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Home Issues Backissues Volume 31, No.1 Constructing a Typology of Popular Attitudes to Democracy: An Analysis after the Second Party Alternation in Taiwan

Constructing a Typology of Popular Attitudes to Democracy: An Analysis after the Second Party Alternation in Taiwan

Hsin-Hao Huang
2011 / 05
Volume 18, No.1

pp.1-34
10.6612/tjes.2011.18.01.01-34
Paper

Abstract

A democracy cannot be considered as consolidated without its institutions being supported by a majority of populace. Based upon the suggested concepts of ”support for democracy” and ”satisfaction with democracy”, this paper proposes an exploratory topology to probe the popular attitudes toward democracy in Taiwan, with the special focus on the time point after the second party alternation in 2008. Furthermore, the author checks the validity of this democratic topology via the intrinsic and instrumental dispositions, which are the two main origins of people's democratic attitudes. The findings show that, firstly, slightly fewer less than half of Taiwanese approved of the democratic regime with the absolute manner, and also about half of them were satisfied with the current practice and performance of democracy after the second party alternation. The fact that only about 30 percent of citizens are categorized as ”democratic satisfaction” means that a proportion of Taiwanese still have doubts about democracy on either the emotional or practical dimensions. Secondly, the intrinsic and instrumental dispositions can separately increase the desirability and satisfaction of democracy, thereby explain different types of democratic attitudes in Taiwan. Moreover, with other variables remaining constant, the election result of 2008 did not lead to the systematic effect of ”election loser”; voters whose preferable candidate lost in the election did not become more likely to suspect the responsibility of the democratic system. Totally speaking, how to increase the popular support and confidence for democracy not only remains crucial to the process of democratic consolidation, but also should be regarded as a key issue for the future of democratic deepening in Taiwan.

Keywords

support for democracy

satisfaction with democracy

party alternation in power

election loser

political culture