'The People Want the Fall of the Regime': Schooling, Political Protest, and the Economy
39 Pages Posted: 11 Jun 2011
Date Written: March 21, 2011
Abstract
We examine several hypotheses regarding the determinants and implications of political protest, motivated by the wave of popular uprisings in Arab countries starting in late 2010. While the popular narrative has emphasized the role of a youthful demography and political repression, we draw attention back to one of the most fundamental correlates of political activity identified in the literature, namely education. Using a combination of individual-level micro data and cross-country macro data, we highlight how rising levels of education coupled with economic under-performance jointly provide a strong explanation for participation in protest modes of political activity as well as incumbent turnover. Political protests are thus more likely when an increasingly educated populace does not have commensurate economic gains. We also find that the implied political instability is associated with heightened pressures towards democratization.
Keywords: education, human capital, political protest, demonstrations, economic under-performance, democratization
JEL Classification: D72, D78, I20, I21, O15
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
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