Crafting tolerance: The role of political institutions in a comparative perspective

TY - JOUR

T1 - Crafting tolerance

T2 - The role of political institutions in a comparative perspective

AU - Kirchner, Antje

AU - Freitag, Markus

AU - Rapp, Carolin

PY - 2011/1/1

Y1 - 2011/1/1

N2 - Ongoing changes in social structures, orientation, and value systems confront us with the growing necessity to address and understand transforming patterns of tolerance as well as specific aspects, such as social tolerance. Based on hierarchical analyses of the latest World Values Survey (2005–08) and national statistics for 28 countries, we assess both individual and contextual aspects that influence an individual's perception of different social groupings. Using a social tolerance index that captures personal attitudes toward these groupings, we present an institutional theory of social tolerance. Our results show that specific institutional qualities, which reduce status anxiety, such as inclusiveness, universality, and fairness, prevail over traditional socio-economic, societal, cultural, and democratic explanations.

AB - Ongoing changes in social structures, orientation, and value systems confront us with the growing necessity to address and understand transforming patterns of tolerance as well as specific aspects, such as social tolerance. Based on hierarchical analyses of the latest World Values Survey (2005–08) and national statistics for 28 countries, we assess both individual and contextual aspects that influence an individual's perception of different social groupings. Using a social tolerance index that captures personal attitudes toward these groupings, we present an institutional theory of social tolerance. Our results show that specific institutional qualities, which reduce status anxiety, such as inclusiveness, universality, and fairness, prevail over traditional socio-economic, societal, cultural, and democratic explanations.

KW - comparative politics

KW - hierarchical analyses

KW - institutions

KW - social tolerance

KW - World Values Survey

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85011495269&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1017/s175577391000041x

DO - 10.1017/s175577391000041x

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:85011495269

SN - 1755-7739

VL - 3

SP - 201

EP - 227

JO - European Political Science Review

JF - European Political Science Review

IS - 2

ER -