Ching-Hsing Wang

The effects of party fractionalization and party polarization on democracy

Previous research claims that there is a significant relationship between party systems and democracy. Although party system institutionalization is seen as a necessity for democratic consolidation, the effects of different party system characteristics on democracy are sharply contested. This study contributes to this debate through a systematic analysis of the relationship between two party system characteristics (party fractionalization and party polarization) and level of democracy. It is found that party polarization is positively related to the level of democracy in a country, i.e. the higher level of party polarization can produce the higher level of democracy. It is found, however, that there is no significant relationship between party fractionalization and level of democracy in a country.

Personality traits and individual feeling of national pride in South Korea

ABSTRACT Given the lack of studies on the relationship between personality and national pride, this study represents the first attempt to examine the impact of the Big Five personality traits on individual feeling of national pride in South Korea. The data for this study are obtained from the Korean General Social Survey (KGSS) of 2011 and 2012. The empirical evidence consistently shows that extraversion and agreeableness are significantly associated with individual feeling of national pride. Specifically, people who report elevated levels of extraversion and agreeableness are more likely to display a strong feeling of national pride. Contrary to theoretical expectations, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and openness to experience are not associated with individual feeling of national pride. Overall, the findings lend some support to the view that personality traits exert a significant influence on individual feeling of national pride and suggest that except for contextual factors, psychological factors also offer some explanatory power for individual feeling of national pride.

The Effects of Civic Consciousness and Civil Disobedience on Support for and Participation in Contentious Politics

This study examines the effects of civic consciousness and civil disobedience on individual attitudes toward, and participation in, contentious politics. Using the newly collected survey data on civic consciousness and civil disobedience in Taiwan in 2015, this study finds that both civic consciousness and civil disobedience are significantly associated with individual support for and engagement in contentious politics. Specifically, people with strong civic consciousness and civil disobedience are more likely to support the Sunflower Movement and take part in contentious political activities such as rallies, marches, and strikes. The findings imply that as the ideas of civic consciousness and civil disobedience prevail in a democracy, the public will be more likely to choose to use contentious political activities to express their opinions instead of institutional and legal approaches when the government is unable to respond to public needs in a timely manner.