PROSPECTS FOR THE CONSOLIDATION OF LATIN AMERICAN DEMOCRACIES

Rethinking the role of corruption and institutional trust

Carsten Q. Schneider*

 

Abstract This article analyses the role of corruption and institutional trust in the process of the consolidation of Latin American democracies. Corruption not only violates the basic democratic principles of equality, transparency, and fairness, but it is also believed to foster the likelihood of a democratic breakdown by undermining the legitimacy of the democratic system in general, and the trust in its core institutions in particular. When compared with consolidated democracies, both level of corruption and institutional distrust are significantly higher in almost all Latin American countries. However, there is no evidence that the Latin American citizens’ trust in the policy-implementing institutions (police, judiciary, public administration) is more negatively influenced by corruption than it is the case for citizens in consolidated democracies. These findings cast some doubts on the assumption that attitudes should form part of the concept of CoD. Instead, they might better be conceptualized as independent phenomena potentially influencing the persistence of democracy.

Keywords Consolidation of democracy, institutional trust, corruption, Latin America.

 

Resumo Com este artigo pretende-se analisar o papel da corrupção e da confiança institucional no processo de consolidação das democracias latino-americanas. O fenómeno da corrupção não representa apenas uma violação dos princípios fundamentais de igualdade, transparência e justiça sobre os quais se edifica a democracia, é também visto como um dos principais factores de ruptura de um regime democrático, minando a sua legitimidade em geral e a confiança dos cidadãos nas suas principais instituições. Em quase todas as democracias latino-americanas, os níveis de corrupção e de desconfiança institucional mostram-se significativamente superiores aos registados nas democracias tidas como consolidadas. Contudo, não existe qualquer prova empírica que permita sustentar a tese de que a confiança dos cidadãos nas principais instituições do estado, encarregues da implementação de políticas públicas (policy-implementing institutions) - polícia, aparelho judicial e administração pública - é mais negativamente afectada pela corrupção nas democracias latino-americanas do que nas consolidadas. Os resultados obtidos neste estudo levantam algumas reticências à hipótese de que as atitudes dos cidadãos fariam parte integrante do conceito de consolidação da democracia (CoD). Em alternativa, as atitudes dos cidadãos são aqui interpretadas como um fenómeno independente que poderá vir a influenciar a persistência da democracia.

Palavras-chave Consolidação da democracia, confiança institucional, corrupção, América Latina.

 

Résumé Cet article analyse le rôle de la corruption et de la confiance institutionnelle dans le processus de consolidation des démocraties d’Amérique Latine. Le phénomène de la corruption ne représente pas seulement une violation des principes fondamentaux d’égalité, de transparence et de justice qui constituent les fondements de la démocratie; il est aussi perçu comme l’un des principaux facteurs conduisant à la rupture du régime démocratique, en minant sa légitimité en général et la confiance des citoyens dans ses principales institutions. Dans presque toutes les démocraties latino-américaines, les niveaux de corruption et de méfiance institutionnelle sont nettement supérieurs à ceux observés dans les démocraties dites consolidées. Toutefois, il n’existe aucune preuve empirique permettant d’affirmer que la confiance des citoyens dans les principales institutions de l’État, chargées de mettre en œuvre les politiques publiques (policy-implementing institutions) - police, appareil judiciaire et administration publique - est plus entamée par la corruption dans les démocraties latino-américaines que dans les démocraties consolidées. Les résultats obtenus dans cette étude remettent en cause l’hypothèse selon laquelle les attitudes des citoyens feraient partie intégrante du concept de consolidation de la démocratie (CoD). En alternative, les attitudes des citoyens sont interprétées en tant que phénomène indépendant, qui pourrait influencer la persistance de la démocratie.

Mots-clés Consolidation de la démocratie, confiance institutionnelle, corruption, Amérique Latine.

 

Resúmene Con este artículo se pretende analizar el papel de la corrupción y de la confianza en las instituciones en el proceso de consolidación de las democracias latino-americanas. El fenómeno de la corrupción no representa solo una violación de los principios fundamentales de igualdad, transparencia y justicia, sobre los que asienta la democracia, sino que es visto también como uno de los principales factores de ruptura de un régimen democrático, minando su legitimidad en general y la confianza de los ciudadanos en sus principales instituciones. En casi todas las democracias latino-americanas, los niveles de corrupción y de desconfianza institucional se muestran significativamente superiores a los registrados en las democracias ya consolidadas. Además, no existe cualquier prueba empírica que permita sustentar la tesis de que la confianza de los ciudadanos en las principales instituciones del Estado, encargadas de implantar políticas públicas (policy-implementing institutions) — policía, aparato judicial y administración pública — es más afectada negativamente por la corrupción en las democracias latino-americanas que en las ya consolidadas. Los resultados obtenidos en este estudio levantan algunas reticencias a la hipótesis de que las actitudes de los ciudadanos formarían parte integrante del concepto de consolidación de la democracia (CoD). Como alternativa, las actitudes de los ciudadanos se interpretan aquí como un fenómeno independiente que podrá influenciar la persistencia de la democracia.

Palabras-clave Consolidación de la democracia, confianza institucional, corrupción, América Latina.

 

Texto completo disponível apenas em PDF.

Full text only available in PDF format.

 

Bibliography

Books and articles

Almond, Gabriel Abraham, and Sidney Verba (1963), The Civic Culture: Political Attitudes in Five Nations, Princeton, Sage.         [ Links ]

Bayley, David H. (1989), “The effects of corruption in a developing nation”, in Arnold J. Heidenheimer, Michael Johnston and Victor T. LeVine (eds.), Political Corruption: A Handbook, New Brunswick, Transaction Publishers, pp. 935-952.         [ Links ]

Della Porta, Donatella, and Yves Meny (1997), “Introduction: democracy and corruption”, in Donatella Della Porta and Yves Meny (eds.) (1997), Democracy and Corruption in Europe, London, Pinter, pp. 1-6.         [ Links ]

Di Palma, Giuseppe (1990), To Craft Democracies: An Essay on Democratic Transitions, Berkeley, University of California Press.         [ Links ]

Diamond, Larry (1994), “Toward democratic consolidation”, Journal of Democracy, 5 (3), pp. 4-17.         [ Links ]

Diamond, Larry (1998), Political Culture and Democratic Consolidation, Madrid, Instituto Juan March de Estudios e Investigaciones.         [ Links ]

Diamond, Larry Jay (1999), Developing democracy: Toward Consolidation, Baltimore, John Hopkins University Press.         [ Links ]

Easton, David (1965), A Framework for Political Analysis, Englewood Cliffs, NJ.         [ Links ]

Encarnación, Omar G. (2000), “Beyond transitions: the politics of democratic consolidation”, Comparative Politics, 32, pp. 479-497.         [ Links ]

Fuchs, Dieter (1996), Wohin geht der Wandel der demokratischen Institutionen in Deutschland? Die Entwicklung der Demokratievorstellungen der Deutschen seit ihrer Vereinigung, Berlin, Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung.         [ Links ]

Fuchs, Dieter (1998), The Political Culture of Unified Germany, Berlin, Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung.         [ Links ]

Fuchs, Dieter, and Edeltraud Roller (1998), “Cultural conditions of transition to liberal democracy in Central and Eastern Europe”, in Samual H. Barnes and János Simon, The Postcommunist Citizen, Budapest, Erasmus Foundation, pp. 35-77.         [ Links ]

Gabriel, Oscar W., and Angelika Vetter (1999), “Politische involvierung und politische unterstützung im vereinigten Deutschland: Eine Zwischenbilanz”, in Fritz Plasser (ed.), Wahlen und Politische Einstellungen in Deutschland und Österreich, Frankfurt a. M., Europäischer Verlag der Wissenschaften, pp. 191-239.         [ Links ]

Gasiorowski, Mark J., and Timothy J. Power (1998), “The structural determinants of democratic consolidation”, Comparative Political Studies, 31 (6), pp. 740-771.         [ Links ]

Higley, John, and Michael Burton (1998), “Elite settlement and the taming of politics”, Government and Opposition, 33 (1), 98-115.        [ Links ]

Huntington, Samuel P. (1991), The Third Wave: Democratization in the Late Twentieth Century, Norman, University of Oklahoma Press.         [ Links ]

Inglehart, Ronald (1997), Modernization and Postmodernization Cultural: Economic and Political Change in 43 Societies, Princeton, Princeton University Press.         [ Links ]

Klingemann, Hans-Dieter (1998), Mapping Political Support in the 1990s: A Global Analysis, Berlin, Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung.         [ Links ]

Klingemann, Hans-Dieter (2000), “Unterstützung für die Demokratie: Eine globale Analyse für die 1990er Jahre”, in Hans-Jochim Lauth, Gert Pickel and Christian Welzel (eds.), Demokratiemessung: Konzepte und Befunde im Internationalen Vergleich, Wiesbaden, Westdeutscher Verlag, pp. 266-297.         [ Links ]

Klingemann, Hans-Dieter, and Richard I. Hofferbert (1998), Remembering the Bad Old Days: Human Rights, Economic Conditions and Democratic Performance in Transitional Regimes, Berlin, Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung.         [ Links ]

Lancaster, Thomas D., and Gabriella R. Montinola (1997), “Toward a methodology for the comparative study of political corruption”, Crime, Law and Social Change, 27 (3-4), pp. 185-206.         [ Links ]

Lancaster, Thomas D., and Gabriella R. Montinola (2001), “Comparative political corruption: issues of operationalization and measurement”, paper presented in Workshop 16 Corruption, Scandal and the Contestation of Governance in Europe at the European Consortium for Political Research’s Joint session of Workshops, Grenoble, France, 6-11, April, 2001.         [ Links ]

Lauth, Hans-Jochim, Gert Pickel, and Christian Welzel (eds.) (2000), Demokratiemessung: Konzepte und Befunde im internationalen Vergleich, Wiesbaden, Westdeutscher Verlag.         [ Links ]

Linz, Juan José, and Alfred Stepan (1996), Problems of Democratic Transition and Consolidation Southern Europe, South America and Post-Communist Europe, Baltimore, Johns Hopkins University Press.         [ Links ]

Mendez, Juan, Guillermo O’Donnell, and Paulo Sergio Pinheiro (eds.) (1999), The (Un)rule of Law and the Underprivileged in Latin America, Notre Dame, University of Notre Dame.         [ Links ]

Merkel, Wolfgang (1996), “Theorien der transformation: die demokratische konsolidierung postautoritärer Gesellschaften”, Politische Vierteljahresschrift, Sonderheft, 26, pp. 30-58.         [ Links ]

Mishler, William, and Richard Rose (1998), Trust in Untrustworthy Institutions Culture and Institutional Performance in Post-communist Societies, Glasgow, University of Strathclyde.         [ Links ]

Munck, Gerardo L. (1996), Disaggregating Political Regime: Conceptual Issues in the Study of Democratization, Notre Dame, Helen Kellogg Institute for International Studies.         [ Links ]

Nye, Joseph S. (1989), “The political consequences of corruption: a cost-benefit analysis”, in Arnold J. Heidenheimer, Michael Johnston and Victor T. LeVine (eds.), Political Corruption: A Handbook, New Brunswick, Transaction Publisher, pp. 963-983.         [ Links ]

O’Donnell, Guillermo A. (1998), Polyarchies and the (Un)rule of Law in Latin America, Notre Dame, University of Notre Dame.         [ Links ]

O’Donnell, Guillermo A. (2000), Democracy, Law, and Comparative Politics, Notre Dame, Helen Kellogg Institute for International Studies.         [ Links ]

Pickel, Gert, and Dieter Walz (1995), “Politisches institutionenvertrauen in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland in zeitlicher Perspektive”, Journal für Sozialforschung, 2, pp. 145-156.         [ Links ]

Przeworski, Adam (1991), Democracy and the Market Political and Economic Reforms in Eastern Europe and Latin America, Cambridge, Cambridge UP.         [ Links ]

Rose, Richard, and Doh Chull Shin (1999), Democratization Backwards: The Problem of Third Wave Democracies, Glasgow, Centre for the Study of Public Policy, University of Strathclyde.         [ Links ]

Schedler, Andreas (1998), “What is democratic consolidation?”, Journal of Democracy, 9 (2), pp. 91-107.         [ Links ]

Schedler, Andreas, Larry Diamond, and Marc F. Plattner (eds.) (1999), The Self-Restraining State: Power and Accountability in New Democracies, Boulder, Lynne Rienner.         [ Links ]

Schmidt, Manfred G. (1995), Wörterbuch zur Politik, Stuttgart, Kröner.         [ Links ]

Schmitter, Philippe C., and Nicolas Guilhot (2000), “From transition to consolidation: extending the concept of democratization and the practice of democracy”, in Michel Dobry, Democratic and Capitalist Transitions in Eastern Europe: Lessons for the Social Sciences, Dordecht/ Boston/ London, Kluwert Academic Publisher, pp. 131-146.         [ Links ]

Valenzuela, Samuel (1992), “Democratic consolidation in post-transitional settings: notion, process, and facilitating conditions”, in Scott Mainwaring, Guillermo O’Donnell and Samuel Valenzuela, Issues in Democratic Consolidation: The New South American Democracies in Comparative Perspective, Notre Dame, The University of Notre Dame Press, pp. 57-104.         [ Links ]

Waldrauch, Harald (1996), Was Heisst Demokratische Konsolidierung? Über Einige Theoretische Konsequenzen der Osteuropäischen Regimewechsel, Wien, Institut für Höhere Studien.         [ Links ]

Weyland, Kurt (1998), “The politics of corruption in Latin America”, Journal of Democracy, 9 (2), pp. 108-121.         [ Links ]

Electronic documents

Sandholtz, Wayne, and Wm. Koetzle (1998), Accounting for Corruption: Economic Structures, Democratic Norms, and Trade, http://www.democ.uci.edu/democ/papers/wayne.htr (23.11.2000).         [ Links ]

Transparency International: The Corruption Perceptions Index, http://www.gwdg.de/~uwvw/1999Q&A.html (30.11.1999).         [ Links ]

*Carsten Q. Schneider. European University Institute (EUI). Department of Political and Social Sciences. Via dei Roccettini 9/San Domenico di Fiesole, Florence, (Italy). E-mail: carsten.schneider@iue.it. Homepage: http://www.iue.it/Personal/Researchers/Carsten.Schneider/