Public Opinion and the Quality of Democracy in Latin America Lecture Notes Maxwell A. Cameron Poli 332

Culture often gets a bad rap among Latin Americanists There has developed a distaste for idea of “national culture” –Invidious stereotypes and ethnocentrism E.g. “Iberic-Mediterranean” tradition, Latin America missed the “great revolutions” of Europe –Orientalism (or Andeanism) - prejudices about non- Western cultures –Circular reasoning - post hoc ergo propter hoc (because X followed Y, X explains Y) –Essentialism - nations have essences

Reasons for doubts about the relevance culture Influence of Marxism - culture seen as “epiphenomenal” (symptomatic rather than structural cause) Culture is hard to define or measure Knowledge base very poor: authoritarian regimes make public opinion hard to measure, less important

Revival of Political Culture Democratization brings the spread of polling –We know more about attitudes Less ethnocentric theories of trust and civic engagement Persistence of certain themes linked to cultural interpretation of Latin America –Patrimonialism and plebiscitary leadership, what O’Donnell called “delegative” conceptions of rule –Debate on diversity of types of democratic regimes –Indigenous politics and issues of identity

But, what is political culture? “…a people’s predominant beliefs, attitudes, values, ideals, sentiments and evaluations about the political system of their country and the role of the self in the system.” (Smith p. 286). –E.g. Almond and Verba: The Civic Culture. “Alienated culture” - Mexico –E.g. Majoritarianism versus liberalism in Latin America

Public Opinion and Democracy What do Latin Americans think about democracy? –Considerable disenchantment with current governments –Not always associated with prosperity and progress –Support is conditional on practical results –Strong majoritarianism

Does Culture Matter? Polls show: –Support for democracy neither strong nor extensive (see p. 292). –Widely variant (80% in Uruguay, 40% in Brazil) –Yet democracy “relatively enduring” Conclusion: “culture does not matter”? (Adam Przeworski)

Culture may affect the quality of democracy if not its stability –Difference between culture and public opinion –Difference between stability and quality of democracy

Consider trust Interpersonal trust Will people respect the rules of the game or cheat? In no country in Latin America is inter- personal trust over 50% Why does this matter in a democracy?

Beliefs Preference for “strong government unfettered by legal constraints” The greater the desire for socioeconomic benefits or for lawfulness, the greater the tolerance of authoritarianism No significant left-right difference

Populism and Democracy in Argentina Support for democracy declines by social class, p Populism increases by social class Support for authoritarianism strongest in the lower class How can we interpret this?

System Performance Correlation between “satisfaction with democracy” and “democracy preferable” Low levels of satisfaction with democracy in countries as diverse as Mexico and Chile Why is satisfaction so low in Chile? (p. 304, Table 11.2). Low participation.

From disenchantment to protest: Conditions for “delegative” democracy Pervasive corruption Low trust in institutions Belief in strong government, desire for mano dura Perception of failures of political elites

Culture Matters Culture matters for the quality not stability of democracy Not clear that disenchantment with democracy is a cause of low quality of democracy so much as an effect.