Political democracy, economic development, disarticulation, and social well-being in developing countries

The level of political democracy is hypothesized to have an independent positive effect on social well-being irrespective of either level of economic development or level of disarticulation of economies of developing countries, which is considered to be the most socially harmful structural feature created by dependency. In addition, political democracy is hypothesized to buffer the negative effects of disarticulation on social well-being. Findings from the analysis of data from eighty-two developing countries confirm these hypotheses. Political democracy showed a consistent positive effect on social well-being measures, and the least democratic countries were more vulnerable to the negative effects of disarticulation. These findings underscore the independent positive role that political democracy may play in improving social well-being in developing countries.