Quality of governance and regime support: Evidence from East Asia

Abstract

In this article I examine public evaluations of quality of governance in East Asia and analyze the effects of perceived governance quality on regime support. I distinguish between two modes of governance, democratic and law-based, and examine which mode of governance matters. It was found that East Asian democracies suffered various governance deficits in the eyes of their publics. It was also revealed that a weak rule of law remained the most notable governance malaise across much of the region. The micro-level analysis shows that perceived quality of governance shaped regime allegiance and institutional confidence but not all aspects of governance mattered. It was shown that law-based governance served as the major source of regime support regardless of regime types. On the whole, public support for the prevailing system of government across much of the region depended on quality of law-based governance as well as national economic performance. Yet, evidence indicates that democratic governance encourages citizen skepticism of the ongoing political order, supporting the thesis of assertive citizenship. Overall, the findings suggest that establishing a strong rule of law constitutes one of the major challenges to regime consolidation across much of East Asia.