Better than Nothing: How Policies Influence Political Participation in Low‐Capacity Democracies

Abstract

A growing body of policy feedback work demonstrates that citizens' experiences with public policy influence the way they participate in politics. Most of this work takes place in advanced industrial democracies, but the nuances of policy design influencing participation in advanced democracies are often irrelevant for those in low‐capacity democracies. This study extends the policy feedback framework to address how policies might “feed back” differently in low‐capacity countries with uneven basic service delivery. In low‐capacity democracies, the most salient distinction is between those who have access to basic state‐provided services and those who do not. Using original data collected in Zambia, it demonstrates that those who have even marginal access to state services have higher levels of political engagement and political participation than those without access, indicating that imperfect extension of services may help boost democratic citizenship in developing countries.

Digitalized Welfare for Sustainable Energy Transitions: Examining the Policy Design Aspects of the Cooking Gas Cash Transfers in India

“…Latino immigrants in the United States were disproportionately affected by red tape, thereby reducing their participation in the political arena [30] (p. 68). In contrast to the evidence from Anglo-Saxon countries, in Zambia, a low-capacity democracy, Hern [31] found that, compared to citizens without any access to public services, those with even marginal access to services are more likely to report higher levels of political engagement and political participation.…”

“…Negative policy feedbacks lead to policy regime decay only if they persist for a long time [38]. This discussion about negative feedback needs to be further contextualized by evidence from Hern [31] that in a context characterized by an expansion of welfare or service provision in low-capacity democracies, even partially effective policies can produce positive feedback. A focus on policy feedback can reveal how policy design mediates citizenship outcomes.…”

Does social policy change impact on politics? A review of policy feedbacks on citizens’ political participation and attitudes towards politics

“…As such, from the perspective of citizens' lived experiences, it is insightful to consider their diverse and broad-ranging policy experiences, rather than single policies. If we are to take policy feedback studies' insights to the core, and investigate how citizens' policy experiences have a transformative effect on politics, such an approach would certainly be rewarding (for a similar take grounded in the study of low-capacity states, see Hern, 2017). A third research question thereby emerges: RQ3: How do recipients' experiences with multiple social policies in European welfare states feed back into their political participation and attitudes towards politics?…”

Democracy and Electoral Politics in Zambia

“…Quantitative Analysis of Perceptions of Service Delivery, Party Support, and Voting Patterns Perceptions of how well the government is delivering services influence citizens' political attitudes and behaviour. Importantly, the actual quality of the services is less important than the perception that the government is actively trying to improve services (Hern 2017;McLoughlin 2015;Bratton 2007). Zambians understand that even the best-meaning politicians face resource 19 Percentages add to more than 100 per cent because respondents were able to list more than one issue.…”