NATO/EU synergies against information warfare: a “circulatory institutionalist” model of expert voluntarism

type="graphical" xml:id="gpol12235-abs-0001"> Democracy requires the critical engagement of practitioners and experts alike.

In the young state of Indonesia, old local authorities like sultanates have reasserted themselves. This reemergence of localized authority does not necessarily conflict with nation building. Survey research among adult samples (N = 399) in the neighbouring sultanates of Yogyakarta and Surakarta found that social representations of history were implicated in the relationship between monarchism and national identity. In Yogyakarta (but not Surakarta), a positive intersection between local and national representations of history was found: events and people associated with the sultanate were also regarded as instrumental to the birth of the nation. In Yogyakarta, support for the sultanate was higher than in Surakarta: respondents argued that Yogyakarta had the culture and history required to justify status as a special autonomous region. In Yogyakarta but not Surakarta, monarchism was positively related to national identity and trust in national democratic political institutions. The intersection between local and national representations of history, especially concerning the instrumentality of the local monarchy in giving birth to the nation in Yogyakarta, created historical continuity/positive intersectionality where the superordinate nation and the local monarchy are networked in a system of power and meaning that lends trust in democratic institutions from monarchism, and strengthens national identity.

The role of health and health systems in shaping political engagement and rebuilding trust in democratic institutions

Research on the Roleof Santri Middle Class in Democratization Process in Indonesia was conducted in three cities in Java, i.e. the Cities of East Jakarta, Yogyakarta, and Surabaya. The research was conducted by using quantitative approach and survey method. The data collection method used in this research is direct interview technique, by using questionnaire instrument that was asked to the respondents directly through face to face.There are two types of hypotheses to be proved through this survey research, they are associative and comparativehypotheses.The associative hypothesis verification aims to prove whether there is significant relationship between dependent variable (Y) and independent variable (X) as predictor or not. Inthis research context, the relationship between role in the democratization process as the dependent variable (Y) with predictor independent variables(X) will be tested, which are the literacy of political and economic information(X1), satisfaction to public services (X2), trust in democratic institutions (X3), access to political resources (X4), ideology (X5), and relative deprivation (X6).The comparative hypothesisverificationaims to prove whether there is significant difference between two or more different respondent groups or not. Based on this research purpose, the differences of two respondent groups will be proved comparatively related to their role in the democratization process; they are (1) santrimiddle-class group and (2) groups of santrinon-middle class.There are two types of hypotheses to be proved through this survey research, they are associative and comparative hypotheses. The associative hypothesis verification aims to prove whether there is significant relationship between dependent variable (Y) and independent variable (X) as predictor or not. In this research context, the relationship between role in the democratization process as the dependent variable (Y) with predictor independent variables (X) will be tested, which are the literacy of political and economic information (X1), satisfaction to public services (X2), trust in democratic institutions (X3), access to political resources (X4), ideology (X5), and relative deprivation (X6). The comparative hypothesis verification aims to prove whether there is significant difference between two or more different respondent groups or not. Based on this research purpose, the differences of two respondent groups will be proved comparatively related to their role in the democratization process; they are (1) santri middle-class group and (2) groups of santri non-middle class.From the result of hypothesis associative verification, it is proved that all variables X correlated positively and significantly to variable Y. With this result, then the literacy of political and economic information (X1), satisfaction to public services (X2), trust in democratic institutions (X3), access to political resources (X4), ideology (X5), and relative deprivation (X6) are proved to correlate positively and significantly to the role in democratization (Y).From the result of comparative hypothesis verification, the X2 value of 1363.44 is obtained. This value is greater than the X2 value of table at 88 degrees of freedom and significance level of 0.5. With this result, then the null hypothesis which stated that there is no significant difference between santri middle class and other class groups is rejected. This means the alternative hypothesis that stated otherwise is received. Conclusion based on this examination result is that there are significant differences between the role of santri middle class and other group samples in the democratization process.

Studies have shown religious organizations to be among the most trusted institutions of civil society in Europe. Similarly, research has revealed that, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe, church organizations boast far higher levels of trust than government organizations or nonreligious civil society institutions. In this study, the link between religion and trust in democratic institutions among individuals is explored in relation to the size of the largest religious group in twenty-one European countries. Based on the European Social Survey (Round 2, 2004) and using multilevel modeling it is concluded that the larger the size of the largest religious group, the lower the level of trust in democratic institutions among religious minorities. This finding supports the hypothesis that the larger the size of the largest religious group, the more likely minorities are to fear that the government is dominated by the largest religious group and their interests are not represented.

This chapter examines trust in democratic institutions. The chapter argues that representative democracy is founded on a relationship between citizens and state premised on trust. Trust is important for two reasons: (1) sovereignty is transferred from the people to a legislative body, meaning that the stability and vitality depend, in part, upon trust; and (2) trust serves as a creator of collective power, enabling leaders to make commitments on the basis of it and govern more effectively. Multivariate models confirm that trust in democratic institutions is multidimensional. The research pinpoints its values-based components, its rootedness in civil society, its performance-based aspects and its grounding in political partisanship. In addition, the research not only shows that trust differ between the east and the west, but that it is conditioned by different theoretical mechanisms. The findings have implications for democratic reform and for research about cultivating trust in new democracies.

The article attempts to examine the progress that has been made in the area of self-government over the last quarter century in Poland. Not only has the chaos in the institutional process in this period affected the overall low level of citizens' trust in democratic institutions, but it also led to absence of effective cooperation between them. The author indicates two methods of both increasing public trust in the institution and increasing effectiveness of cooperation between institutions themselves, i.e. systematic changes in the self-government and glocalization of public trust.

In times of severe international crises, such as wars and terrorist attacks, citizens tend to ‘rally around the flag’ and increase their support for political leaders. We ask if the rallying effects identified in the literature extend to the societal lockdowns in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19-related lockdowns differ from crises studied in the existing literature because they are political crisis responses with severe and immediate negative effects on the economy. Using daily responses right before and after the announcement of the Danish lockdown on March 11, 2020, we study trust in democratic institutions among unemployed Danes over the first three weeks of a large-scale societal lockdown. OLS estimates show that trust in the Danish Prime Minister’s administration was higher immediately after the lockdown announcement. This increase lasted throughout the entire period of measurement (until the end of March). We find similarly increased trust in other institutions, most significantly the judicial system and the public sector at large, whereas findings for trust in parliament and the media are less clear. Interrupted time series estimates point to the same conclusions albeit they produce estimates with more noise. Overall, our findings are consistent with the idea that citizens tend to ‘rally around the flag’ in times of crisis and furthermore suggest that increased trust tends to spill over to institutions that are not involved in crisis management decisions.

ABSTRACTDemocratic consolidation relies on a degree of political trust and support for new democratic institutions and actors. A decline in political trust threatens the legitimacy of institutions, and democracy itself. Using Ipsos Khayabus 2014 national public opinion survey data, the paper explores levels of political trust in South Africa's transitional society in late 2014. It asks whether there is a sufficient mass of ‘critical citizens’ to ensure accountable government, and trust expressed towards key objects in the political system. We find that a majority of South Africans are critical citizens, offering conditional support based on performance evaluations. However, we also find little distinction in the minds of citizens between political institutions and the actors that inhabit them. Low levels of trust in political actors tend to erode trust in institutions. In turn, political trust in democratic institutions is also linked to evaluations of the ruling party; signalling the dangers of a prolonged stay in power by a dominant party. Finally, we conclude with possible implications for democratic consolidation by arguing that if despondence with current actors and institutions increases citizens may become less satisfied with democracy and less inclined to embrace the dream of a democratic, unified nation.

The aim of this article is to present the structural determinants of prodemocratic attitudes expressed through trust in democratic institutions: political parties, parliament, and the judiciary system. We present statistical analyses in which trust is regressed on the social stratification position measured by education, occupation, and income. These analyses are based on data from the European Social Survey (Round 3, 2006). The context for the relationship among individual-level variables is provided by "objective" assessment of the democracy level grasping its different aspects, and defined on the country level. The main result of this study is that the impact of social stratification position on trust in democratic institutions is greater in "old democracies" of Western Europe than in the postcommunist countries of Central and Eastern Europe. It also establishes that the higher the country's level of economic development the stronger the impact of the stratification position on prodemocratic attitudes.

This chapter discusses the level of political integration displayed by the Danish Muslims engaged in the 2005/2006 cartoons controversy. Conceptualising political integration as a multi-dimensional phenomenon distinguishing three aspects of political integration – a) political trust in democratic institutions, b) adherence to liberal-democratic values, and c) political participation in the polis – the article investigates the degree of political integration of Danish Muslims against a unique database on political claims-making during the Danish cartoons controversy. In contrast to the widespread public perception of the controversy, the article argues that the Danish Muslims involved in public claims-making displayed a considerable degree of political integration. The chapter argues that Danish Muslims actually demonstrated considerable trust in democratic institutions, relying mainly on procedural forms of claims-making and turning to transnationalisation of the issue only as a last resort. Furthermore, it is argued that the claims-making of the involved Danish Muslims revealed alternative interpretations of fundamental liberal-democratic values, but significant adherence to the basic principles. Finally, the chapter argues that the level of political participation of Danish Muslims was particularly high during the cartoons controversy and that this high level of political claims-making and mobilisation should be understood as active citizenship rather than ‘cultural backlash’.

Immigration and growing diversity have been linked with pathologies such as lower social capital, the rise of authoritarian populists, intergroup conflict, and perhaps the breakdown of democracy itself. At the heart of this complex is a question relating to migration and political culture: whether immigration erodes the attitudes that sustain and legitimize democratic political systems. This paper takes a time-series, cross-sectional approach to this question by analyzing the effects of a comprehensive set of measures of immigration on dynamic estimates of trust in democratic institutions, satisfaction with democracy, and democratic support from 30 European countries. The results show that immigration does not undermine any of these forms of public support for political systems. Indeed, under some circumstances, immigration may increase public trust in democratic institutions.

Media corruption and issues of journalistic and institutional integrity in post-communist countries: The case of Bulgaria

The central question of this article is why Russian military aggression in Ukraine has failed to strengthen support for democracy and cooperation with partners in some Central European countries. In addition, the article examines the link between military conflict in the immediate neighbourhood and the crisis of democracy. Based on a review of the extensive literature on the crisis of democracy, the article integrates findings from several opinion polls conducted in Central European countries. Looking primarily at the Visegrad countries, clear patterns emerge in responses and attitudes towards Russia. We can see the influence of the political discourse in these countries, the narratives used by political elites and, more recently, war fatigue and economic consequences. The article argues that a military conflict in the vicinity of democratic countries exacerbates the crisis of democracy. The information warfare that is part of this conflict and the susceptibility of the political elite to the dissemination of enemy propaganda undermines trust in democratic institutions and democracy.

Crowdsourcing for Public Policy and Government