Confucianism and Corruption: The Sources of Support for Democracy in Northeast Asia

Abstract

Scholars of comparative politics have long sought to understand the relationship between Confucianism and support for democratic regimes and institutions. Confucianism can manifest itself in a preference for economic growth over democratic politics among citizens. In this paper, we consider the effect of corruption perceptions on support for democracy in Asia s liberal democracies (Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan). Using latent class analysis (LCA), we find that although some in Northeast Asia value economic growth more than democratic development, this view does not necessarily threaten evaluations of democratic performance or translate into a clear preference for dictatorship. We also find that perceptions of government corruption fully color the views individuals have about how desirable democracy is as a political regime and how it performs in their country. All told, our research reconceptualizes the relationship between regime performance and cultural orientations in East Asia s Confucian democracies.