Civil Society Development and Democratic Values in Romania and Moldova

In: East European politics and societies: EEPS, Band 18, Heft 2, S. 316-341

Abstract

Does civic engagement lead to democratic values such as trust & tolerance? This is the claim of the literature on social capital. Using surveys of the public & organizational activists the authors conducted in Romania & Moldova in 2001 with the support of the Starr Foundation, they investigate these linkages. In both countries, they find low levels of civic engagement, trust, & tolerance for the mass public. They also find little support for the argument that participation leads to greater trust & tolerance among the mass public. However, they find considerably higher levels of trust, tolerance, & engagement among organizational activists & suggest that this elite may help transfer democratic values to the larger population. It is disconcerting that such activists constitute minuscule proportions of the population in both countries. 7 Tables. [Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications Inc., copyright 2004.]