Repression, Emotions and Legitimacy: Evidence from a Survey Experiment in Russia

• In Event: Emotions and Political Behavior under Authoritarianism

Abstract

Repression is intended by authoritarian regimes to fulfill two functions. One is to neutralize individuals whose political activity threatens the regime. The second is to signal to the general population that participation in protest activities is potentially dangerous and so should be avoided. In reality, however, outcomes are highly varied and are the product of many mechanisms at the individual, collective and societal level and vary depending on whether we are looking at radical protesters, or passive bystanders or policemen with batons. In this paper, we focus on one such mechanism, emotions. Using a survey experiment conducted in Russia, we unpack the different individual reactions to repression and investigate their implications for subsequent attitudes and behavior. We make three main contributions. First, we demonstrate that fear is far from the only reaction to repression expressed by citizens in an authoritarian regime. Second, we show those who responded with anger also expressed willingness to participate in protests and had lower evaulations of of regime legitimacy. Third, our evidence suggests that even when see dramatic effects of violent repression in reducing mobilization on the streets, behind the scenes the legacy of repression may sow the seeds for future protest.

Authors

• Graeme Robertson, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

• Grigore Pop-Eleches, Princeton University

• Bryn Rosenfeld, Cornell University

• Samuel A. Greene, King's College London