Understanding the Intuitive Foundations of Democratic Norms and Procedures

Objective

We live in a new age of democratic backsliding. Democracies are not falling to coup d’etat, nor are they subverted by blatant vote fraud. Democracies fall by the hands of democratically elected executives, who erode certain democratic norms, while preserving others and maintaining public approval. It is now crucial to understand why and to what extent certain norms and procedures of democracy are more understood, supported, and monitored than others. The vast literature on support for democracy has paid surprisingly little attention to variability in support across the diverse norms and procedures of democracy. Bridging insights from moral psychology and democratic theory, INFODEM develops an original framework to study democratic norms. This novel intuitive theory of democratic norms argues that several aspects of contemporary democracies appeal to fast and spontaneous moral intuitions that value coordination, conflict resolution, and exchange. The theory predicts that whenever moral intuitions and democratic principles align, people understand, support, and vigilantly monitor democratic norms and procedures. This ambitious theoretical framework will be subjected to extensive empirical testing combining innovative methods including experiments with adults and young children, as well as a large, 30-country comparative study. Based on these scientific insights, INFODEM develops an interactive online tool called a Democracy Advice Application, to educate citizens about democratic norms and procedures and the state of democracy. As a proof-of-concept, the application will be tested and disseminated in Hungary. The INFODEM project contributes to our understanding of human nature and the current challenges facing democratic systems. It also helps to identify the vulnerabilities of democratic regimes and aids pro-democracy stakeholders in designing interventions to strengthen democracy.