The Contribution of Religion to the Promotion of Critical Citizenship: An Empirical Study Among Young People in Tanzania

Abstract

In this study we investigate whether and to what extent religion is a resource that promotes critical citizenship among young people in Tanzania. The theoretical background is liberal and communitarian perspectives, which emphasize that citizenship is expressed on the one hand in resistance to state intervention and regulations that restrict individual freedom, and on the other hand depends, inter alia, on religious communities in which citizens learn and internalize democratic values. The study is based on data from a survey conducted among young people in Tanzania in 2014 and 2015 (N = 1,252). The study focuses on a key aspect of critical citizenship, namely sensitivity to democratic grievances, which has been operationalized as satisfaction with the state of democracy. Religious affiliation, religiosity and trust in religion were taken into account to examine the influence of religion. ANOVAs and OLS regression analyses were performed to analyse the data. The results show that religiosity and trust in religion actually have a negative impact on satisfaction with democracy in Tanzania, indicating their contribution to the promotion of critical citizenship. Furthermore, variations between the different religious communities were identified, which require additional research.