Culture Affects Democratic Development of Institutions - Essay Example

?Culture Affects Democratic Development of s The development of countries across the globe has been attributed to the establishment of independent and democratically managed institutions. A number of countries have remained on top both economically and politically due to the establishment of sound institutions that have the ability to operate independently without the interference of other arms of government. The ability of institutions in a country to develop into advanced and democratic centres has been is influenced by a number of factors, chief among them being the cultural situation of the country. Countries like German, the United Kingdom, the United States and France have independent and democratic institutions thanks to their cultural maturity (Acemoglu, Johnson & Robinson, 2001). Culture is defined as a people’s way of thinking, behaving and handling different situations both common and common, all of which influences the ability of people within a country to accept different situations created by democracy. Democratic institutions are governmental and nongovernmental units created to operate with complete autonomy to deliver different needs to the people. Institutions in a country include the judiciary, the police services, the armed forces, aid organisations and other units created for the wellbeing of the society. In this paper, I will highlight how the development of democratic and dependent institutions of a country is influenced by cultural maturity. The different cultural environments within a number of countries in the middle east, Africa and other developing economies will be compared with the cultural environments found in first world countries (Hadenius & Teorell, 2005). Cultural maturity and progress differ in different countries and this has enabled some regions to develop as compared to others for example the socialist Asia and former soviet and the capitalist west. The level of democratization of institution in these countries differs and this has been attributed to the way of life found among the different countries. Culture is a multifaceted domain that cannot be highlighted as a block in trying to determine its impacts of democratization of different institutions in different countries. According to Tabellini (2005), culture’s casual effect results from its ability to affect development in a country endogenously. This measure of impacts on economic development is similar to the impacts it can produce on the democratization of institutions and organs of a country’s governance system (Tabellini, 2005). A number of questions have however arose about these differences and authors have attempted to explain why this is not the case in African and other countries in the Middle East. The United Kingdom and the United States experienced political transformation in the early 18th to 20th century, a fact that is attributed to the development of these countries into republic and democratic countries. With the French revolution leading to the abolition of the monarch system, the French cultural practices changed with the embracement of democratic governance. This affected other institutions in the country that led to significant independence and democratization of these arms of government (Ichino, Bornhorst, Schlag & Winter, 2004). In contrast, the independence and democratization of institutions in china and other Asian and African countries has remained significantly below pace. This can be explained to the prevalent government control, coercion, intimidation and interference in the operations of these institutions. When the French revolution led to the replacement of the monarch system with a more democratic governance system, the continuous revolts in china led to the replacement of one monarch with the other. The monarchs were operated from one ideological principle that had no variation from the previous regimes, a process that further weakens the democratization process of the countries (Diermeier & Krehbiel, 2003). The African situation is fluid as compared to other nations in the west and the American continent, which further explains the low level of democracy within the institutions. The social and cultural standards within these countries have little considerations for the liberal rights of women and the less fortunate. The right to vote and express opinion in these societies are thus limited by an individual’s gender or social status, resulting into their inability to build strong democratic institutions like the west. As illustrated by Chinese and the French revolution, leadership and governance in African and other developing Asian nations makes it relatively impossible for institutions to exist without government interference and control. According to Kuna (2000), the Nigerian cultural situation demonstrates the level of democratic development of their institutions and explains the current level of corruption (Acemoglu & Johnson, 2003). The development of the slave trade and immigration of the blacks into the American continents traces its roots to the activities and cultures of the Native Americans. As the need for more raw agricultural materials grew, the need for more strong and hardy workers developed. Africans became the only alternative due to their vulnerability and the European invasion at the time. The Indian Americans were also considered weak as compared to the blacks. This is how the native Indians shaped the history of the colonial America (Acemoglu, Johnson & Robinson, 2002). Colonial America was characterised by a number of activities that defined the behaviours of the native and African Americans way of life. The mass movements of the population from the African continent into a new land and life marked transition in the lives of the black Africans. From a completely different cultural setup, the Africans were marked for tremendous changes as they integrated into the American way of life. They abandoned their cultural practises and beliefs to adopt a new way of doing things according to the rules of the new land. From mothers, fathers and children, the Africans were all turned into slaves due to the industrial activities that characterised the colonial America. They were thus exposed to a life of filth, inequality, abuse and slavery. All these became the cornerstone for the black revolution and struggle for equality during the 18th century. Freedom, democracy and respect for the blacks developed because of the struggles that grew out of the colonial American repression (Platteau, 2000). Similarly, the native Indians witnessed their status change while still in a county they called home. The arrival of the Europeans drove them into mere observers as the whites were exploiting their resources. The struggles and oppressive rule of the whites according to Richter, 101, is attributed to the assimilation and loss of the original Indian American community (Bollen & Pamela, 2000). Just like any African country, leadership in Nigeria has for long been achieved through coup de tat, an event that demonstrates lack of social liberties and the ability of the people to elect their leaders. In a country where leadership is achieved through armed conflict, rebellion and gunfights, the institutions built lacks the capacity to work for the good of every citizen. These institutions are built at the convenience of those in power and are made to serve the interest of these very people. In case the sitting government is toppled in a similar manner it attained power, the incoming government will have no trust and belief in the institutions built by the previous regimes. This makes it necessary for the government to dismantle the institutions and built new ones led by people seen to share the ideologies and beliefs of the current regime. Such events that characterize the lack of democratic election of governments weaken institutions and lowers accountability within these institutions. As a result, corruption increases due to the instability and lack of tenure that exist within the country’s governance structures (Kuna, 2000). The development of democratic ideals in institutions is reflective of societal development and maturity as witnessed in more developed nations of the world. The same is witnessed in the historical cultural interactions between the Maghreb and the Genoese traders that created room for the development of different institutions. The principles of reservation and quota systems are not just applied to political representation in all the countries that the author has discussed. However, this paper and the thesis discussed by the author provide a better ground for the development of more research questions and thesis to be studied. The continuous adoption of these two approaches has aimed at achieving fair representation and the elimination of gender and ethnic discontent in a country. However, just like ideas and practices become obsolete, these approaches are also subjected to wear and tear. This provides room for a study that should seek to determine the relevance of the two approaches in current political and democratic advancements. Is the quota system still relevant in the American context and does the country needs to develop a practice that cushion the women and the ethnic minority from under representation? Answering this question will provide ground for understanding the maturity of our democratic and electoral systems thus eliminating the need for quota systems (Inglehart & Welzel, 2003). The international monetary adopted the original political approach for economic purposes and for the provision of aid to different countries and economies. This makes it essential to link the historical quota system adopted for political reasons to economic applications. Is political quota as a way of reducing under representation and ethnic disadvantages irrelevant in the current economic and political context? While developing a thesis to answer this question, the benefits of these political approaches aimed at eliminating under representation should be analysed in different contexts (Boix & Susan, 2003). In Peru, the quota system is not necessarily used in political representation and the balancing of elective position but in public appointments and duties. This creates a new dilemma that must be addressed by adequate research processes. The role of quota and reservation systems in attaining equal economic empowerment for all genders should be analysed with reference to countries like Peru and India that have applied them. This will provide relevance to these political principles that have been used to eliminate ethnical and gender discontent because of misrepresentation in public positions (Bollen & Pamela, 2000). Cultural development and maturity is influenced by the educational system of a particular country and this varies significantly between different countries and regions. Human capital plays an important role in the maturation and democratization of institutions and this can only be achieved through education. Various authors have used different approaches in determining the connection between culture and institution. Individualism, an aspect that is significantly influenced by cultural practices and beliefs affects the growth and development of democracy in different countries. The United States and the United Kingdom have developed institutions, most of which operate with little influence from the government. It is argued that this democratization process and development of independent institutions reflect the cultural development of these two countries (Welzel, 2007). The twenty first century American culture can be highly attributed to the struggle and input of the black and Native Americans. The black Americans received a very hostile reception in which they were treated more like underdogs. They were barred from participating in societal activities, nor even serving in a position of authority above a white American. Random killing by racial groups became an order of the day for the black Americans. However, despite the bleak future that faced them, the African Americans changed the course of their history and that of the continent for good. The fight that the African American embraced enabled them to change from being the American slaves and workers to being the American citizens. This became the basis of democratic struggle in colonial America. Despite of the weaknesses that nature presented them with, the African Americans embody the true struggle of democratic freedom and equality for all Americans (Inglehart & Welzel, 2003). Conclusion Institutions are as safe, secure and functional as the security of the country in which they operate a scenario that explains why institutions in insecure countries as prone to government control. Such institutions must be closely monitored by the government to avoid infiltration by terror agents and other drug cartels due to lack of trust and honesty in the people’s culture (Bratton & Mattes, 2001). Considers the state as the sole actor and custodian of international security within this context, countries are forced to develop power for the continuity of the state in the face of international politics and security. Under this system therefore, the behaviour of the state’s move from being one based on international cooperation into selfishness and the desire to maximize power. This approach thus subscribe to the human nature that is guided by the desire to achieve more and more internal influence in the face of internal competition and pressures. This approach is thus weak and unconstructive due to the egoist nature exhibited that advanced the approach (Diamond, 2003). Despite the misconception represent the views and needs of the citizens within the country, the minority leaders and political representatives develop a program of power accumulation for international political reasons. References Acemoglu, D. & Johnson, S 2003, “Unbundling Institutions”, NBER Working Paper no. 9934. Acemoglu, D., Johnson S & Robinson J 2001, “The Colonial Origins of Comparative Development: An Empirical Investigation”, American Economic Review, 91:1369-1401. Acemoglu, D., Johnson S & Robinson J 2002, “The Rise of Europe: Atlantic Trade, Institutional Change and Economic Growth”, NBER Working Paper no. 9378. Boix, C. & Susan S 2003, “Endogenous Democratization,” World Politics 55 (July): 815-849. Bollen, K & Pamela P 2000, “Subjective Measures of Liberal Democracy.” Comparative Political Studies 33(1), 58-86. Bratton, M & Mattes, R 2001, “Support for Democracy in Africa: Intrinsic or Instrumental?” British Journal of Political Science 31: 447–74. Diamond, L 2003, “How People View Democracy,” Centre for the Study of Democracy Paper Series. Irvine, CA: Centre for the Study of Democracy. Diermeier, D. & Krehbiel, K 2003, “Institutionalism as Methodology”, Journal of Theoretical Politics, forthcoming Hadenius, A. & Teorell, J 2005, Cultural and economic prerequisites of democracy: reassessing recent evidence, studies in comparative international development, 3994), 87-106. Ichino, A., Bornhorst, F., Schlag E & Winter E 2004, "Trust and Trustworthiness among Europeans: South - North Comparison", EUI Working Paper. Inglehart, R & Welzel, C 2003, “Political Culture and Democracy: Analysing Cross-Level Linkages.” Comparative Politics 36(1), 61-79. Kuna, M 2000, Culture and development of democracy in Nigeria, legal research and development centre. Platteau, J 2000, "Institutions, Social Norms, and Economic Development", Harwood: Academic Publishers & Rutledge Tabellini, G. 2005, Culture and institutions: economic development in the regions of Europe, the European University Institute. Welzel, C 2007, Are levels of democracy affected by mass attitudes? Testing attainment and sustainment effects of democracy, international political science review, 28(4), 397-424. Read More