COMPARATIVE

POLITICAL
INSTITUTION
A.Y. 2021-2022
2° SEMESTER – 04-05-2022
Davide Vittori
TOPICS

•The origin of Public Opinion (in democracy)

•Why do people vote? Political Participation
•Political cultures
The origin of
public opinion. Linked with the democratization process.
Reserved domain for certain classes (18th
century).
Slow path toward
sophistication, yet P.O. became crucial with full-democratization.
media revolutions. Need to convince the majority of the voters.
Mobilizations (shared interests more patent
than ever)

P.O. and mass media: radio and television

revolutionized the way political leaders and
parties related with voters.
The origin of public opinion

• Television is the main source of information in almost all

countries…
• Yet, something is changing.
• Overall trend: people are more informed than in the past;
higher cognitive sophistication, higher knowledge and higher
demands.
• We used to think that people with high education and income
have more trust in institutions (they have more influence on
politics for a variety of reason). No more automatic, however.
Mobilization and
political Societal mobilization is crucial to boost political
organizations. participation. Organizations are crucial drivers, but… the
intensity of the organizational mobilization depends on
individuals’ mobilization.

Mobilization of citizens help building the organizational

infrastructures that facilitate coordination among large
number of people. In a nutshell, political parties or social
movement.

Mobilization for what? Political parties and social

movements are different, but they share one crucial
element, i.e. they have (ideological) goals they want to
reach.
Political participation (not coerced) - Intensity
Political participation (not coerced) - Riskiness
Modes of
participation in Social movements: small core of people
politics. even though social movement may involve
Participate to do a lot of people.
what?
Demands, but not Political parties: as member, as elected
official, as donor.
necessarily.
Identity is a crucial
part. Interest group: usually not as big as other
actors (yet, it is not always the case).
Venues of political participation in different regimes
Participation in low-
risks and high-risk
political actions*.
Democracy matters!
(yet, not only the
regime)

*High-risk: unofficial strikes, occupation of buildings/factories.

Low-risk:
Petition, boycotting, demonstration (lawful)
The paradox of political participation

• Participation is costly: it requires effort, time, personal involvement, knowledge etc.

• Participation is a common good (in democracy), meaning that no individual can be excluded from enjoying the
benefits, regardless of the contribution of the individual.
• Example: political participation is an essential part of democracy. When participating (voting) people make democracy
possible. Yet, if one individual does not vote, he/she is not excluded from benefitting the several qualities of
democracy.
• As voting is a costly action, each individual if acting selfishly may find more “profitable” not to participate (as there
are no consequences in not participating). Free-riding.
• Yet, if every individual decides to free-ride…no democracy.
 The paradox of political
participation.
Compulsory voting help
participation, yet people
show off anyway. It’s not
just about incentives
What promotes
political Structural factors might encourage
participation? The people to participate: democracy vs.
non-democratic regimes.
relationship between
turnout and Within democracy: affluence, pos,
structural factors electoral law (in countries with PR,
participation is higher).

Voter registration: we already talked

about it. [See also: NYT, on Georgia
voting law]
 Who participate?

• Individuals are more likely to take part when they can, when they want to…when they are asked to.
• Individual traits: availability of time. Simple as that? No, education as well (knowledge, self-confidence, more
aware of the possibility of participate).
• Better the education, higher the income. So people with higher income (people which have something to lose in
the redistribution of resources and with money to donate).
• Recruitment: structural conditions matter. People having the same experience, sharing the very same
conditions. It’s easier to get some sort of coordination (compared to home-working for example).
• Unions born when workers experienced the very same work conditions. Having working-class districts helped
too. The same with similar claims advanced by middle-class districts (environment).
Who participate (2)?

• Similar class and work milieus encouraged the formation of civic, cultural, sport associations. Golden age of
participation in the 60s and 70s. Individualization of the recreative experience: bowling alone (Putnam 2000).
• According to Putnam, this contributed to the performance of democracies (and increased trust).

• Social network: family crucial for socialization (and also party ID!). Early exposure to participation increases
the likelihood of participating afterwards. Now social media important as well (filter bubble).
• Orientations: political interest and ideology. The more interested and more involved, the more you participate.
Ideology as well: normative conception of the society…in which participation is good in itself.
• Contextual factors: we already seen it for political participation.
Income and vote turnout
in 2016 presidential
elections
Political participation
and education in
Canada (2013)
 Political culture(s)
And how different cultures across country and across individuals shape
the political systems in which we live
Political culture: • Political culture concerns the psychological
dimension of political systems; it includes all
what it is politically relevant beliefs, values and
attitudes.
Important definitions:
Beliefs: things that people think are factually
right or wrong (% of immigrant people in one
country)
Values: what people thinks is good or wrong
(having immigrants in a country). Values guide
people’s behaviour (they are built through
identity, socialization etc.).
Norms: behavioural guidelines that are socially
sanctioned (even though people have not
internalized yet).
 Political culture:
what it is

Values: what people thinks is good or wrong.

Emancipative vs. Patriarchal
and
Secular vs. Sacred values
Shape the society (norms at the societal level
impede the formation of contrasting values)
But also individual beliefs and ultimately their vote
choice
 Political culture:
what it is

Where does this map come from?

Distinctive historic traditions (remember path
dependency?), distinctive modernization phases.
E.g. Communist, Confucian and Protestant more
secular than other societies.
Industrialized and post-industrialized countries more
emancipative.
Political culture:
consequence.
Populations prevailing orientation
determine the political system
1.The social structure of a population (more
emancipative? More secular?)
2.Make certain beliefs predominant, which then
3.Make political systems more widely accepted.
YET: watch out for determinism!
To have a specific political system, you need that people
support its basic claims.
Modernization and emancipation: more tolerance
toward pluralism, then democracy.
Other, however, show that systems are changing because
of the growth of income and education.
These two variables lead to people assigning more
importance to non-economic values (tolerance).
Political culture:
consequence (2)

• Post-industrial societies challenged mass activities.

Individualization of the experiences, yet more
resources to participate.
• More democratic voice (and more places where to
express this voice). Peaceful demonstrations not
driven by deprivation only (Gurr 1970)
• More sexual choices (abortion, divorce,
homosexuality)
• Child autonomy (less obedience).
Political culture:
consequence (3)

• Societies mask differences within themselves.

• Societies can be overall open, yet people may have
different values.
• Cultural issues have become more important for
explaining the structure of party positions. These
positions (immigration and European integration)
have become more salient.
Political culture:
consequence (3.1) WE

• GAL_TAN axis.
• GAL: “Libertarian” or ‘‘postmaterialist’’ parties favor
expanded personal freedoms, for example, access to
abortion, active euthanasia, same-sex marriage, or
greater democratic participation.
• TAN: “Traditional” or ‘‘authoritarian’’ parties often
reject these ideas; they value order, tradition, and
stability, and believe that the government should be a
firm moral authority on social and cultural issues.’
Political culture:
consequence (3.1) EE

• GAL_TAN axis.
• GAL: “Libertarian” or ‘‘postmaterialist’’ parties favor
expanded personal freedoms, for example, access to
abortion, active euthanasia, same-sex marriage, or
greater democratic participation.
• TAN: “Traditional” or ‘‘authoritarian’’ parties often
reject these ideas; they value order, tradition, and
stability, and believe that the government should be a
firm moral authority on social and cultural issues.’