Civics or Structure? : revisiting the origins of democratic quality in the Italian regions
By: SOLT, Frederick
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ArticlePublisher: Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, January 2004British Journal of Political Science 34, 1, p. 123-135Abstract: What determines the responsiveness and effectiveness of governments in meeting their citizens' needs? Based on his 1993 study of the twenty Italian regions, Robert Putnan argued that 'civic community', a self-reinforcing syndrome of social engagement and political participation, is the explanation. A re-examination of Putnan's data reveals little evidence of such a syndrome, but confirms that where more citizens participate in politics outside of networks of clientelistic exchange, more effective democratic government results. To discern the causes of variation in this self-motivated political participation, I test Putnam's measures of social engagement against aspects of Italian socio-economic structure. Economic development and the historical distribution of land, not social engagement, are found to be powerful predictors of self-motivated political participation and in turn democratic quality
What determines the responsiveness and effectiveness of governments in meeting their citizens' needs? Based on his 1993 study of the twenty Italian regions, Robert Putnan argued that 'civic community', a self-reinforcing syndrome of social engagement and political participation, is the explanation. A re-examination of Putnan's data reveals little evidence of such a syndrome, but confirms that where more citizens participate in politics outside of networks of clientelistic exchange, more effective democratic government results. To discern the causes of variation in this self-motivated political participation, I test Putnam's measures of social engagement against aspects of Italian socio-economic structure. Economic development and the historical distribution of land, not social engagement, are found to be powerful predictors of self-motivated political participation and in turn democratic quality
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