Institutional confidence and democratic consolidation in Latin America

Citizen confidence in the institutions of their nations is critical to democratic consolidation in Latin America. The data provided by the Latinobarómetro survey in 1995 mark the beginning of significant empirical investigation in this realm. While longitudinal comparisons are not yet possible, institutional confidence for the major countries as of 1995 can be probed. This study considers three levels of generality: the comparative study of institutions in the region; patterns of confidence related to political culture; and the degree of political learning derived from the repressive dictatorships of the 1970s and 1980s. John D. Martz is Distinguished Professor of Political Science at the Pennsylvania State University. He is also the editor of this journal.