The Soft State is a term introduced by Gunnar Myrdal in his Asian Drama to describe a general societal “indiscipline” prevalent in Asia and by extension much of the developing world - in comparison to the kind of modern state that had emerged in Europe.
Such soft states are seen as unlikely to be capable of imposing the right development policies and would be unwilling to act against corruption at all levels.
Empirical:The state in its empirical sense is defined and determined by its demonstrable capacity in such matters as competitive pressures of the classical states-system (for example, was the respect and recognition accorded by other governments) and the development of armed forces, courts and magistrates, and police forces.
This type of state, originating in competitive Europe, was built by under strong pressures for disintegration, both domestic and international.
Juridical:The juridical state is the novel-moral-legal foundation of the collaborative states-system that has emerged in many parts of the ex-colonial world, particularly tropical Africa; it lacks the essentials of statehood, sovereignty is guaranteed by the world community of states as embodied in the United Nations.