Food or vote: the effects of Confucian values on support for democracy

Abstract Why do democracy supporters abandon their pursuit of a democratic system? Existing scholarship highlights how materialist incentive strategies employed by elites contribute to regime resilience; however, the cultural norms that motivate popular response to incentives remain unclear. We argue that East Asian individuals influenced by Confucianism interpret democracy through instrumental rationality, resulting in pragmatic democratic support. Ordinary citizens recognise the abstract ideals of democracy but hesitate to prioritise the democratic system over material well-being in trade-offs. To identify genuine supporters of democracy, this paper develops two conceptual tools: ‘minimum support for democracy (MSFD)’, which acknowledges the fundamental value of democracy, and ‘priority support for democracy (PSFD)’, which prioritises democratic principles and institutions over competing values. Using data from the latest fifth Asian Barometer Survey (2018–2022), our results suggest that Confucian values are compatible with the MSFD but simultaneously undermine the PSFD. Through mediation analysis, we further find that the instrumental understanding of democracy embedded within Confucianism drives people to abandon the PSFD. These findings shed light on the cultural roots of pragmatic democratic support, offering major implications for the prospects of democratisation in East Asia.