LEI_F_08 Political Cultural Change? Legitimacy of Democracy and Social Cohesion in Times of Increased Populism and Rising Rejection of Islam

Objectives/ Research Questions

The objective of this project is a theory-based empirical investigation of the relationships between citizens’ openness to populism, attitudes towards democracy, group-related prejudices, Islamophobia, social exclusion processes, as well as the determination of their explanatory factors and effects on radicalization (including extremist attitudes). The guiding research question is, Does (right-wing) populism, also through its use of group-related prejudices and rejection of Islam, undermine social cohesion and the democratic basis of a political culture – and thus endangers liberal democracy as we know it? The research question includes micro- and macro-explanatory factors, as it aims at an international and regional comparative perspective.

Research hypotheses:

(H1): The feeling of one’s own relative deprivation leads to a greater openness to populist alternatives to liberal-pluralist German democracy – aiming at homogeneity and exclusion of social groups (minorities) – and to an increased formation of differences between elites and “the people”.

(H2): The perception of a cultural threat in connection with the possibility of attribution to a foreign group – for example, people of Muslim faith (factor: religion) – increases openness to right-wing populist arguments.

(H3): This is counteracted by intergroup contacts, which promote common engagement structures and contribute to the expansion of social capital in the sense of social cohesion that is suitable for modern, plural, and democratic societies.

(H4): The stronger a national(istic) identitarian understanding of cohesion, the more open citizens are to right-wing populism.

(H5): Fear of globalization, lack of contact with Muslims, and national identity formation lead to greater receptivity to right-wing populist arguments and extremist attitudes.

(H6): Threat perception, openness to populism, and social devaluation undermine the legitimacy of a democracy and corrode current liberal democracy via political culture or lead to a restriction of liberal values.

(H7): Socioeconomic deprivation at the macro-level increases susceptibility to populism.

(H8): Historically grown, regional and national – especially cultural – contextual factors (religious culture, right-wing extremist tradition, and/or ethnic homogeneity) have a moderating effect on the micro-explanations.

Analytically dependent variables are indicators of (subjective) social cohesion (social trust, tolerance, and solidarity), openness to populism (new instrument), and attitudes towards democracy or autocratic regimes.

Independent variables: among others, subjective factors from social science research (assessment of the economic situation, relative deprivation, dogmatic religiosity, fear of globalization, understanding of democracy, party affiliation, level of education, etc.), psychological research (group-related prejudices, threat perceptions, self-esteem, recognition deficits, images of people, and understanding of tolerance) as well as structural factors (regional and national socioeconomic status, cultural character of the area, and historical cultures of experience and memory).

Thematic relation to social cohesion

In addition to recoveries for the area of reviewing and improving theoretical approaches in the field of societal cohesion (primarily in correspondence with political cultural research), the project’s contribution lies in the comparative and empirical-analytical area of RISC. In this context, cultural factors of threats to social cohesion are examined in confrontation with political, socioeconomic, and psychological factors and their (relational) relevance is elaborated. The starting point is the consideration that problems for social cohesion arise from a polarization of positions in society as well as from an undermining of the democratic political culture that has so far mediated this cohesion in the eyes of the citizens. Accordingly, current debates about an erosion of social cohesion are directly linked to discussions on a legitimacy crisis of democracy that have been going on for decades. The mobilization factor for polarization as well as radicalization and extremism in population groups is the openness to populist offers as well as the devaluation or exclusion of social groups or minorities, especially through religious category selection. The approach of political culture research enables a theory-based empirical examination of relations under certain social conditions. Strictly speaking, political culture research, which has been established since the 1960s, can be regarded as existing research on social cohesion (Pickel / Pickel 2006, 2019). It covers an understanding of social cohesion that is oriented towards subjective relationships. This is especially true for the subaspect of social capital theory (Putnam 2000). References of the project to RISC result from the determination of stress factors of social cohesion through the openness of citizens to populism, the spread of radical and extremist attitudes, the rejection of democratic values and democracy, an authoritarian understanding of democracy, as well as the impact analysis of devaluation processes and group-related prejudices. The project thus lies in the central area of research into social cohesion and deals with both the (regional and supraregional) preconditions and sources of cohesion as well as its threats and endangerments – with the aim of deriving political recommendations for action.

Pickel, Gert; Pickel, Susanne (i.E.): Gesellschaftlicher Zusammenhalt und die Angst um seinen Zerfall. Analysen zu Existenz, Gründen und Folgen gesellschaftlichen Zusammenhalts am Beispiel Sachsen, in: Kailitz, Steffen et al. (Hrsg.): Integration und Desintegration in Sachsen, Wiesbaden.

Pickel, Susanne; Pickel, Gert 2006: Politische Kultur- und Demokratieforschung. Grundbegriffe, Theorien, Methoden. Eine Einführung, Wiesbaden.

Putnam, Robert D. 2000: Bowling Alone. The Collapse and Revival of American Community, New York.