Dysfunctional democracy(ies): characteristics, causes and consequences

Abstract

AbstractDemocratic systems are currently facing multiple challenges. A central component of this is the disintegrating relationship between citizens and political actors; citizens simply do not feel represented by political actors any longer. As a result, we are seeing a decline in trust in politicians, increasing questioning of whether democracy is still the best political system, and the question of whether citizens are not also developing a changed understanding of democracy. Research into the underlying causes of these developments inevitably leads to an analysis of the outcomes resulting from political activities, which, in addition to the desired results, also produce unintended consequences due to the complexity of politics and society (Almond et al., p. 32–34). In this case, we speak of dysfunction or dysfunctionality. In this paper, which also serves as an introduction to the special section “Dysfunctional democracy(ies): Characteristics, Causes and Consequences.” we give a brief overview of the concept of dysfunctionality of democratic systems in order to distinguish it from considerations of the deterioration of the quality of democracy. The focus of our reflections is not the institutional consequences of the various challenges. The focus is on why democratic systems are unable to adapt adequately to the demands of a changing environment and thus produce unintended outcomes that harm the democratic political system.