 284
4.Making and amending constitutions 285
5.Final remarks 287
Chapter Thirteen: Concluding notes 288
1.Past and present 288
2.Similarity 288
3.An international orientation 289
4.Neutrality 289
5.Human aspects 289
6.Human rights in constitutions 290
7.The universal aspect of constitutions 291
8.Why important? 292
9.Conclusion 292
APPENDIX: Bibliography 294
Introduction 294
A.Collections of constitutions 297
B.General theory 299
1.Books 299
2.Articles in periodicals etc 304
C.Comparative theory 312
1.Books 312
2.Articles in periodicals etc 316
D.Special subjects 320
INDEX OF TABLES 323
INDEX OF RESEARCH VARIABLES 328
INDEX OF SUBJECTS DEALT WITH IN THE QUESTIONNAIRE 332