Do people in authoritarian countries have lower standards when evaluating their governments? An anchoring vignettes approach

Abstract

Why do people in authoritarian countries think more positively of their governments than people in democratic countries? Existing research suggests three explanations: (1) people in authoritarian countries lie; (2) people in authoritarian countries are indoctrinated; and (3) authoritarian governments have better performance than their democratic counterparts. In this study, I explore a fourth explanation – people in authoritarian countries apply lower standards. To test it, I apply the anchoring vignettes method developed by Gary King and others to original data from China, Vietnam, Russia, Mexico, and the United States, and from the cities of Beijing and Taipei. Adding a case study of Taiwan’s economic trajectory as a robustness check, I conclude that people in authoritarian countries tend to use lower standards when reporting political trust and government responsiveness, but the lower standards are likely to be caused by fast economic growth rather than authoritarianism.