The political economy of state patronage of religion: Evidence from Thailand
| Published date | 01 September 2019 |
| Date | 01 September 2019 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/0192512118770178 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
https://doi.org/10.1177/0192512118770178
International Political Science Review
2019, Vol. 40(4) 576 –590
© The Author(s) 2018
Article reuse guidelines:
sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/0192512118770178
journals.sagepub.com/home/ips
The political economy of state
patronage of religion: Evidence
from Thailand
Tomas Larsson
St John’s College, University of Cambridge, UK
Abstract
Deciding the character and level of official patronage of religion are fundamental questions for all states. Yet
we know next to nothing about the determinants of such patronage. Are democratic governments more or
less inclined than autocratic ones to seek legitimacy through religious patronage? Is it ultimately ideological
struggles that determine the extent of government backing of religion? This article addresses these questions
through an analysis of the evolution of the state’s role as patron and protector of Buddhism (and other
officially recognized religions) in Thailand. Specifically, it examines changes in government expenditure on
Thailand’s religious bureaucracy from 1960 to 2016. It finds that democratization and ideological struggles
have been the main drivers of a significant expansion of government spending on religious patronage.
Keywords
Religious legitimation, democratization, Buddhism, Thailand
Introduction
The challenges rulers face in managing religion in ways that support their political projects has in
many polities resulted in the creation of state agencies dedicated to the support and control of reli-
gious organizations. In 2008, more than 54% of countries around the world had such religious
bureaucracies.1 Yet, there is marked variation, across time and space, both in the purposes for and
degree to which such agencies, alongside other arms of the state, intervene in religious affairs, and
with what effects. Some of this variation is reflected in existing studies of state–religion arrange-
ments (Sezgin and Künkler, 2014). Quantitative cross-national studies have shed important light
on the character of state involvement in religion across the world. They have found that democra-
cies tend to have a greater degree of separation between religion and state than autocracies, and that
economically more advanced societies tend to adopt more secularist approaches toward religious
affairs (Fox, 2006). However, these and similar studies have generally, and for understandable
Corresponding author:
Tomas Larsson, St John’s College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 TP1, UK.
Email: thl33@cam.ac.uk
770178IPS0010.1177/0192512118770178International Political Science ReviewLarsson
research-article2018
Article
To continue reading
Request your trial