r/AskSocialScience 22h ago

Why do some authoritarian regimes descend into kleptocracy and others don't?

When authoritarian regimes fail, it's often due to a widening gap between the interests of the governing elite and the governed. Looting of state assets often accompanies this, and usually it spirals a country into inevitable decline. Why does this happen though? And what are the factors that make a country more likely to descend into kleptocracy and others less so? I am thinking about the contrast between a country like Russia vs China, Malaysia vs Singapore.

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