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Protests

Author

Listed:
  • Davide Cantoni

    (Department of Economics, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany)

  • Andrew Kao

    (Department of Economics, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA)

  • David Y. Yang

    (Department of Economics, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA)

  • Noam Yuchtman

    (Department of Economics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom)

Abstract

Citizens have long taken to the streets to demand change, expressing political views that may otherwise be suppressed. Protests have produced change at local, national, and international scales, including spectacular moments of political and social transformation. We document five new empirical patterns describing 1.2 million protest events across 218 countries between 1980 and 2020. First, autocracies and weak democracies experienced a trend break in protests during the Arab Spring. Second, protest movements also rose in importance following the Arab Spring. Third, protest movements geographically diffuse over time, spiking to their peak before falling off. Fourth, a country's year-to-year economic performance is not strongly correlated with protests; individual values are predictive of protest participation. Fifth, the United States, China, and Russia are the most overrepresented countries in academic studies. We discuss each pattern's connections to the existing literature and anticipate paths for future work.

Suggested Citation

  • Davide Cantoni & Andrew Kao & David Y. Yang & Noam Yuchtman, 2024. "Protests," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 16(1), pages 519-543, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:anr:reveco:v:16:y:2024:p:519-543
    DOI: 10.1146/annurev-economics-082423-032519
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    political participation; information technology; movements; protests;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D74 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Conflict; Conflict Resolution; Alliances; Revolutions
    • P00 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - General - - - General
    • P50 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Comparative Economic Systems - - - General

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