Modernization and Cultural Democratization in East Asia

• In Event: Popular Beliefs About Democracy

Abstract

This paper studies how state-led development shapes democratic attitudes among East Asian middle classes. I argue that the particular history of state-led development in East Asia limited growth in democratic political culture, which in turn shapes how middle classes conceptualize democracy. Using data from the sixth wave of the World Values Survey and the fourth wave of the Asia Barometer Survey, I reveal consistent differences in how middle class respondents in the East and West conceptualize democracy. Moreover, among East Asians, middle class respondents with higher state dependency and higher affinity to Asian Values are less likely to understand democracy in the liberal terms favored in the West. These results contribute to broader debates about modernization and political culture around the world.

Author

• Hannah June Kim, Stanford University