The democratic power of higher education: the association between schooling and adherence to democracy in the city of São Paulo

Abstract Education is often seen as a solution to democratic deficits, but its role in shaping political attitudes is still poorly understood. This article investigates the association between schooling and adherence to democracy in São Paulo. Departing from a representative sample of 2,417 interviews, our analysis of the São Paulo context is shown to be timely for the study, since the city performs well in educational assessments and has a relevant history of political engagement. Using hierarchical regression models, it was found that schooling is a significant predictor of adherence to democracy, with higher levels of schooling correlating to greater adherence. Our results differ from the findings of other studies that consider Brazil as a whole. We find that access to higher education is a key factor for the valorization of democracy.

摘要 教育常被视作弥补民主赤字的有效路径，但其在塑造个体政治态度中的作用仍未得到充分厘清。本文以圣保罗市为研究场景，探讨受教育程度与民主认同之间的关联。本研究基于2417份访谈构成的代表性样本展开分析，鉴于圣保罗市在教育测评中表现优异且拥有深厚的政治参与传统，针对该市的分析具备显著的现实时效性。通过分层回归模型分析，研究发现受教育程度是民主认同的显著预测变量：受教育水平越高，个体对民主的认同度也随之提升。本研究结论与以巴西全国为研究对象的既有研究存在差异，进一步分析显示，接受高等教育的机会是强化民主价值认同的关键因素。