Traditional Practices and Support for the Strongman

Abstract

The new modernization theory has suggested that the pervasiveness of traditional values has a clear impact on the quality of democratic governance. In this contribution to this special issue on the political consequences of traditional beliefs, we explore whether and to what extent the pervasiveness of traditional values and beliefs has a detectable impact on authoritarian attitudes. Specifically, we analyze the relationship between the support for a “strongman” and the acceptability of traditional practices for Muslim respondents from 27 jurisdictions. The results suggest that those who believe that traditional practices, such as the use of sorcery, appealing to jinn, and to the souls of ancestors, are acceptable under Islam are more likely to prefer a strongman to democracy. Notably, we found that respondents’ religiosity does not significantly affect their support for a strongman, raising questions about how accurately traditionality has been measured so far.

Traditional Beliefs and their Consequences. A Research Agenda

“…A third stream of inquiry, that builds on both classic modernization theory and the neo-modernization theory pioneered by Inglehart and his collaborators, has explored the relationship between the presence/ pervasiveness of traditional beliefs and the attitudes towards democracy. Consistently with the findings presented by Inglehart and Baker (2000), the more recent studies (Pelizzo and Kuzenbayev, 2023b) produced in this line of inquiry have shown that traditional societies are less pro-democratic (or more pro-authoritarian) than societies in which traditional beliefs are less pervasive. Furthermore these more recent studies have shown that individuals who engage in traditional practices are less pro-democratic than individuals who do not engage in such practices.…”

“…Religious people in Germany are less inclined to positively assess Hitler than non-religious people, while traditionally-minded (superstitious) individuals are more inclined to provide a more positive assessment of Hitler and the National-Socialist regime than individuals who do not hold on to traditional beliefs. Similarly respondents' attitudes toward democratic/authoritarian rule in 27 Muslim societies were shaped by respondents' attachment to traditional beliefs but not by their religiosity (Pelizzo and Kuzenbayev, 2023b). This line of research has shown, so far, that tradition matters.…”

Note From the Editor

“…Moreover, many of the findings presented across the articles in this special issue do not merely apply to, or stem from, “traditional” societies in the contemporary world. Several of the articles draw empirically from case studies in the Global South (Pelizzo et al 2023; Pelizzo and Kuzenbayev 2023 a ), notably Indonesia (Harakan et al 2023) and Togo (Pelizzo et al 2023). However, the key political consequences of traditional beliefs in certain industrially advanced societies of the Global North are also subjected to initial exploration.…”

Introduction to the Special Issue

“…In "Traditional Beliefs and Electoral Behavior in Indonesia," Harakan, Pelizzo, and Kuzenbayev (2023) and in "Traditional Beliefs and Electoral Behavior: Some Evidence from Togo," Pelizzo and others (2023) investigate the electoral consequences of traditional beliefs, showing that voters who hold traditional beliefs are more likely to vote for government parties. In "Traditional Practices and Support for the Strongman's Rule," Pelizzo and Kuzenbayev (2023b) show that voters with a traditional mindset prefer the rule of a strongman to democratic rule, while in Germany, according to "Beyond Religion: Superstition, Traditional Beliefs, and The Extreme Right," superstitious voters are more anti-Semitic and have more positive views of Hitler and his regime (Pelizzo and Kuzenbayev 2023a).…”