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Political Self-Efficacy Tested

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 June 1987

Douglas Madsen
Douglas Madsen*
Affiliation:
University of Iowa
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Abstract

A subset of citizens in a democratic system directly test their political self-efficacy by petitioning government for assistance of one kind or another. Drawing on survey data gathered in India in 1967, this investigation focuses on the consequences of success or failure for perceived self-efficacy and for perceived government responsiveness. The analysis demonstrates that (1) successful petitioners come to enjoy a somewhat enhanced sense of self-efficacy but do not view government as particularly responsive, (2) unsuccessful petitioners do not see themselves as inefficacious but—possibly instead—do see government responsiveness in distinctly negative terms, and, (3) the kind of evidence that can help sustain a positive sense of self-efficacy will not suffice to undergird a belief in system responsiveness.

Type
Research Notes
Information
American Political Science Review , Volume 81 , Issue 2 , June 1987 , pp. 571 - 581
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 1987

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