Legitimation crisis (concept)
Encyclopedia
In political science
a legitimation crisis is said to occur when a governing structure
still retains the legal authority
by which to govern, but is not able to demonstrate
that its practical functioning fulfills the end for which it was instituted.
Three characteristics may be linked with a legitimation crisis.
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
a legitimation crisis is said to occur when a governing structure
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
still retains the legal authority
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
by which to govern, but is not able to demonstrate
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
that its practical functioning fulfills the end for which it was instituted.
Three characteristics may be linked with a legitimation crisis.
- Policy incoherence: Government employees are so busy, they don't necessarily know what they are looking at.
- Institutional will is lost: Employees are not careful about tainting a government institution with decisions which may be seen as mistaken or unpopular.
- Loss of public confidence. The public begins to lose faith in the government to act efficiently and effectively.