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Confidence in Public Bodies, and Electoral Participation in India

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Abstract

Most studies on distribution in developing countries are concerned with the distribution of material resources, most usually income or consumption, and sometimes wealth. On the other hand, most studies on social capital are grounded in countries of the developed world. In this article, we depart from both traditions by analysing the distribution of social capital in a developing country (India). In so doing, we establish a link with the subject matter of political economy by examining the relationship between the distribution of social capital, the distribution of confidence in public bodies and electoral participation. Results show that participation in social activities is strongly correlated to trust in public bodies, which in turn favours participation in political life through voting. However, contrary to results obtained in different contexts, individuals belonging to discriminated groups tend to have more confidence in institutions.

Abstract

La plupart des études sur la répartition dans les pays en développement portent sur celle des ressources matérielles, comme, le plus souvent, les revenus, la consommation et, parfois, la richesse. En revanche, les études sur la distribution du capital social s’inscrivent, pour la plupart, dans le contexte des pays développés. Cet article rompt avec cette double tradition en analysant la répartition du capital social dans un pays en développement, l’Inde. De plus, nous lions cette question avec des thèmes propres à l’économie politique en examinant la relation entre la répartition du capital social, la répartition de la confiance dans les organismes publics, et la participation électorale. Les résultats montrent que la participation aux activités sociales est fortement corrélée à la confiance dans les organismes publics, qui elle-même favorise la participation à la vie politique, au travers du vote. Toutefois, contrairement aux résultats obtenus dans des contextes différents, les membres des groupes discriminés ont tendance à avoir davantage confiance dans les institutions.

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Notes

  1. Extending across the states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar and West Bengal, with another 15 million living in the hills of northeastern India (Guha, 2007).

  2. For instance, see Alesina and La Ferrara (2002) in the US context.

  3. Except that membership of NGOs had no significant effect on the degree of confidence towards courts. For more details, please refer to Table 11, which displays marginal probabilities.

  4. Except that membership of religious or social groups had a significant positive effect on the degree of confidence towards politicians.

  5. See, for instance, Helliwell and Putnam (2007) or Alesina and La Ferrara (2002).

  6. Five regional dummies were created: central, which includes Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand; the south, which includes Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu; the west, which includes Maharashtra and Gujarat; the east, which includes Orissa, West Bengal, Assam and the northeastern states; and finally the north, which is composed of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Benoit Le-Maux, the participants of the Workshop on the Political Economy of Redistribution organized by the Condorcet Centre for Political Economy, University of Rennes, the journal’s editor and, most importantly, two anonymous referees for comments that have substantially improved the article.

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Correspondence to Catherine Bros.

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Bros, C., Borooah, V. Confidence in Public Bodies, and Electoral Participation in India. Eur J Dev Res 25, 557–583 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1057/ejdr.2013.18

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