Civic education, civil society, and political mistrust in a developing democracy: The case of the Dominican Republic

In: World development: the multi-disciplinary international journal devoted to the study and promotion of world development, Band 28, Heft 11, S. 1851-1874

Abstract

The paper explores the effect of donor-supported civic education programs on levels of citizen trust in institutions in the Dominican Republic. Using attitudinal surveys of control and treatment groups the paper demonstrates that civic education had a direct, negative effect on participants' levels of institutional trust, with the greatest negative effects on trust in governmental bodies such as the army and the judicial system. (DSE/DÜI)