This work would not have been possible without the financial support of the
Mexican Council for Science and Technology (CONACYT) and the German
Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).
I would like to thank very specially Prof. Dr. Gunnar Folke Schuppert for his
generous and patient guidance as supervisor of this work. His readiness to help me
overcome the many “conceptual crises” in which I fell and keep myself always
focused really made the difference. I also remain forever in debt to my mentor and
friend Prof. Dr. Alexander Graser. He was willing not only to read the
“kopfbelastenden” drafts of mine, but also to invite me to the University of
Regensburg to discuss them with him and his team. I thank Prof. Dr. em. Ulrich
K. Preu? for his friendship and helpful advice ever since my years at the Hertie
School of Governance. Having him as a guest in my Rigorosum at the Humboldt
University has been one of the greatest honors I have ever experienced.