The indifference towards democracy in Latin America
Despite the increasing political discontent, manifested in the emergent democracies and consolidated as well, citizens’ support for democracy seemed stable in most countries. Recently, however, some studies have uncovered signs of an increasing disconnection with democracy’s values and institutions....
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Formato: | Revistas |
Lenguaje: | Español |
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Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales, Sede Ecuador
2020
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Acceso en línea: | https://iconos.flacsoandes.edu.ec/index.php/iconos/article/view/3469 |
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author | Monsivais-Carrillo, Alejandro |
author_facet | Monsivais-Carrillo, Alejandro |
author_sort | Monsivais-Carrillo, Alejandro |
collection | Revista |
description | Despite the increasing political discontent, manifested in the emergent democracies and consolidated as well, citizens’ support for democracy seemed stable in most countries. Recently, however, some studies have uncovered signs of an increasing disconnection with democracy’s values and institutions. This study argues that a specific expression of citizens’ estrangement from democracy is political indifference: the opinion that living in a democratic or an authoritarian regime makes no difference. This statement is supported by the analysis of four surveys conducted in 18 Latin American countries from 2013 to 2017. The evidence indicates that even though there is a preference for democracy in the region, this preference is not very high. A considerable segment of the population declares being indifferent, rather than choosing the authoritarian option. The analysis shows that the attitude of political indifference is associated with a heightened discontent about the performance of the political system. It is also more likely that people who declare they are politically indifferent distrust others more and are more likely to be women, teenagers, less educated, or live in a low-income household. The evidence suggests that for a significant number of citizens democracy is an abstract notion that does not create political attachment.
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format | Revistas |
id | iconos-article-3469 |
institution | Íconos - Revista de Ciencias Sociales |
language | Español |
publishDate | 2020 |
publisher | Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales, Sede Ecuador |
record_format | ojs |
spelling | iconos-article-34692023-02-08T15:50:57Z The indifference towards democracy in Latin America La indiferencia hacia la democracia en América Latina A indiferença em relação à democracia na América Latina Monsivais-Carrillo, Alejandro Latin America support for democracy political detachment political indifference legitimacy public opinion América Latina apoio à democracia desapego político indiferença política legitimidade opinião pública América Latina apoyo a la democracia desapego político indiferencia política legitimidad opinión pública Despite the increasing political discontent, manifested in the emergent democracies and consolidated as well, citizens’ support for democracy seemed stable in most countries. Recently, however, some studies have uncovered signs of an increasing disconnection with democracy’s values and institutions. This study argues that a specific expression of citizens’ estrangement from democracy is political indifference: the opinion that living in a democratic or an authoritarian regime makes no difference. This statement is supported by the analysis of four surveys conducted in 18 Latin American countries from 2013 to 2017. The evidence indicates that even though there is a preference for democracy in the region, this preference is not very high. A considerable segment of the population declares being indifferent, rather than choosing the authoritarian option. The analysis shows that the attitude of political indifference is associated with a heightened discontent about the performance of the political system. It is also more likely that people who declare they are politically indifferent distrust others more and are more likely to be women, teenagers, less educated, or live in a low-income household. The evidence suggests that for a significant number of citizens democracy is an abstract notion that does not create political attachment. A pesar del creciente descontento con la política, manifiesto en las democracias emergentes y consolidadas por igual, el apoyo ciudadano hacia la democracia parecía estable en la mayoría de los países. Recientemente, sin embargo, algunos estudios han encontrado indicios de un aumento en el desapego hacia los valores e instituciones democráticos. El presente estudio argumenta que una manifestación específica del distanciamiento hacia la democracia es la indiferencia política: la opinión de que da lo mismo vivir en un régimen democrático que en uno autoritario. Este planteamiento se basa en un análisis de cuatro encuestas realizadas en 18 países de América Latina entre 2013 y 2017. La evidencia muestra que, si bien la preferencia por la democracia es mayoritaria en la región, se trata de una mayoría poco robusta. Un segmento considerable de la población, no obstante, se declara indiferente antes que inclinarse por el autoritarismo. El análisis indica que la indiferencia política está asociada con un mayor descontento con el desempeño del sistema político. Asimismo, es más probable que las personas que se declaran indiferentes confíen menos en los demás, que sean mujeres o jóvenes, que tengan un bajo nivel educativo o que tengan un menor bienestar en el hogar. Estos resultados sugieren que, para un número considerable de ciudadanos, la democracia es un referente abstracto que difícilmente alcanza motivar apego político. Apesar do crescente descontentamento com a política, manifestado nas democracias emergentes e consolidadas, o apoio dos cidadãos à democracia parecia estável na maioria dos países. Recentemente, no entanto, alguns estudos encontraram indícios de um aumento do desapego aos valores e às instituições democráticas. O presente estudo argumenta que uma manifestação específica do distanciamento para a democracia é a indiferença política: a opinião de que é igual viver em um regime democrático do que em um autoritário. Esta proposta está baseada na análise de quatro pesquisas realizadas em 18 países da América Latina entre 2013 e 2017. A evidência mostra que, embora a preferência pela democracia seja maioria na região, tráta-se de uma maioria fraca. Um segmento considerável da população, porém, se declara indiferente antes de se inclinar ao autoritarismo. A análise indica que a indiferença política está associada a uma maior insatisfação com o desempenho do sistema político. Da mesma forma, as pessoas que se declaram indiferentes têm menos probabilidade de confiar nos outros, sejam mulheres ou jovens, com baixo nível de escolaridade ou com menos bem-estar em casa. Esses resultados sugerem que, para um número considerável de cidadãos, a democracia é uma referência abstrata que dificilmente motiva apego político. Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales, Sede Ecuador 2020-01-01 info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion Artículo evaluado por pares application/pdf text/html application/xml application/zip https://iconos.flacsoandes.edu.ec/index.php/iconos/article/view/3469 10.17141/iconos.66.2020.3469 Íconos - Revista de Ciencias Sociales; Núm. 66 (2020): Comunidad, vulnerabilidad y reproducción en condiciones de desastre. Abordajes desde América Latina y el Caribe; 151-171 Íconos - Revista de Ciencias Sociales; n. 66 (2020): Comunidade, vulnerabilidade y reprodução em condições de desastre. Abordagem desde América Latina e Caribe; 151-171 Íconos. Revista de Ciencias Sociales; No. 66 (2020): Community, vulnerability and reproduction in disaster conditions. Approaches from Latin America and the Caribbean; 151-171 1390-8065 1390-1249 spa https://iconos.flacsoandes.edu.ec/index.php/iconos/article/view/3469/3217 https://iconos.flacsoandes.edu.ec/index.php/iconos/article/view/3469/3239 https://iconos.flacsoandes.edu.ec/index.php/iconos/article/view/3469/3253 https://iconos.flacsoandes.edu.ec/index.php/iconos/article/view/3469/3271 Derechos de autor 2020 Alejandro Monsivais-Carrillo https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/deed.es_ES |
spellingShingle | Monsivais-Carrillo, Alejandro The indifference towards democracy in Latin America |
title | The indifference towards democracy in Latin America |
title_full | The indifference towards democracy in Latin America |
title_fullStr | The indifference towards democracy in Latin America |
title_full_unstemmed | The indifference towards democracy in Latin America |
title_short | The indifference towards democracy in Latin America |
title_sort | indifference towards democracy in latin america |
url | https://iconos.flacsoandes.edu.ec/index.php/iconos/article/view/3469 |