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Educating Demonstrators: Education and Mass Protest in Africa

Author

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  • Sirianne Dahlum
  • Tore Wig

Abstract

Does a more educated population spur regime-challenging mass protest? It is commonly argued that educated individuals are more likely to collectively challenge governments through protests and that this may explain why education is associated with democratization. While many studies have investigated education’s effect on conventional political participation (voting, petitioning, etc.), it is not known whether education levels affect contentious mass protest. This article argues that education increases the frequency of mass protest, by alleviating collective-action problems and motivating mass opposition, particularly in autocracies. These links are investigated at the subnational level in Africa, by mapping over 600,000 survey respondents to spatialized protest-event data. We present evidence that areas with more educated populations have higher levels of protest activity, and we find mixed evidence consistent with both opportunity- and grievance-related mechanisms driving this relationship. We proceed to identify the causal effect of education by using the location of colonial-era Christian missions to instrument for local education levels.

Suggested Citation

  • Sirianne Dahlum & Tore Wig, 2019. "Educating Demonstrators: Education and Mass Protest in Africa," Journal of Conflict Resolution, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 63(1), pages 3-30, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:sae:jocore:v:63:y:2019:i:1:p:3-30
    DOI: 10.1177/0022002717721394
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Willa Friedman & Michael Kremer & Edward Miguel & Rebecca Thornton, 2016. "Education as Liberation?," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 83(329), pages 1-30, January.
    2. Edward Glaeser & Giacomo Ponzetto & Andrei Shleifer, 2007. "Why does democracy need education?," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 12(2), pages 77-99, June.
    3. Croke, Kevin & Grossman, Guy & Larreguy, Horacio A. & Marshall, John, 2016. "Deliberate Disengagement: How Education Can Decrease Political Participation in Electoral Authoritarian Regimes," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 110(3), pages 579-600, August.
    4. Pierskalla, Jan H. & Hollenbach, Florian M., 2013. "Technology and Collective Action: The Effect of Cell Phone Coverage on Political Violence in Africa," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 107(2), pages 207-224, May.
    5. Dee, Thomas S., 2004. "Are there civic returns to education?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(9-10), pages 1697-1720, August.
    6. Andrews,Donald W. K. & Stock,James H. (ed.), 2005. "Identification and Inference for Econometric Models," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521844413, October.
    7. Jack A. Goldstone, 1994. "Is Revolution Individually Rational?," Rationality and Society, , vol. 6(1), pages 139-166, January.
    8. Lipset, Seymour Martin, 1959. "Some Social Requisites of Democracy: Economic Development and Political Legitimacy1," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 53(1), pages 69-105, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Remi Jedwab & Felix Meier zu Selhausen & Alexander Moradi, 2022. "The economics of missionary expansion: evidence from Africa and implications for development," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 27(2), pages 149-192, June.

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