Wednesday, April 28 at noon

Civic Participation and Democratic Attitudes: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Peru

Dr. Noam Lupu (Vanderbilt University)

Registration required: http://rb.gy/e4td0e

How does civic engagement affect political attitudes?

Dr. Lupu studies the effects of civic engagement on political attitudes by leveraging a unique natural experiment in Peru. Prior to every election, Peruvian officials randomly select citizens to serve as poll monitors on Election Day. Following the January 2020 legislative elections, he conducted a survey of these randomly selected poll monitors and also randomly selected alternates. He finds that civic participation increases support for and trust in democratic institutions, especially elections. He also finds that it increases external political efficacy and social trust. But he finds suggestive evidence that these effects are conditioned by the degree to which the poll monitor had a positive experience. Civic participation does foster democratic attitudes, as long as that participation reflects well on the political system.