Doctoral Dissertation Research: Democratization in Post-Colonial Societies: The Long-term Influences of Religion and Colonial Policy

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In exploring the sources of political democracy in developing nations, this project examines how religion indirectly promoted democracy in former British colonies. Because religious groups gained more independence from state control in British (and American) colonies, they had more power to fight for their interests in dealing with governments in the colonizing nations. For example, despite the opposition of most colonial governments, religious groups in British colonies advocated mass education in order to foster conversion. This led to high literacy rates and successful democracies in the colonized countries. To test these arguments, the project gathers data on education from missionary records, and merges the data with digitalized maps of British colonies. It also collects and codes reports from missionary committees. The findings help identify the mechanisms behind diverse colonial outcomes and contribute to literature on world systems and cultural imperialism.