Political Culture and Participation in South Africa The Role of Socio-Economic Factors

Marisa von Fintel ； George Ott

《Taiwan Journal of Democracy》 13卷1期 (2017/07) Pp. 77-99

摘要

Public dissatisfaction with the ability of South Africa's democracy to adequately deliver socio-economic goods has been regarded as a significant cause of increased unconventional political action. This phenomenon has raised questions pertaining to possible changes in the underlying political culture in the country and their implications for democracy. This essay seeks to investigate the relationship between a range of socio-economic factors and consequent political participation among South Africans. Employing ward-level and individual-level survey data, this study identifies the roles played by inadequacies in service delivery, traditional economic variables, and perceptions of relative welfare in the types of political behavior in which South Africans are most likely to engage. The results indicate that unfulfilled expectations, relative deprivation, and disappointment regarding the quality of service delivery exert a stronger influence on political behavior than actual access to services and other more conventional economic factors. Furthermore, there is evidence that voting and protest behavior are complementary expressions of public political attitudes, while dissatisfaction does not necessarily result in less electoral support for the governing African National Congress party.

關鍵字

Political participation ； socio-economic circumstances ； South Africa ； strike action ； voting behavior

參考文獻

Suttner, Raymond(2004).Democratic Transition and Consolidation in South Africa: The Advice of the Experts.Current Sociology.52(5),760.

Alexander, Peter(2010).Rebellion of the Poor: South Africa's Service Delivery Protests-A Preliminary Analysis.Review of African Political Economy.37(123),25-40.

Nleya, Ndodana(2011).Linking Service Delivery and Protest in South Africa: An Exploration of Evidence from Khayelitsha.Africanus.50(1),3-13.

Steenekamp, Cindy(2017).Democratic Political Community in South Africa: Elusive or Not?.Taiwan Journal of Democracy.13(1),59-76.

Linz, Juan J.,Stepan, Alfred(1996).Problems of Democratic Transition and Consolidation: Southern Europe, South America, and Post-Communist Europe.Baltimore, MD:John Hopkins University Press.