Territorial autonomy arrangements and external political efficacy: evidence from the Mindanao region of the Philippines

This study considers the relationship between territorial autonomy arrangements (TAAs) and the self-perceived external political efficacy of the beneficiaries of these accommodations. We explore this relationship through the analysis of a data set containing the responses of over 3000 survey participants from the Mindanao region of the Philippines. The results lend support to the view that TAAs improve individuals’ perceptions of the representativeness and fairness of the political system and thereby enhance their personal sense of external political efficacy or belief that they are able to influence political and social institutions. We believe this finding is significant for two reasons. First, it demonstrates the value of TAAs as an effective means of conflict management. Second, it contributes to the existing literature exploring the different sources of political efficacy.