Direct democracy, political culture, and the outcome of economic policy: a report on the Swiss experience
Journal
European Journal of Political Economy
ISSN
0176-2680
ISSN-Digital
1873-5703
Type
journal article
Date Issued
2000-06-01
Author(s)
Abstract
Political culture in Switzerland is, to a large extent, influenced by its direct democracy. Compared to purely representative systems, direct democracy leads to a different type of communication among citizens and also between citizens and representatives. The opportunity of deciding for themselves on political issues provides citizens with incentives to collect more information. Because citizens are better informed, politicians have less leeway to pursue their personal interests. As a consequence, public expenditure and public debt are lower when citizens enjoy direct democratic rights. Citizens also feel more responsible for their community: tax evasion is lower in direct than in representative democratic systems.
Language
English
Keywords
Direct democracy
Public expenditures
Public debt
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
Refereed
No
Publisher
Elsevier
Publisher place
Amsterdam
Volume
16
Number
2
Start page
287
End page
306
Pages
20
Subject(s)
Eprints ID
15203