How Education Can Decrease Political Participation in Electoral Authoritarian Regimes
What motivates political participation? Participation is essential for holding governments accountable and for influencing incumbents to implement the policies that citizens demand.
A large literature examining advanced and consolidating democracies suggests that education increases political participation. Yet, in electoral authoritarian regimes, educated voters can deliberately disengage. If education increases critical capacities, political awareness, and support for democracy, educated citizens may believe that participation is futile.
In a new study, this argument is tested in Zimbabwe —an electoral authoritarian regime—utilizing a natural experiment which creates cross-cohort variation in access to education following a major educational reform. In contrast to findings from democratic settings, the study finds that under Zimbabwe’s regime, education actually decreases political participation, substantially reducing the likelihood that better-educated citizens vote, contact politicians, or attend community meetings.
Consistent with deliberate disengagement, education’s negative effect on participation dissipated following 2008’s more competitive election, which initiated unprecedented power sharing, temporarily. Educated citizens experience better economic outcomes, are more interested in politics, and are more supportive of democracy, but are also more likely to criticize the government and support opposition parties.
Read the full study here.
Last Updated: Nov 29, 2016