STATEWORK

summary

Can better public services strengthen democracy? STATEWORK examines whether improving citizens’ everyday experiences with the state can increase political trust, strengthen democratic resilience, and reduce support for far-right and other anti-system parties. The project starts from a simple premise: citizens experience the state not only through elections and political debates, but also through public services in their everyday lives—from roads and public transport to youth facilities and interactions with local administrations. When these services work well, citizens may perceive the state as more capable, responsive, and fair.

But investments alone may not be enough. We therefore examine when improvements in public services translate into democratic support: whether they produce tangible improvements, whether citizens actually perceive these changes, and whether they attribute them to political actors and institutions.

Empirically, STATEWORK combines quasi-experimental analyses, surveys, and field experiments across three domains: large-scale infrastructure investments, targeted investments in services and facilities for young people, and everyday interactions with public administration. By studying these different settings, we aim to identify whether, when, and why making the state work better can strengthen democratic resilience and reduce support for the far right.

Project title:

Making the State Work? The Effects of Public Service Investments on Democratic Resilience (STATEWORK)

Principal investigators:

Heike Klüver, Markus Kollberg

Funding:

Fritz Thyssen Foundation, 01/2027–12/2028