Uncovering patterns among latent variables: human rights and de facto judicial independence

In this paper, we reexamine the relationship between judicial independence and state respect for human rights by taking advantage of new latent measures of both constructs. In our analysis, we demonstrate a simple method for incorporating the uncertainty of these latent variables. Our results provide strong support for theoretical and empirical claims that independent courts constrain human rights abuses. Although we show that independent courts influence state behavior, the strength of the estimated relationship depends upon whether and to what degree empirical models account for uncertainty in the measurement of the latent variables.